The Hon. Sunil Handunnetti

¶ 01 Hon. Speaker, please allow me a little time to conclude. This is an important, national issue, so I request the opportunity.

¶ 02 We have fully settled Rs. 427,857,218 in advances; that means we have no more advances to pay at Pelwatta. What remains are payments for future cane to be purchased. The only balance due there is final payments amounting to Rs. 448,402,070. For Sevanagala farmers, the total advances due to 422 farmers amounted to Rs. 127 million; of that, Rs. 125 million has already been paid, and the remaining Rs. 2,950,000 is being sent to their accounts as we speak, to be completed today.

¶ 03 Sevanagala transport allowances due totaled Rs. 81 million; Rs. 73 million has been paid, and the remaining Rs. 7,774,000 will be settled within this week. The only balance at Sevanagala is a final payment of Rs. 210,483,117. As the Lanka Sugar Company, out of Rs. 1,541 million due, we have already paid Rs. 871 million. The further balance to pay is Rs. 669,609,187. To meet these payments, we already have identified revenue of Rs. 918 million. By 1 August, we had earned Rs. 412 million from sugar sales, and by 15 August we are due to receive Rs. 568 million. In addition, we have earned Rs. 94 million from ENA 180163. Altogether, we have Rs. 918 million in revenue at hand.

¶ 04 We are now prepared to allocate funds for advances and transport costs for cane purchases going forward. This is not over; we will continue operations, and we have set aside funds to pay advances.

¶ 05 Fuel and equipment suppliers must be paid. We have fully paid July salaries for both factories. August salaries must be settled, and statutory payments due by law must also be made. While doing all that, we commence settlement of 40% of the final payment arrears from today.

¶ 06 Hon. Speaker, by stabilizing our sugar sale price and ethanol sale price, we have navigated past a risky period into a manageable position. Though there were easier options, we chose a difficult path to protect the future of the COMODO institution, ensure fair prices for farmers, and safeguard the sugar industry without plunging the institution into a financial crisis by the next Yala cultivation. We have now reached that point.

¶ 07 I must note, at this difficult moment, His Excellency the President, in his capacity as Minister of Finance, intervened and allocated Rs. 1 billion to us, released at Rs. 100 million monthly. With this, we will supply required fertilizer to farmers, increase the hectares under cane, strengthen our columns to improve ethanol quality, and, through the Lanka Sugar Company’s wholesale distribution network to be launched in all 25 districts within the next month, pass on price relief to consumers and reduce the sugar price using these funds.

¶ 08 Attempts by various Opposition groups to agitate farmers and turn Pelwatta–Sevanagala into an anti-government hub—called even “Anuragogama”—only encouraged us. Minimizing our losses and working collectively, we have overcome this crisis. I therefore thank the Leader of the Opposition and Opposition party leaders for the support we received, even while they organized protests.

¶ 09 Proceeding with proper payments, we will continue cane purchases, expecting a harvest exceeding 100,000 metric tons more than before. We will manage this jointly among all four production entities through a collective pricing mechanism. As payments are now largely concluded, I invite the Opposition to find another arena for agitation. Thank you.