Sugar Factories Privatisation Deadline Extended by Two Months

Aug 5 , 2023


The bid proposal submission date for the eight state-owned sugar factories is pushed by two months, following the need for a prolonged assessment period. The international bid to privatise Arjo Dedessa, Kessem, Tana Beles, Tendaho and the series Omo Kuraz sugar projects was floated by the Ministry of Finance and Ethiopian Investment Holdings last August where over 20 investors have shown interest. Omo Kuraz II and III, built by a state-owned Chinese firm, China National Complete Plant Import Export Corporation (COMPLANT) began production following several postponements and changes in management over their 12-year history. The Omo-Kuraz III plant, erected at the cost of 290 million dollars in the Southwestern Regional State, 900Km from the capital, has a daily production capacity of 10,000qtl of sugar. Omo Kuraz V has been on hold as the primary creditor stalled loan disbursements to the contractor, Jianglian International Engineering Co. (JJIEC). Officials believe the initiative is one of the efforts to transition the factories into a competitive market structure and strengthen private sector growth. An extension of the deadline is expected to provide bidders additional time to prepare comprehensive bids while the instructions for the requests will remain unchanged, according to the announcement made by the two institutions.


Radar

New Unit to Oversee City Tax Audits

The Addis Abeba City Administration Revenues Bureau has launched a new work unit to ensure the quality of tax audit decisions through a re[1]auditing procedure. According to Adane Sule, the head of the bureau's office, the new audit quality assurance unit will seek to address gaps and malpractices that previously existed due to the absence of a similar body to verify tax audit decisions. He asserts that the unit's main goal is to re-audit decisions, verify their quality and relevance, and correc...


Radar

Shipping Behemoth Beats Profit Target Despite Cargo Dip

Ethiopian Shipping & Logistics (ESL) announced its six-month performance report for the fiscal year, revealing a mixed outcome. While it achieved 95pc of its operational service target, handling 2,880,187tn of cargo, this represents a slight decrease compared to the same period in the previous fiscal year. The ESL attributed this dip primarily to global difficulties, notably Red Sea shipping disruptions. Despite these hurdles, the company reported exceeding its profit targets. Projecting...


Radar

Customs Hits Revenue Target, Cracks Down on Smuggling

The Ethiopian Customs Commission announced that it has exceeded its revenue collection target for the first six months of the fiscal year. The Commission collected 203.75 billion Br, surpassing the planned 190.9 billion birr by 106.73pc, representing a 106.7 billion Br increase compared to the same period in the previous fiscal year. Commissioner Debele Kabeta noted that coordinated efforts with other institutions to prevent contraband contributed to the successful outcome, resulting in the seiz...