KOCHI:
A Kochi-to-Palakkad Integrated Manufacturing Cluster, an Electronic Hardware Park in Ernakulam district, integrated solid-waste management systems at Thiruvananthapuram, Thrissur and Malappuram, a Medium Density Fiberboard plant in Perumbavoor and a Defence Park at Ottapalam are among 18 mega projects the Kerala government will highlight at the Global Investors Meet this week.
The January 9-10 ASCEND 2020 in Kochi will also see organisers showcasing 70-odd other projects classified as large, medium and small in the descending order of their capital investment and capacity to provide jobs.
Mega projects are those which require an investment of more than Rs 100 crore and gives direct employment to at least 500 people, according to the Department of Industries that is convening the high-profile event at the Lulu Bolgatty International Convention Centre, Grand Hyatt, Kochi.
The proposed mega projects further include a Propylene Oxide manufacturing plant of 2,00,000 MPA capacity in the vicinity of BPCL-Kochi Refinery, a PVC manufacturing facility of capacity 150,000 TPA, a Rs 1,864-crore KINFRA-initiated Petrochemical Park of international standards at Ambalamugal in Ernakulam district, a Multi-modal Logistics Park including a Free Trade Warehousing Zone near Cochin Port and a Rs 900-crore Super Absorbent Polymer Plant considering an increasing demand for diapers and female hygiene products besides the medical and agriculture industry.
KINFRA (Kerala Industrial Infrastructure Development Corporation) is also keen to set up a Rs 400-crore logistics hub (in Palakkad) with warehousing facility, while thrust will also be given to set up a Rs 300-crore cryogenic warehouse in Kochi’s Puthuvypeen next to the existing LNG terminal.
ASCEND 2020 comes amid a paradigm shift Kerala is experiencing in harnessing industrial investments, points out state Industries Minister E P Jayarajan. “Currently, Kerala ranks second among the country’s states in the World Bank’s Investment Climate Index,” he notes. “For the state, the priority sectors are petrochemical, life sciences, electronics, food-processing and defence. They are our key drivers of growth.”
As for the Kochi-Palakkad IMC under the much-awaited Kochi-Bengaluru Industrial Corridor, the Rs 10,000-crore project envisages a length of 160 km, boosting manufacturing activities in electronics, IT, biotechnology and life sciences along the central districts of Ernakulam, Thrissur, Malappuram and Palakkad. The 100-acre Electronic Hardware Park at Amballur adjacent to Piravom will have KSIDC as the nodal agency, requires an investment of Rs 1,200 crore.
The Rs 200-crore MDF Plant mooted to be set up Perumbavoor area of Ernakulam district will have an 800 TPA capacity, manufacturing dense, flat, stiff and no-knots product that can be easily machined. The Rs 131-crore Defence Park at 60 acres in Ottapalam of Palakkad district will have central government assistance under the Modified Industrial Infrastructure Upgradation scheme.
The Rs 5,000-crore Propylene Oxide plant’s proposed location eases a much-needed integration of feedstock supply, utilities, off-sites and other general facilities, a top ASCEND official pointed out. Regarding the Rs 3,000-crore PVC facility, he described Ambalamugal as an “ideal location” considering that neighbouring Kochi is endowed with port infrastructure and airport connectivity.
The coming up of a Rs 1,500-crore MMLP close to Cochin Port will enable freight aggregation, distribution and multimodal freight movement by providing services such as warehouse, cold storage and other value-added services, organisers note. Similarly, proximity to of the refinery makes easy the integration of feedstock supply, utilities, off-sites and other general facilities when it comes to the Super Absorbent Polymer Plant with a proposed expenditure of Rs 900 crore.
The proposed waste-management system in the state capital requires an investment of Rs 300 crore, while it is Rs 200 crore each for those at Thrissur and Malappuram. Also planned at Ambalamugal are three projects of Rs 200-crore investment each: manufacture of acrylic fibre (used in knitted products), of acrylamide-polyacrylamide (wastewater treatment chemicals) and another for ABS (acrylonitrile butadiene styrene) that is a performance plastic used across segments including home appliances, electronics and automobiles. At Ambalamugal, a Rs 120-crore plan is afoot to also manufacture surfactants that play an important role as agents for cleaning, wetting, dispersing, emulsifying, foaming and anti-foaming.
Set to showcase at ASCEND is the Invest Kerala Portal (https://invest.kerala.gov.in) as a single-window facilitator for hassle-free investment promotion launched under its Ease of Doing Business initiatives.
