The proposed one-year plan, which was recently presented at the Ministry of Commerce and Supplies (MoCS), is set to get NTL´s board of director´s approval within a couple of days.[break]
To finance its expansion plan, NTL is arranging Rs 652 million by selling of 18 ropanis of land at Teku. It plans to borrow the rest from different banks and financial institutions.
NTL is opening five petrol pumps in Kathmandu and six in major cities like Pokhara and Bhairahawa at the cost of Rs 70 million. NTL is already operating a petrol pump in Teku, while preparations are underway to start another pump in Pokhara.
It is investing Rs 32.3 million to expand its cement trade to 2,400 bags (50 kg) a day and another Rs 150 million to start trading of chemical fertilizers to intervene the market and end private sector. NTL has been selling different cement brands manufactured by state-owned manufacturers - Hetauda Cement Factory and Udaypur Cement Factory.
Similarly, NTL will mobilize Rs 110 million to maintain buffer stock of 10,000 tons of sugar, Rs 50 million to purchase goods confiscated at customs points, Rs 70 million to purchase duty-free goods, and Rs 100 million to open new outlets in commercially viable areas in the Valley -- Kalanki, Maharajgunj, Koteshwar, Baneshware and Jawalakhel.
“We have plans to invest Rs 2.77 billion. We will arrange Rs 650 million by selling our land plot to the government or other public enterprise, while the rest will be borrowed from different banks and financial institutions,” said Gopal Ghimire, spokesperson of NTL. Ghimire said the plan will be forwarded to the MoCS for approval soon.
- Opening 11 new petrol pumps across the country
- Resuming trading of chemical fertilizers
- Expanding cement trade
- Opening five new showrooms in the Valley
- Selling 18 ropanis of land in Teku
- Earning annual profit of Rs 26.2 million
Through its expansion plant, NTL, which has accumulated loss of Rs 440 million, expects to earn profit of Rs 26.2 million in 2011/12. The state-owned trading firm is also planning to sell off its old machineries, liquor and electronic goods to raise additional fund for the projects. Ghimire said NTL has goods worth Rs 280 million in stock. It has been facing loss following the government´s decision to close duty-free shops - the major source of income for the state-owned trading firm.
NTL had proposed a three-year master plan worth Rs 1.5 billion in January, floating a number of projects like opening a Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) bottling plant in Tarai and 20 petrol pumps in different parts of the country. NTL management had proposed to sell its 18 ropanis of land in Teku and 50,000 units of shares of Bishalbazar Company to raise fund for the projects and its restructuring.
The proposal, however, is gathering dust at the Ministry of Finance for the last eight months.
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