Nepal fertilizer supply hits record 538,436 metric tons as key subsidy bill reaches $258 million

Nepal fertilizer supply reached a record 538,436 metric tons in the last fiscal year, backed by a government subsidy of 39.75 billion Nepalese rupees (USD 258 million), a senior official told lawmakers on Oct. 1, 2026. Rajendra Prasad Mishra, secretary of the Ministry of Agriculture, Forests and Environment, gave the figures to the Agriculture and Natural Resources Committee of the Federal Parliament, Ratopati reported.

Nepal imported more than 257,000 metric tons of fertilizer between March and October despite supply chain pressure from the conflict in the Middle East, the ministry said. For the current fiscal year the government has secured an additional 10 billion rupees (USD 65 million) in the budget and has started a purchase process worth about 42.46 billion rupees (USD 276 million). It is also arranging to buy a further 25,000 metric tons of diammonium phosphate (DAP) from India.

The subsidy absorbs most of the import cost. Urea costs the government an average of 84 rupees (USD 0.55) per kilogram and is sold to farmers at 15 rupees (USD 0.10). DAP costs 129 rupees (USD 0.84) per kilogram and is sold at 44 rupees (USD 0.29). Farmers therefore pay less than one-fifth of the cost of urea and about one-third of the cost of DAP.

For the coming wheat crop, the ministry projects 177,000 metric tons of urea will be available between November and January against a requirement of 136,000 metric tons, and it does not expect a major shortage. The outlook still depends on deliveries arriving on schedule. Nepal’s fertilizer supply relies on imports, which leaves the budget exposed to global prices and to Gulf shipping conditions, where the United Nations has proposed a mechanism to move fertilizer vessels through the Strait of Hormuz.

Source: Ratopati