ISLAMABAD: The Trading Corporation of Pakistan (TCP) has issued an international tender to sell and export 107,739 metric tonnes of white refined sugar from stocks imported last year, European traders said on Monday.
The deadline for submitting price offers is September 28.
The tender follows the Economic Coordination Committee’s (ECC) approval on August 20 to invite international bids for the export of 108,000 tonnes of surplus sugar held by TCP.
The stock represents the remainder of 300,000 tonnes imported last year on the recommendation of the Steering Committee on Sugar, constituted with federal cabinet approval. The tender process is to be conducted under the Public Procurement Regulatory Authority Rules, 2004.
The decision comes as the Pakistan Sugar Mills Association (PSMA) has been pressing the government to permit exports of surplus sugar, arguing that excess inventories and depressed prices are putting financial pressure on mills and sugarcane growers.
On August 13, PSMA sent its third letter to National Food Security and Research Minister Rana Tanveer Hussain, warning of a potential liquidity crunch ahead of the next crushing season and seeking immediate permission to export excess stocks.
According to the association, Pakistan had 3.171 million tonnes of sugar stocks as of July 31. Based on average monthly consumption of 564,196 tonnes, it estimated that around 1.974 million tonnes would be required to cover domestic demand for the three-and-a-half months to November 15.
PSMA consequently projected that around 1.197 million tonnes of sugar could remain in stock when the next crushing season begins, and has argued that allowing exports would help reduce the surplus and improve liquidity in the industry.
The TCP tender, however, relates specifically to previously imported government-held sugar stocks rather than the wider surplus held by the domestic sugar industry.
