Displaying items by tag: Nepal
Sri Lanka: Nepali entrepreneur Binod Chaudhary has submitted a US$75m proposal to the Sri Lanka government to build a cement plant on the Jaffna Peninsula in northern Sri Lanka. According to Daily News, a Sri Lankan online news portal, Chaudhary has invested an estimated US$200m in several projects in Sri Lanka. He has been investing substantially in Sri Lanka ever since he acquired a substantial stake in the Taj Lanka Hotels of the island nation in 2000.
Dangote shows US$550m interest in Nepal
01 May 2013Nepal: Nigerian cement producer Dangote Cement has formally expressed interest to build a US$550m cement plant in Nepal. Investment Board Nepal (IBN) has received an application from Dangote, according to a press release from the IBN.
IBN CEO Radhesh Pant also confirmed to Nepalese newspaper República that Dangote is looking for mines in Nepal. Dangote has expressed interest in setting up a plant in the western Nepalese district of Surkhet.
Nepal seeks US$11.5m loan for Udayapur Cement plant
17 April 2013Nepal: The Nepalese Ministry of Industry intends to petition the Russian government for a US$11.5m grant to upgrade equipment at the Udayapur Cement Factory, the country's largest state-owned cement plant.
"The loan that we are looking for from the Russian government is solely to replace machine equipment parts," said Uma Kanta Jha, secretary of Ministry of Industry. Previously the ministry asked the Russian government for a grant for the Janakpur Cigarette Factory.
Key problems besetting the Udayapur Cement include a lack of raw materials, ageing machinery, overstaffing and mounting debts. The Nepalese government's procurement policy has been blamed for making it difficult to source raw materials from India, such as coal. Currently the factory has 549 permanent staff on its payroll. The plant incurred a loss of US$10.2m in 2010 - 2011 and has a cumulative loss of US$205m. The company last released audited financial results in 2004 - 2005.
Nepal: The Nepal Bureau of Standards and Metrology (NBSM) has been inundated with applications for the Nepal Standards (NS) mark from more than 24 cement producers. The rush was prompted by the bureau's April 2013 deadline for cement plants to obtain NS certification or face closure.
The bureau has recently launched a crackdown against cement companies selling their products without the NS logo or using it illegally. In February 2013 it shut four cement plants including Ambe, Butwal, Reliance and Shree for using the NS logo illegally and producing substandard materials. NBSM director general Ram Adhar Sah said that 26 out of the 28 cement plants producing cement without obtaining the NS logo have applied for it.
According to the Cement Manufacturers' Association of Nepal (CMAN), there are 44 cement factories in Nepal producing around 150 brands. However, the bureau said that only 16 companies had received the NS logo so far, and that the rest had been using it illegally or not at all. Even producers who have acquired the certification have been using the branding illegally across different product lines.
CMAN president Atma Ram Murarka said that the bureau's move followed its request to the government. Though imported cement has secured a larger share of the Nepali market, local cement producers conduct transactions worth US$346m/yr, according to CMAN.
Nepal heading towards self-reliance in cement
15 February 2013Nepal: Nepalese cement plants are increasingly using their self-produced clinker for cement production in Nepal. In 2011 three cement manufacturers, Siddhartha, Bridge and Supreme, all based in the Lumbini Industrial Corridor, used to rely on clinker imported from India. Now, they produce more than 90% of the clinker that they require. These highlights show that areas of the country are slowly moving towards self-reliance on clinker.
According to cement producers quoted by the Katmandu Post, Nepal requires around 3Mt/yr of clinker. Of the total demand, only 18% is fulfilled by domestic production. With such demand, more domestic cement producers are starting clinker production. Sarbottam Cement, promoted by Saurav Group, and another cement factory of Dugar Group are also planning to start clinker production.
"There are a lot of hassles while importing clinker from India. If the industrial environment is improved, clinker import will not be required within the next three years," said Rajesh Agrawal, managing director of Argakhachi Cement. "It will save US$416.7m/yr."
In a bid to make the country self-reliant on clinker, the government recently decided to ban clinker imports within five years. According to the Industrial Promotion Board, domestic cement producers should either produce clinker on their own or manufacture cement by using clinker produced by Nepalese manufacturers after the imposition of the ban.
Bishal Cement begins operations
01 August 2012Nepal: Bishal Cement Industries (BCI) formally commenced operation on 28 July 2012. The factory based in Manahiya VDC-4 in the Rupandehi district, produces 300t/day of OPC and 400t/day of PPC brand cement.
"We are planning to use 70% and 30% of the total capacity to produce Pozzolanic Portland Cement (PPC) and Ordinary Portland Cement (OPC)," said Jayendra Chudal, executive director of the company.
Costing over US$5.6m the factory has an inbuilt dust controller and six dust bag collectors to control the emissions. The company has been sourcing raw materials such as gypsum from India, Pakistan and Bhutan but using locally produced clinker. Direct employment opportunities have been provided to 150 skilled and semi-skilled workers.
With the opening of Bishal the number of cement factories operating along the Bhairawa-Lumbini Industrial corridor has reached 11. Producers estimate that Nepal has been importing 30% of its cement from India to meet its total domestic demand for 25Mt.
Two new plants for Nepal by March 2012
20 December 2011Nepal: Two large cement factories, which are nearing completion in Dudhrash and Gogli in Dang, are preparing to commence production in early 2012. It is expected that the two plants will replace around 10% of the cement imports that currently come from India.
Basu Pandey, director of Sonapur Cement Factory in Dudhrash, said that construction work has almost been completed. "Some technical work is remaining and we hope to finish that within a month," he said, adding that the company will begin test-production by the end of December 2011. "We will be able to launch the product in the market within two months," he added. According to Pandey, Sonapur Cement Factory targets to produce around 700t/day of cement.
Sonapur Cement Factory is launching its products under the brand of 'Sona Cement'. It will manufacture OPC and Portland Pozzolana Cement. Sonapur has invested a total of US$415m on the project.
The other factory, which will brand its products as Ghorahi Cement, is also preparing to bring its products in the market within two months. Bikash Sharma, factory coordinator of Ghorahi Cements, said, "Test production will begin from February 2012 and the final production will start in March 2012."
Ghorahi Cement Factory is targeting to produce 1200t/day. Located in Laxmi in Dang, it plans to double its production in the future. "We will double our daily production to 2400t/day in a year's time," Sharma said, adding that Ghorahi Cement Factory would become the largest cement factory in the country. Both of the factories will use limestone from local mines of Dang and surrounding districts, which are more than 200 years old.