Tamil Nadu is one of the few states that has a diversified industrial base and is unique because it has an exciting mix of power generation capacities in thermal, wind, nuclear, solar and even wave energy!
For the second edition of Global Investors Meet scheduled in January, the Tamil Nadu government is organising roadshows in India and abroad. TN Industry Minister, M C Sampath along with senior officials and business leaders, have been showcasing the strengths of the state.
K Gnanadesikan, Additional Chief Secretary Industry spoke to IE, detailing the meticulous planning and efforts taken to bring in quality investments to the state. Excerpts:We conducted roadshows in Dubai, Thailand, Taiwan, China, Singapore, Korea, Japan, UK, France, the USA…
TAIWAN’S SOUTHBOUND POLICY FAVOURS TN
Taiwan has a new Southbound Policy and is looking at India with interest. We already have a dozen Taiwanese companies operating in Tamil Nadu.
We visited Foxconn that currently employs 15,000 people in Tamil Nadu and is looking to add 25,000 more, predominantly women.
We met with Delta Electronics, a global power electronics player, richly contributing to the spread of electric vehicles with vital charging infrastructure and power banks for mobile phones. Delta plans to invest Rs 4000 crore in Krishnagiri and has begun construction. SIPCOT has provided the land. Delta is also looking for expansion near Sriperumbudur. We also met major vendors of Delta in Thailand and invited them to invest in Tamil Nadu.
Feng Tai manufactures for Nike. It has a factory in Cheyyar that employs 23,000, mostly women. The company is looking for expansion. We have suggested new locations like Thiruvannamalai.
HAPPY KOREA AND JAPAN LOOK FOR MORE
Along with Taiwan, Korea and Japan are already widely present in Tamil Nadu.
Japan is promoting Chennai and its surroundings as a preferred investment destination. There are three Japanese Industrial Parks at OMR, Kancheepuram and the Mahindra Sumitomo Industrial Park coming up in Gummidipoondi. The Japanese Ministry of Industry and Trade (MITI) is keen to have a Memorandum of Co-operation with the state government for promoting Japanese industrial townships.
We conducted an investment seminar with the Osaka Chamber of Commerce. Representatives of several Japanese companies operating in Tamil Nadu spoke on their positive and profitable operations to prospective investors.
In Korea, we met four large companies and their vendors: these included Hyundai, and Samsung. Mando Automotive and Hanon Systems, major vendors for automobiles, were invited to plan their future expansions in our state.
USA IS ALSO WILLING
We met State and Commerce Department officials in Washington and held parleys with top executives at Honeywell. At Madurai, Honeywell produces advanced software for aerospace. The company consented to consider further expansion. We met Gilead Sciences that manufactures vaccines for Hepatitis B and C. They are willing to work with the government on preventive care. PPG Industries, an American Fortune 500 company and a global supplier of paints, coatings and specialty materials, has plans to invest here. In Detroit we met top officials of Ford and requested them to expand their operations in the state. At San Francisco, we apprised Tesla on Tamil Nadu housing several major automobile companies.
NATIONAL ROADSHOWS
Our presentations at Delhi, Mumbai and Ahmedabad had promising response. Our Industry Minister, senior executives of companies and senior officials from Tamil Nadu spoke to prospective investors. Torrent Power from Ahmedabad has recently received the licence for city gas distribution for Chennai and Thiruvallur.
Tamil Nadu is one of the few states that has diversified industrial activity. Southern Tamil Nadu has become a powerhouse: it has an exciting mix of power production capacities in thermal, wind, nuclear, solar and even wave energy.
– Jayanthi Raghunathan
