Weather: October and November were very wet months. We registered respectively 441 mm of rain vs 255 mm as historical average for October and 427 mm vs 193 mm as historical average for November. For the calendar year 2017, we already registered 1,000 mm rain above the 12 months historical average, and December is forecasted to be humid.
Nevertheless, the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) is announcing for 2018 the likely arrival of the opposite phenomenon for the region with El Nina event.
Sowing: Over 1,000 hectares have been sowed so far and around 250 hectares are in progress, delayed by weather conditions. Our target for this campaign is to produce 9,000 tons of paddy rice.
The planted area is developing very well as you can see, thanks to the heavy rains which irrigate naturally the fields (ie less artificial irrigation via pumping is required). What helps the development of the crop on one hand is hurting the end of the sowing.
Optimization of the irrigation system: As previously mentioned, we are performing some adjustment in the irrigation system in order to have a more efficient and secure use of water. Part of them have been completed like the direct connection of the main pump station with the Master channel, short cuts in some connections and aerial filling system of key channels, generating future efficiencies in maintenance.
Remaining adjustments are going to be performed after the harvest will be completed in February as we want to connect the Master channel to the artificial lake (Reservoir).
