TN govt inks JV with GMR for SEZ

The Tamil Nadu government on Monday entered into a joint venture with Hyderabad-based GMR Infrastructure Ltd to set up a multi-product Special Economic Zone in the state's Krishnagiri district at a cost of Rs 2,300 crore (Rs 23 billion).

An MoU in this regard was signed between Tamil Nadu Industrial Development Corporation chairman and managing director S Ramasundaram and GMR Infrastructure Director B V Nageswara Rao at the secretariat in Chennai.

Chief Minister M Karunanidhi and GMR Group chairman G Mallikarjuna Rao were present on the occasion. GMR Infrastructure had been selected as joint venture partner of TIDCO through international competitive bidding process.

To implement the project, a JV company would be formed shortly between TIDCO and GMR, an official press release said.

The SEZ, to come up on 3,300 acres of land, is expected to attract investments of about Rs 11,000 crore (Rs 110 billion) from traditional industries like electronics, apparel and engineering, besides IT, ITES and knowledge-based industries such as bio-technology and nanotechnology.

The project may generate exports of Rs 16,000 crore (Rs 160 billion) per annum and provide direct employment opportunities to 70,000 people, the release added.

Later, Rao told reporters that the objective was to create a SEZ with world class industrial infrastructure, green corridors and ecologically sustainable design.