The Oyo Sugar and Derivatives Industries Limited factory in Iseyin, Oyo State, has entered the commissioning and test-running stage after more than a decade of development.
The development marks a major step towards commercial sugar production at the 300-tonnes-per-day greenfield factory, established under Nigeria’s Sugar Master Plan Backward Integration Programme.
The National Sugar Development Council (NSDC) said its financial support for the project has reached about ₦2.2 billion, covering the core sugar mill as well as operational and sugarcane development support.
The Oyo State Government has also invested about ₦850 million in the project through its state-owned Pacesetter Holdings Limited.
The factory is projected to produce between 24 and 27 tonnes of brown sugar and about 18 tonnes of molasses daily when fully operational.
Beyond processing, the project is expected to create more than 500 direct jobs and integrate about 1,000 sugarcane farmers through an out-grower scheme, linking local farmers to the industrial processing plant.
The commissioning phase is being supported by a technical team from Saba Exports Limited, an Indian sugar technology company, which is overseeing pre-commissioning activities and equipment testing at the factory.
The project is part of Nigeria’s wider effort to increase domestic sugar production and reduce reliance on imported sugar by developing integrated production systems around locally grown sugarcane.
The Iseyin plant is expected to provide a market for sugarcane farmers in the area while creating additional economic activity across farming, transportation, processing and related services.
The move into test-running also brings the project closer to its intended commercial operations after years of development and investment by the federal and Oyo State governments.
Once fully operational, the factory’s processing capacity and planned farmer-outgrower network are expected to strengthen Oyo State’s position in Nigeria’s emerging sugar value chain while contributing to the country’s broader drive for greater domestic production.
