Russian sugar exports could exceed 100,000 tonnes, suppliers increasingly using auto transport - expert

MOSCOW. Oct 30 (Interfax) - Russia may increase sugar exports to over 100,000 tonnes in October compared to 80,000 tonnes in September. This forecast was presented by Vadim Gomoz, director of the Sugar.ru portal, at the Russian Plant Growing conference on Friday in Moscow.

Exporters are increasingly using motor vehicles this season, he said. Previously, the main shipments to Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan went by rail. "And now they are transporting it, but in quantities significantly smaller than this direction is capable of providing. So far, we're seeing that most of these exports are going by truck, which has never happened before. Russian logistics have never made it possible to effectively transport sugar by truck to Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan, but now this is possible due the difference in price," Gomoz said.

Based on his presentation, the cost of producing refined sugar from raw sugar in Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan is about 77 rubles per kg (excluding duties and VAT), while the current price in Russia is 53 rubles per kg (excluding VAT).

The sugar surplus in Russia this season is estimated at 600-700 thousand tonnes, he said. With stable consumption of 6 million tonnes per year, production could reach 6.6-6.7 million tonnes. In the near future, according to his forecast, exports could drop to 60,000 tonnes per month, "and this will eat up the expected surplus," he said.

As for the export of beet pulp, Gomoz said that this year there has been a shift from European to Asian markets. "Previously it went to Europe, now it has been redirected towards China, Turkey and Morocco. This means our beet sugar industry is resolving its issues," he said.