Question-and-Answer Session
Operator
(Operator Instructions) Your first question comes from the line of Jonathan Lichter – Sidoti & Company
Jonathan Lichter – Sidoti & Company
It looks like you won’t be restarting the Gramercy powdered sugar line, what’s the reason for that?
Hal Mechler
We’ve evaluated alternatives on the powdered sugar line at Gramercy and at this time we think it makes more economic sense to use the new facility in Savannah which will have the capacity to produce what, by adding a shift, will have the capacity to produce what was produced in Gramercy.
And that was a better economic choice then retrofitting and improving the facility in Gramercy.
Jonathan Lichter – Sidoti & Company
Can you give us just an overall timeline in terms of percentage of the plant that will be up and running at Port Wentworth throughout fiscal 2009.
Hal Mechler
Let me see if I can broadly tell you where we are, liquid sugar production which began in November, will get up to about I’d call it 10% of the capacity of the Port Wentworth facility. When we start granulated bulk shipments in the early part of 2009 that will take us up to nearly 50% of capacity in Georgia. And then the remaining capacity will come online as the silos are completed and packaging lines are brought up and that process will not start until the summer and be completed by the fall.
Jonathan Lichter – Sidoti & Company
It seems like, I think compared to last time, it’s a little bit later, then you had originally thought. What’s the reason for that?
Hal Mechler
It is a little bit later, there was the primary reason is there was damage to our granulation capacity in Port Wentworth that we hadn’t been aware of until we got in to inspect some of the equipment and it required us to replace some additional equipment not in the original timeline or the original plan.
Jonathan Lichter – Sidoti & Company
Can you also give us a sense of the size of the lawsuits that have been filed in Georgia?
Louis Bolognini
We have 19 lawsuits pending.
Jonathan Lichter – Sidoti & Company
What are they seeking?
Louis Bolognini
They are seeking monetary damages for injuries and loss of life, but there are no specific prayers for relief.
Jonathan Lichter – Sidoti & Company
So there are no specific figures there.
- To read the full transcript on Seeking Alpha, click here »




