The fourth edition of the Karnataka Global Investors’ Meet (GIM) named Invest Karnataka 2016 was held in Bangalore from 3rd Feb to 5th Feb 2016. The three-day meet concluded with 1,201 approved projects and MoUs valued at Rs. 308,810 crores. An additional investment of Rs 1.50 lakh crore ($22.05 billion) was committed by the centre for the development of roads, ports and other mega projects in Karnataka. The meet has helped Karnataka to prove once again that it is the best investment destination in India.
The major sectors where MoUs for investment were signed include energy, steel, chemicals, IT, food processing, etc. The highlights of Invest Karnataka 2016 are:
GIM 2016 Highlights
- The Karnataka State Government announced its plan to develop a fertilizer plant in north Karnataka. Chief Minister Siddaramaiah declared during the meet that the State Government will provide 500 acres of land for setting up the fertilizer (urea) plant in North Karnataka.
- Chief Minister Siddaramaiah committed to provide 100 acres of land for the establishment of a centre of the National Institute of Pharmaceutical Education and Research (NIPER) either in Mysuru or Mangaluru.
- The State Government has announced to grant 5 acres of land for setting up of an R&D centre of the Central Institute of Plastics Engineering & Technology in Bengaluru.
- The energy sector garnered the highest investment valued at over Rs. 100,000 crore. Many of these projects are in the renewable energy sector particularly in waste energy, solar energy and wind projects.
- The steel sector saw investments worth Rs. 38,000 crore with an employment potential for around 6,000 people.
- The chemical sector secured investments to the tune of Rs. 24,000 crores, promising employment for about 5,000 people.
- In the food processing sector, Britannia Industries has announced its plans to tie-up with Karnataka Milk Federation (KMF) in a Rs 300 crore deal to buy excess milk.
- The Chief Executive Officer GAIL Gas Limited, Mr. Pankaj Kumar Pal said during the meet that his company has already laid 100 km of pipelines and is aiming to cover 500 km more next year. This will provide pipe gas to around 35,000 households by next year. It is an extensive 25 year old project that will result in more than 2,000 km of pipeline across the city.
- The Kudremukh Iron Ore Company (KIOCL) has signed a pact with the Karnataka government to set up a beneficiation plant of 4 mln tpa and a pelletisation unit of 2 mln tpa in Bellary district at an investment of Rs 2,000 crore.
- Reliance Group Chairman Anil Ambani announced plans for establishment of Dhirubhai Ambani Centre for Innovation and Research in Aerospace. The proposed centre would be set up under Reliance Defence at Whitefield in Bengaluru. It will be a world class facility for research, development and innovation in aerospace technology. It will generate more than 1,500 highly skilled jobs and support government’s plan for indigenous design, development and manufacturing of defence equipment.
- The Adani Group announced their plans to invest Rs. 20,500 crore in the state’s power sector. The group has signed a MoU with the Karnataka government to expand the capacity of Udupi Power Corporation (UPCL) by adding 1600 MW at Rs 11,500 crore. Further, Adanis will invest Rs 500 crore for expanding the coal handling facilities. They also announced their plans to set up a 1,000 MW solar power plant and develop the Tadadi port near Karwar.
- In the automobile sector Volvo has plans to expand bus manufacturing capacity while Bosch has proposed to invest Rs 1,000 crore in 2016-17.
- The Ministry of Roadways, Transport and Highways (MoRTH) has committed to add 4,000 km of national highways in Karnataka before December 2016. An investment of Rs 10,000 crore has been assured to double the capacity of the New Mangaluru Port.
- Indian Machine Tool Manufacturers’ Association (IMTMA) has signed a MoU with Karnataka government for the establishment of India’s first Integrated Machine Tool Industry Park (IMTIP) near Tumkur.
- The Karnataka government will set up a public-private partnership company called Karnataka Invest where industrialists will advise the government and will function as an ambassador to attract global investments.
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