March 29: Litmus Industries, the only electric cable manufacturer in the country which produces conductors for 400 KV transmission lines, is going to expand its production plant with an investment of Rs 4 billion.
The company, which is currently producing conductors from a plant in Butwal with an investment of Rs 1 billion, informed that it has started setting up a new plant in Parasi.
Saroj Mishra, vice president of the company, informed that the new plant will also produce HT cables for 400 kV transmission lines. Litmus is currently supplying conductors to the Inaruwa-Dalkebar 400 KV transmission line.
According to Vice President Mishra, Litmus was awarded a contract worth Rs 3.24 billion to supply 400 KV conductors to the transmission line. Litmus, a subsidiary of Ramesh Corp, has also bagged another contract worth Rs 5.5 billion to supply cables to the Nepal Electricity Authority.
The Butwal-based industry increased its production capacity in 2020 and started producing conductors required for 400 KV transmission lines. An industry set up with an investment of Rs 20 to Rs 30 billion, has expanded its capacity by adding an investment of around Rs 70 to Rs 80 billion. After the capacity expansion, it got a contract worth more than Rs 5.5 billion from Nepal Electricity Authority.
The company has also been supplying Nepal Ekarat Engineering Company (NEEC) with enamel wire and paper strips required for making transformers. Litmus also collaborated with NEEC to manufacture nearly 10,000 transformers.
Due to insufficient space within the Butwal industrial area, the company started the work of setting up a new plant in Parasi. Vice President Mishra informed that about Rs 4 billion additional investment is going to be made for the plant.
The purchase of land in Parasi is almost completed. The company, built in 2 bighas of land in Butwal, will set up a new plant in a huge area of about 15 bighas in Parasi. Litmus, which used to produce cables used in household bearings and small capacity transmission lines, is now planning to produce fans, LED lights, MCVs and other electrical appliances. Vice President Mishra said that the main focus of the company is on import substitution and export.
Litmus manufactures conductors and cables under the heading of Overhead Conductor (OHC). One of them is ACSR conductor. Its size is 20 to 500 square millimeters and is used in 11 to 400 KV transmission lines. Another is Aerial Bunched Cable (ABC). Its size is 25 to 150 square millimeters and is used in overhead distribution of 1.1 kV in urban areas. Litmus also manufactures XLPE covered conductors. Its size is 55 to 150 square millimeters and is used in 11 KVA overhead transmission line. Similarly, Litmus produces cables and wires targeting household and other uses. LV power cable of size 1.5 to 1000 square millimeters is made by litmus and is used in industrial and commercial areas.
Litmus has an annual production capacity of ACCSR conductors of 67,750 km. The company informed that the annual production capacity of ABC is 29,700 km, XLPE covered conductors is 12,900 km and power cables is 45,320 km.
Similarly, the company has an annual production capacity of 2,539,570 coils of house wiring cable. A coil has 90 meters of wire and production capacity of enamel and strips is 13,600 tons. The company says that even though there is so much production capacity, even 10 percent of the total production capacity has not been utilized yet.
Aggressive strategy for market expansion
In Nepal, there are about 20-22 industries producing household wires and 3-4 industries producing ABC cables.
“There are many manufacturers of wires for household use. Since the industry can be started with low investment, many people have started it. We have an annual production capacity of more than 2.5 million coils of house multicolored cables. However, we have not been able to sell more than 25,000 to 30,000 coils per month.” Said Mishra, adding, “There are many products in the market. Even from India, illegal wires are coming in against the standards, spoiling the market.”
