Nasir Group plans to build pharma, fertiliser plants

The photo taken in February shows construction of Nasir Glassware and Tube Industries going on in Mirzapur. Nasir Group plans to build a pharmaceutical plant, a plastic material making unit and a fertiliser factory. Photo: Star/File

The diversified Nasir Group has decided to set up three new different types of industries to expand its business activities to a wide variety of areas.
The group, which is one of the largest family-owned business conglomerates in the country, will set up a pharmaceutical plant, a BOPP (plastic material) making unit and a fertiliser factory soon to gear up its businesses.
“We are going fast with the pharmaceutical factory,” said Nasiruddin Biswas, managing director of Nasir Group.
“We are trying our best to buy an existing licence to save time to set up the pharmaceutical plant,” he told The Daily Star recently.
Pharmaceutical is an emerging and prospective industry in Bangladesh. Currently, there are around 250 pharmaceutical companies that meet almost all the domestic demands. The top 10 companies' market share is nearly 70 percent of the Tk 5,000 crore local market.
The group is also working with BOPP, which is a plastic material used in almost all types of packets. The BOPP plant will be the first of its kind in Bangladesh.
“We are talking to the suppliers of machines for the BOPP factory,” the managing director said.
He said Bangladesh imports BOPP products worth several hundreds crore taka each year.
The third project that the group is actively considering is a SoP (Sulphate of Potash) fertiliser factory. The government imports SoP and supplies it to the farmers at 60 percent subsidised price.
“We want to set up a SoP fertiliser factory. But we need to talk to the government on price fixation before undertaking the project,” said Biswas. SoP fertiliser is also used in tobacco cultivation to increase thickness of its leaf.
He said SoP helps ensure high quality, size, colour and high yield of crops.
Nasir Group, which started its business in a very small way with biri (traditional hand-made low-cost cigarette) making, now boasts of owning state of the art glass, melamine, printing and packaging, and footwear industries.
The group is now setting up a Tk 600 crore import substitute glassware and tube industry, which will be the first of its kind in the country.
Nasir Group's annual turnover now hovers around Tk 2,000 crore. It pays on an average monthly Tk 13 crore value added tax to the national exchequer.
Of the three new plants, the group will set up pharmaceutical first, Biswas said.
His daughter who is a foreign-educated pharmacist will lead the pharmaceutical plant, he noted.

sajjad@thedailystar.net