Karnataka-based Nirani Sugars will invest ₹1,000 crore in Bihar’s Riga Sugar Mill, which began its operations from Thursday after a gap of four years, according to Bihar’s Industries Minister Nitish Mishra. Nirani Sugars will also increase the ethanol distillery capacity of the revived plant by over 15 times.

“I am very happy that the Riga Sugar Mill (of Sitamarhi district), which was closed since 2020, has started operation from December 26 after being acquired by Karnataka-based Nirani Sugars,” Mishra said. The foundation stone of the ₹1000-crore project for capacity expansion was laid by chief minister Nitish Kumar, Mishra said in a social media post.

The minister while sharing the breakup of investment, further said that sugarcane crushing capacity will be increased from 5,000 tonne crushed per day (TCD) to 10,000 TCD at an investment of ₹300 crore, while the capacity of co-generation unit will be increased from current 11 MW to 50 MW at an estimated cost of ₹75 crore and the ethanol distillery capacity to be increased from 45 KLPD to 700 KLPD (at ₹550 crore).

CBG unit to come up

Nirani will also set up a new compressed biogas (CBG) plant of 12 TPD at a cost of ₹75 crore, Mishra said, adding resumption of operation of the closed mill will certainly benefit local farmers and other stakeholders. The investment will also help generate new employment opportunities in the entire region, he said.

Riga Sugar Company Limited (RSCL) has sugar (5,000 TCD), ethanol (45 KLPD) and cogen of power (3 MW) and organic fertilizer factories in north Bihar’s Riga, which is on the Narkatiaganj- Samastipur section of railway line.

The promoter and promoter group had 68.47 per cent share until March 2021 and the remaining 31.53 per cent by public. The Kolkata Bench of National Company Law Tribunal had in April last year ordered commencement of liquidation of the Riga Sugar Company. However, Nirani group later emerged as the winner to take over the company, approved by NCLT.