Nawalparasi: a hub of cement production set to grow

Nawalparasi is already firmly established on the map as one of Nepal’s most industrialised rural districts. Located between Rupandehi to the west and Chitwan to the east, it’s exactly on the half-way mark along the Mahendra East-West Highway. Major industries like Chaudhary Udhyog Gram (CUG), Bhrikuti Pulp and Paper Factory, and Lumbini Sugar Industry and Triveni Distilleries, are already there. But above all, the district is known for its large cement production sector – and that’s just about to grow bigger!

Earthquake reconstruction and projects like new airports and highways means that demand for cement is set to explode, and domestic as well as international companies are moving in for a share. Many producers prefer to set up shop – like in the past – in Nawalparasi. Sarbottam Cement is preparing to press the start-button on two freshly installed plants, aiming to fill 30,000 sacks of cement the first year already, while Shivam Cement – a private Chinese-Nepali joint venture – is in a rush to build a bigger factory geared to produce 120,000 sacks every year!

The investments are not small either. Sarbottam Cement, established by the domestic Saurabh Group, has already pumped 4 billion rupees into its factory, while Hongshi-Shivam Cement has invested 2 billion rupees with more to come, and those are just the most recent examples! In fact, in the last few years entepreneurs have poured in 65 billion rupees in new cement plants in Nawalparasi altogether, and that means jobs too. As a case in point, Sarbottam Cement now employs 200 people, and cement production stimulates other sectors too, like transportation.

So, why Nawalparasi? First of all, the short distance to India, where it’s easy to buy necessary implements, is attractive to many companies. Plus it’s a matter of the district’s location right on the halfway mark along the Mahendra Highway: access to markets both east and west can’t get much easier than that. The quality of the infrastructure is relatively good, too. Damodar Poudel, a chief executive in the business, explains in short: “As investors look for road access first, cement factories are concentrated near the highways”.

With demand for cement set to explode, even more companies might soon throw out the anchor in Nawalparasi. But at the same time, a few other districts are lining up in the race too. Will Nawalparasi keep the lead – and what’s the bigger picture in Nepal’s booming cement sector? Here’s more!

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