2023-06-15 15:17:49
A plant for the benefit of marabou coal, in Alquízar! With what productions? The question appeared in the voice of some locals after the inauguration of a center for the treatment of this exportable item, with the purpose of marketing it in European markets.
TRUE. Neither the municipality nor the territory rank among the largest coal suppliers on the Island; however, it was the geographical proximity to the Mariel Special Development Zone (ZEDM) that aroused the interest of the Empresa Nacional de Frutas Selectas, with vast experience in the marketing of agricultural and forestry products.
Due to its abundant infrastructure, the area of the Álvaro Reynoso Credit and Services Cooperative (CCS), in the southern town, was ideal for carrying out this cooperative production.
Clear. The good results derived from previous negotiations between the renowned exporter and the people of Alquizar had a significant weight, in the desire of both parties to embark on the path towards the longed-for sustainability and the interest in the generation of foreign currency.
From the ZEDM to Europe, passing through Alquízar
The export of marabou charcoal destined for markets in Turkey, Spain, Italy and Saudi Arabia has a fundamental weight in the productive and economic results of Frutas Selectas.
Therefore, bringing productions from provinces such as Granma or Santiago de Cuba closer to our territory, is a fast and safe way to guarantee the timely permanence of the merchandise in the ZEDM and from there its transfer to the final destination.
“They are in charge of supplying the coal and the CCS is responsible for processing and shaping the containers,” explains Leonardo Dalmao Matos, head of Agroindustrial Processes at Álvaro Reynoso.
“They also supplied the bags, the sealers, and the coal processing machine, in charge of selecting the product for its quality, including the char; and separate particles or elements of earth, grass or other impurities that affect the final quality of this line, in keeping with the rigorous demands of the international market.
“For our part, we guarantee the workforce: a brigade made up of 15 men who are also in charge of loading and unloading the merchandise.
“For each benefited ton of first class coal, the cooperative will enter 50 MLC and a smaller amount for coal of another category or low diameter.
“In the plan, it is planned to make a daily container, which is equivalent to the processing of 20 tons of coal per working day; if we manage to maintain this pace, compared to 24 business days in a month, the profits will amount to 24,000 MLC”, added Dalmao Matos.
These workers turn the production of charcoal for export into their labor reason / Photo: Otoniel Márquez
Hard work, well paid
Beginning with its manufacture, selection and placement in bags, working with coal is one of the toughest tasks that a man faces; even when it is not up to them to handle the thorns in the fields, the insects, the biting cold or the intense heat that the ovens give off… those who handle the coal in Alquízar are barely able to see the soot in their eyes.
Alexander Calderón Rodríguez, is one of the men that integrates the new brigade that these days arrived at the Álvaro Reynoso. “It’s hard work, but we’ll see the benefits!” he assures and takes a quick account: “Compliance with the established plan will allow each of us to average 12 MLC per day, which at the current exchange rate (1 x 120) would be about 1,400 pesos in national currency, so in a month of work we must exceed 34,000”, he explains.
Win win
“25 percent of the income obtained through this cooperative production line with Frutas Selectas will be used to stimulate the rest of the cooperative members in MLC,” said Dalmao Matos.
“The other 75% will be for the development of the cooperative: acquisition of inputs, parts and pieces, to expand production, improve the vehicle fleet; and reach our producers with some level of scarce materials in the country, through the management of exporting companies”.
Lack of time; but above all training, discipline and stability in the men who handle the coal in the properties of the CCS alquizareña, to see such aspirations in “the concrete”.
Ambitions that will not only benefit the parties involved, but will serve as an incentive for local producers, who perhaps displaced due to lack of motivation, let go of the 200 MLC that a ton of marabou charcoal costs in the field and up to 220! if you are pre benefited!
Before sealing the bags, the workers also check their weight / Photo: Otoniel Márquez
Interesting look at export
Artemisa has 22 entities that have to contribute to exports, hence a priority for the current year is the consolidation and growth of these, compared to what was achieved in 2022.
Even so, according to figures offered during a check on the export of goods and services carried out last April, companies such as Flora y Fauna, Agropecuaria de Güira de Melena and Cítricos Ceiba are at 0% in charcoal.
Undoubtedly, the data constitutes a concern about which Gladys Martínez Verdecia, a member of the Political Bureau and First Secretary of the Party in the province, has alerted on several occasions; It turns out that after many hours dedicated to becoming exporting companies, now most of them do not export.
What prevents us, as a territory, from consolidating our international presence with regular and sustainable exports? Where did the expectations that one day began in Bauta the construction of one of the most modern charcoal processing plants in the country go? While we find the answers, others, better understood in the matter, take advantage of our potential and the enviable proximity to the ZEDM.
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