Nelson Gahadza-Senior Business Reporter
VISION Group, the new shareholders in Tongaat Hulett, say the immediate objective is to stabilise the business and return it to optimal performance after the sugar producer was negatively impacted by problems related to high debt, financial mistatement and mismanagement by the previous leadership.
The group also announced a comprehensive plan to revitalise the country’s sugar industry by stabilising production, increasing efficiencies and driving growth through investment and innovations.
This follows the conclusion of an acquisition agreement for Tongaat Hulett operations in December last year subject to the deal receiving all the requisite regulatory endorsements.
In his address during a press briefing in Harare yesterday, group director and shareholder, Mr Rutenhero Moyo, said Zimbabwe’s sugar industry had faced significant challenges in recent years, including declining production and high costs.
Mr Rutenhuro Moyo
“We are confident that with the right strategy and investment, the industry can be restored to its former glory.
“We are committed to stabilising production and driving growth in the sugar industry and with the right approach, we can increase efficiency, reduce costs and improve productivity,” he said.
Mr Moyo said the group’s plan included a focus on agricultural related disciplines, optimising agriculture performance, and growth through good governance.
“The Vision Group also plans to invest in new projects, including CO2 production, which can contribute to import substitution and save foreign currency.”
He added that the plan will not only benefit the company but also contribute to the country’s economic growth and development.
According to Mr Moyo, the Vision Group’s plan had been welcomed by stakeholders, including Government officials and industry experts.
The revitalisation of Zimbabwe’s sugar industry was expected to have a positive impact on the country’s economy, including increased foreign currency earnings and job creation.
Tongaat Hulett group chief executive officer Mr Gavin Dalgleish, similarly, said the group would explore opportunities in other attractive agricultural disciplines, optimise agriculture performance and drive business growth through good practices.
Tongaat Hulett group chief executive officer Mr Gavin Dalgleish
“The business is a very capital-intensive business. Every 10 years you have to re-plant your crop, which in itself is an investment.
“At the end of each season, you have to do substantial maintenance on hardware and equipment and there is a lot of capital that has to go into the business on a regular basis.
“But for now, focus is on stabilising that performance, gaining greater efficiencies out of what we have and then looking to grow from there through further investment,” he said.
Mr Dalgleish said there were other projects already on the table, incremental to what the group is already doing, which strategically made sense.
According to Mr Moyo, the group is currently on a roadshow in the various countries it has invested in.
He said from Zimbabwe, the group would go to its other markets namely South Africa, Botswana and Mozambique, where Tongaat has significant investments.
Vision Group successfully acquired Tongaat Hulett’s Zimbabwean operations, including Triangle Sugar Corporation (100 percent) and Hippo Valley Estates, which is listed on the Zimbabwe Stock Exchange (ZSE).
The deal was part of a larger transaction where Vision also acquired Tongaat Hulett’s assets across multiple Southern African countries.
Triangle Limited mill is one of the group’s two mills in Zimbabwe where the company produces sugarcane, ethanol and also refines raw sugar.
Hippo Valley, on the other hand, also operates a raw sugar mill, sugar estates and also produces power for its own use as well as feeding into the national grid.
Mr Moyo said the Zimbabwean operations were the flagship for the group, hence the decision to start the discussions of Vision’s journey in rebooting group operations in Zimbabwe.
“We had a programme of actually meeting all the regulators and all the stakeholders within the sugar value chain in Zimbabwe.
“We started off early this morning with a meeting with President Mnangagwa, just to give him an update of where we are on the transaction, and to thank Zimbabwe as well as the regulators for the support that they have given us on the transaction.
“Thereafter, we went to the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe (RBZ) and met with the governor and we advised them of the status, and they advised us on the status of our application, which we believe is being considered, and we are expecting to hear something from them shortly, probably in a week or two,” he said.
Mr Moyo added that the group also met Mutapa Investment Fund (MIF) officials after the sovereign wealth fund earlier expressed interest in acquiring shareholding in the Vision Group.
“We also met the Minister of Industry and Commerce and the Minister of Lands, Agriculture, Fisheries, Water And Rural Development as well as Provincial Minister for Masvingo Ezra Chadzamira.
“They were very kind to host us and we had a very successful meeting where we had a frank discussion about the state of the industry in Zimbabwe,” he said.
Tongaat Hulett Zimbabwe chief executive Mr Tendai Masawi, in an update of operations, said the mills had been running well since starting the crushing season on February 29, 2025.
Tongaat Hulett Zimbabwe chief executive Mr Tendai Masawi
“Deliveries from both ourselves and also the outgrowers are in line with our expectations and so far production has been running fairly well,” he said.
Mr Masawi said the group had crushed more than 860 000 tonnes of cane through the two mills.
“With that in line, we have also started our refinery which is geared to supply the bottlers, the likes of the beverage industries and the brewing industry. Apart from that, we have also started the ethanol plant,” he said.
Mr Masawi said the company is targeting to make close to about 29 to 30 million litres of ethanol which will be channelled towards the fuel market.
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