Amfac to sell LIHUE -- For sale: Two Kauai sugar mills and 150 years of history.
Kauai sugar mills
The two mills closed last year;
interest in the equipment is
expected to be highKauai harvest on hold
By Anthony Sommer
Star-BulletinAmfac/JMB's two sugar factories, Lihue Plantation and Kekaha Sugar Co., are up for sale, either as entire units or in pieces.
The sale is being handled by Aaron Equipment Co. of Chicago.
The two mills shut down production in November, idling about 400 workers -- the largest agricultural layoff in Kauai history. The closures left only two sugar mills in operation in Hawaii, one on Kauai and one on Maui.
Michael Cohen of Aaron Equipment said he could not discuss how much Amfac/JMB is asking for the two mills or how much interest there has been.
Sugar industry insiders say interest is likely to be high from companies in areas of the world where sugar is still profitable because most of the equipment in the plants would be very costly to build at today's prices.
The Kekaha Mill was last rebuilt in 1954 and was still considered the most modern in the state. The last major rebuild of the Lihue Plantation Mill was in 1935.
According to detailed plant descriptions provided by Aaron Equipment, there were no major additions or upgrades to either mill since the middle 1980s.
Left unclear in the Aaron Equipment descriptions of the plants is what is to become of the power plant at Lihue Plantation. Under an agreement approved by the Hawaii Public Utilities Commission, Amfac/JMB is required to keep the generating equipment available for a backup supply for Kauai Electric Co. for two years.Kauai Electric spokeswoman Jenny Fujita said she is not aware of any discussions regarding the sale of the mill and its impact on the power-generating equipment.
Lihue Plantation has for many years provided about 14 percent of the electricity sold by Kauai Electric on Kauai.
Meanwhile, more than 1,000 vehicles used at the two mills will be sold in an auction from the Radisson Resort on Kauai May 2.
"The sales (of the mills) could take place before, during or after the May 2 auction," said Cohen, who said he plans to attend the auction.
Auctioneer Bruce Baird of DoveBid Inc. will conduct the auction both for bidders attending the event and for those connected through the Internet. Baird said he expects worldwide interest in the equipment designed solely for sugar.
Included would be the large trailers used to haul cane from the fields and the giant claws used to load and unload them.
On the 'Net: http://www.aaronequipment.com/liquid_sugar.html