Himal Cement Industry (Nepali: हिमाल सिमेन्ट कारखाना) was a state owned
cement factory of
Nepal. It was established in 1967 and was the first and biggest cement industry of Nepal till it shut down in 2002. The capacity of the plant was 160 TPD in 1975. After renovation, the capacity was increased to 200 TPD. The industry is remembered for its historical significance as it substantially increased the cement demand in Nepal for development works. Prior to its construction, cement was imported from India, Singapore and European countries.
History
Himal Cement Industry was located in
Chobhar
Chobhar (or Chovar, or Chobar) is a village in Kathmandu District in the Bagmati Zone of central Nepal and part of Kirtipur Municipality. At the time of the 1991 Nepal census it had a population of 5,627 living in 1,109 households.
Chobhar is know ...
,
Kirtipur in the suburbs of Kathmandu (it is now occupied by the
Chobhar Dry Port
The Chobhar Dry Port () is a dry port in Kirtipur, Bagmati Province, Nepal.
In January 2019, then prime minister KP Sharma Oli laid the foundation stone for the port. The dry port spans over 11.77 hectares of land and it is estimated that it ...
). The project was originally constructed with a financial aid from Germany. The production line was delivered in 1967 and the operation started in 1975. The initial design capacity was 48,000 tonnes of cement annually accounting for about 18% of Nepal's cement demand. But the production was far below. The plant was rehabilitated in 1986 by a Chinese supplier with installation of electrical filters for dust removal and additional mills. The factory had clinker production, grinding and packaging facilities.
Due to technical problems the plant was shut down briefly in 1990. The plant was finally shut down in 2002 after a large opposition by the locals concerning dusts and
air pollution.
Current status
The land of the factory is now used to develop a dry port by ''Nepal Intermodal Transport Development Board'' with the loan assistance from the
World Bank. The dry port will contain warehouses, parking lot, litigation shed, administrative buildings, quarantine, bank and other required facilities for customs clearance. The dry port will have a capacity of about 600 containers and parking facility for about 350 trucks. However, the locals demand that land be utilized only after consulting them.
See also
*
Udayapur Cement Industry
Udayapur Cement Industries Limited ( ne, उदयपुर सिमेन्ट उद्योग लिमिटेड) is a cement industry run by the Government of Nepal. The factory is located at Jaljale
Jaljale is a village developmen ...
, another state owned cement industry of Nepal
*
Herbs Production & Processing Co. Ltd., state owned herb industry of Nepal
References
{{reflist
Industry in Nepal
1987 establishments in Nepal
Government-owned companies of Nepal
Cement companies
2002 disestablishments in Nepal