New Nepalese plant starts production

Surya Nepal has started production at its new cigarette plant at Seratar in the district of Tanahun, according to a story in Republica.

The company has invested NPR4.5 billion in the factory, which employs about 200 people and is set on 145 ropani (7.3 ha).

Currently, the factory is running 16 hours a day in two shifts, but the plan is to operate it around the clock. “We can produce 10 million sticks of cigarettes in a day by operating the factory for 16 hours,” said Ravi KC, corporate vice president of Surya Nepal.

The company had been producing cigarettes from its plant in Simara for the past 22 years, but the new plant is the first to be built in the hilly regions.

Local industrialists say the opening of such a big factory in western Nepal will encourage other investors to open factories in Pokhara and surrounding areas.