Lorry drivers will be fined if they are caught overloading their trucks- Bainimarama

With the 2019 sugar crushing season underway Prime Minister and Minister for Sugar Voreqe Bainimarama has warned lorry drivers that they will be fined if they are caught breaking the law by overloading their trucks.

Bainimarama says the maximum weight for any six wheeler truck is 16.5 tonnes for the 2019/2020 crushing season and it will drop to 15.5 tonnes in the next crushing season.

He says after the next two crushing seasons, Fiji Roads Authority and Land Transport Authority regulatory rules will apply as it does for trucks that are driven in other sectors.

Bainimarama says the excise duty on new trucks has fallen to zero and the fiscal duty on second hand trucks has fallen from 15 percent to 5 percent. He says this is the time for people in the sugar industry to upgrade their vehicles and get their older and inefficient trucks off the road.

Meanwhile, Bainimarama says they have made steady investment on Lautoka Sugar Mill and now have high expectations for its performance this year.

While launching the 2019 crushing season in Lautoka yesterday Bainimarama says they have already undertaken refurbishment of the mill’s diffuser last year and this year they will be upgrading Lautoka Sugar Mill’s ability to prevent juice overflows.

Bainimarama says a new $1 million electronic control system has been installed for the cane carrier saving time and money over the previous manual control process.

He also commissioned the 14 new rail cage bins at the Lautoka sugar mill worth about $650,000 and this has been funded by the European Union.

Bainimarama says this will increase the productivity of the Lautoka sugar mill.

Lautoka Sugar Mill crushed over 630,000 tonnes of cane last season and Bainimarama says this year they are looking to beat this figure not only because of they have modernized the Lautoka sugar mill but because of the commitment to every aspect of the sugar industry.

He says this year they have allocated $70.4 million to support the Sugar Industry, an increase of $8 million from the last financial year.

He says that despite the fact that the National Budget entered a period of fiscal consolidation, they have not cut a single dollar from the support they are giving to the Sugar Industry.

He has assured cane farmers that government will continue to fund the guaranteed cane price of $85 per tonne.

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