Nawalparasi district is set to become a hub of cement production with a large number of domestic and international investors pouring money into new factories in the area.

Entrepreneurs have spent more than Rs65 billion on new plants so far. Popular brands from China and India besides domestic companies have been exploring the area to build cement production plants.

Sarbottam Cement is preparing to launch Saurav and Sarbottam 2 brands of cement in the market within two months. The factory presently produces clinker, a raw material use in manufacturing cement.

The Rs10-billion company produces 1,200 tonnes of clinker daily. It fulfils the requirement of most cement factories in the country, the company claimed. Sarbottam has targeted producing 1,500 tonnes of cement (30,000 sacks) starting mid-April. The factory employs 200 people.

Meanwhile, China’s Hongshi Holdings Group and Shivam Holdings Nepal have joined hands to set up a Rs30-billion cement factory near Dumkibas and Sardi in the district.

Hongshi Holdings will invest Rs21 billion (70 percent) in the project while the Nepali partner will inject Rs9 billion. The company has already purchased 150 bighas of land to establish the plant.

The joint venture has been named Hongshi-Shivam Cement. The investors have claimed that their planned cement factory will be the largest in Nepal. The Hongshi-Shivam joint venture has targeted producing 6,000 tonnes (120,000 sacks) of cement daily. Initially, the company will be manufacturing 33-, 43- and 53-grade cement. CG Cement produces 1,200 tonnes of cement (2,400 sacks) daily from its Dumkibas plant, and it has been planning to double its production. CG has so far invested Rs2 billion.

Damodar Poudel, chief administrator of CG Cement, said they planned to open cement factories at Deurali and Sadeba in Palpa district with an investment of Rs3 billion. He added that the proposed plants would also produce cement under the brand name of CG Cement and that production would start next year. Another plant in Swathi, Butwal Cements, produces 600 tonnes of cement daily. It manufactures Dovan, Nirman and Butwal brands of the construction material.

Investors said that Nawalparasi was an ideal location to establish cement plants due to its proximity to the Indian border, making it easy to import raw materials.

Besides, Nawalparasi is located in the central part of Nepal allowing manufacturers to ship their products conveniently to any part of the country. “As investors look for road access first, it is natural that cement factories are mostly concentrated near the highways,” said Poudel. 

With the country looking towards major infrastructure development, mainly in the hydropower, airport and road sectors, cement has become a boom industry for foreign and domestic investors.