OREANDA-NEWS. September 13, 2011. Moldova's largest candy factory "Bucuria" will suspend its operation only if sugar providers fail to supply the quantity of sugar needed for production, "Bucuria" director Roman Treachin told a news conference.

Treachin said the factory was facing no operation or sale problems, stressing that the enterprise would stop working only if it is not supplied with sugar. "Presently, the enterprise's stocks of sugar have been fully exhausted, and we are using the quantity of sugar that we daily receive from the provider. We hope that the factory will not cease working, and that we will settle the sugar supply issue in the near future," the factory's director added.

The enterprise's financial director, Ecaterina Cechina, said the factory should receive another 100 tons of sugar from the provider, in line with the provisions of a contract signed last August. Nonetheless, this is not possible, as the supplier's sugar is meant for end consumers, and its price is not convenient for the factory. In these conditions, the factory's activity depends on the small quantity of sugar which the provider daily distributes to the factory, Cechina said.

In August 2011, the Agriculture Ministry allowed the import of 4,500 tons of sugar until the new harvest. Nevertheless, the factory cannot complete its sugar stocks by importing this sugar, as it has no import authorization.

The factory needs 40-50 tons of sugar daily to operate as normal. The enterprise's administration said the sugar shortage prompted them to cease selling expensive goods and cut exports.