17/06/2026
New lifeline for Tongaat Hulett
SA Canegrowers welcomes the agreement reached between the Industrial Development Corporation (IDC) and the Vision consortium regarding future funding for the business rescue of Tongaat Hulett.
Under the agreement, Vision and the IDC agreed on a pathway toward business rescue for Tongaat Hulett, and as such the business rescue practitioners have agreed to withdraw the liquidation application for the company.
The agreement provides funding to keep Tongaat Hulett operating in the short term and creates a pathway for the implementation of the business rescue plan, Vision’s ownership of Tongaat Hulett’s assets, and its eventual exit from business rescue.
For growers, workers and communities that depend on Tongaat Hulett, this agreement averts the immediate threat of liquidation and protects jobs and livelihoods across the sugar value chain.
“This agreement is a significant milestone in securing the future of the modern South African sugar industry. With the liquidation of Tongaat Hulett off the table, we hope that its mills and refinery can now focus on operating without interruption.
More than 17,500 supplying sugarcane growers rely on Tongaat,” said Higgins Mdluli, chairman of SA Canegrowers.
Tongaat Hulett is a key contributor to South Africa’s economy and to the stability of rural communities.
Tongaat Hulett operates three sugar mills and the country’s biggest standalone refiner of white sugar. White sugar is used in beverages, biscuits, and confectionary. For more than 130 years, the company has been a cornerstone of the national sugar value chain, which supports more than one million livelihoods.
“We would like to thank the government, especially the Department of Trade, Industry and Competition, and the IDC, for recognising the significance of the sugar industry to the national economy,” said Mdluli.
