Cement factories are springing up in Nawalparasi due to favourable investment environment. The district alone houses 5 cement factories running on high capacities. Nepal has a total of 17 cement factories.

Palpa, which shares a border with Nawalparasi, contains the largest limestone mine in the country. This allows cement factories located in Nawalparasi close proximity with the mine, located only 30-35 kilometres away. The close proximity allows factories to get their primary raw material easily.

Additionally, Nawalparasi’s closesness with the Indian border makes importing of other raw materials easy.

“Nawalparasi is the perfect place for cement factories due to a litany of reasons,” said Bharat Thapa, president of Federation of Nepali Chamber of Commerce and Industry (FNCCI), “It is close to the Indian border, it is located in the central part of the country and although Palpa contains the limestone mine, factories cannot grow there due to physical adversities of the Hilly region, which ultimately sends all the lime to the closest factory place: Nawalparasi.”

Another strong factor in Nawalparasi attracting investors is the price of land, which is low compared to other areas like Rupandehi, Chitwan or Makwanpur. There is an abundance of cheap land outside of residential areas in Nawalparasi. 

Major cement factories such as CG Cement, Sarvottan Cement, Palpa Cement receive endorsements from district locals as the factories are located far away from residential areas. 

Furthermore, these factories use modern technology to reduce noise and air pollution, bolstering their support from locals.

Last year, Hongshi Shivam Cement of Nawalparasi produced six thousand tonnes of cement daily during winter. With further improvements to its infrastructure, the same factory is aiming to double its output within two years. According to the factory director, Dipak Jha, the factor was established with investments from Chinese and Nepali investors worth Rs36 billion.

Similarly, Hiranganj Cement is also planning to expand its capacity from 1,200 tonnes per day to 1,800 tonnes per day. CG Cement is looking to improve its capacity from 1,200 tonnes per day to 2,400 tonnes while Palpa Cement will soon output 2,000 tonnes of cement daily.

According to Thapa, foreign companies such as India’s Reliance, Nigeria’s Dangote and China’s Houchin Construction, have started buying land in Nawalparasi to build cement factories.