On 11 September, U.S. Embassy officials returned to visit Omnicane in Britannia, which had hosted the launch announcement event for the U.S.-Africa Business Summit in the presence of the Prime Minister Dr. the Hon. Navin Ramgoolam and other dignitaries in December 2025. The Summit will be jointly hosted by the Corporate Council on Africa and the Government of Mauritius from 6-9 December at SVICC in Mauritius.
The CEO of Omnicane, Jacques M. d’Unienville, hosted the U.S. Chargé d’Affaires Craig Halbmaier and officials from the economic section for a tour of Omnicane’s facilities at La Baraque, showing the end-to-end process from milling operations to sugar processing and packaging, to the power plants and the ethanol distillery. The U.S. officials also had the opportunity to witness firsthand the bagasse, or sugarcane fibres, being burned to generate electricity, as a form of clean energy, and the associated automated control centre.
Omnicane’s Energy Contribution to Mauritius
In terms of its energy contribution to Mauritius, Omnicane is currently producing circa 25% of Mauritius’ energy supply, 80% of which comes from the power plants at La Baraque. The visit reaffirmed the importance of securing a reliable and flexible long-term baseload solution for Mauritius, noting that renewables like bagasse are likely to play a far greater role in the energy mix of the future.
Circular Economy and Innovation
Commenting on the visit, Jacques M. d’Unienville said: “I am very proud to host officials from the U.S. Embassy here on site at La Baraque as a natural follow-up to the launch of the U.S.-Africa Business Summit that was hosted in Britannia at Omnicane. The aim of the visit was to show how can take value out of the sugarcane in the concept of the circular economy, where the first byproduct is bagasse which is used to produce electricity.”
He added that Omnicane has established a carbon burnout facility to transform the ashes of the power plant into green cement, which is now used in the construction industry, and also a CO₂ treatment plant, where CO₂ produced in the fermentation of molasses can be transformed into CO₂ for all industrial uses and for dry ice for beverages, thus reinforcing Omnicane’s position as an energy producer which is committed to innovation and to the strengthening of the circular economy.
Sharing his perspective on the visit, Craig Halbmaier, U.S. Chargé d’Affaires, said: “We are excited to be back here at Omnicane in Britannia where the U.S.-Africa Business Summit was announced, and Mauritius is full steam ahead to host the Summit from 6-9 December.
U.S.-Africa Business Summit focus on Africa’s energy future
The question of how to prepare for Africa’s energy future will be addressed in several sessions at the U.S.-Africa Business Summit, which may offer invaluable insights for Mauritius. A roundtable will be held on the topic of “Building Reliable and Bankable Gas-Powered Energy Systems in Africa” while a high-level dialogue will consider Africa’s energy future: expanding access, fuelling growth and securing supply. In terms of securing critical power, a panel session on advancing U.S.-Africa nuclear energy partnerships for the 21st century will also be on the agenda. The critically important global role of flexible long term transitional power generation in the light of data centres feeding exponential AI growth will also be a key focal point.
