Adani Group to invest Rs 2.5k cr in Uttarakhand in cement, smart meters

Adani Group will invest over Rs 2,500 crore in Uttrakhand in expanding capacity of cement plants and installing smart electricity meters as it also looks at possibilities to develop aero-city and knowledge city in the northern Indian state, group director Pranav Adani said on Friday. Speaking at the 'Global Investors Summit – Uttarakhand', he said the group's city gas joint venture will convert 200 state transport businesses to environment-friendly CNG.
"In the cement sector, we will invest in excess of Rs 1,700 crore to expand Ambuja Cements' existing capacity in Uttarakhand," he said.

"We will invest Rs 300 crore to take our Roorkee plant's capacity from the current 1.2 million tonnes per annum to 3 million tonnes per annum by the end of next year. We will also invest around Rs 1,400 crore to set up a grinding unit with a capacity of 4 million tonnes per annum."


These investments will create around 6,000 direct and indirect employment opportunities in the Rishikesh-Dehradun area.

"In the Kumaon region, we have taken up a project of over Rs 800 crore to install smart meters for the Uttarakhand Power Corporation, in line with the Government of India's plan to replace conventional electric meters with smart prepaid meters," he said.

The group is also exploring the development of a 1,000-acre land parcel in Pant Nagar. "The possibilities include infrastructure for an aero-city, an inland container depot, logistics warehousing and a knowledge park."

The group's presence in Uttarakhand spans gas distribution and cement manufacturing.

A joint venture of Indian Oil and Adani Total Gas sells CNG to automobiles and piped natural gas to household kitchens and industries in the state.

"To facilitate the transition to cleaner fuels - in line with the Prime Minister's vision to have 15 per cent natural gas in India's energy mix by 2030 - we propose to convert 200 state transport buses to environment-friendly CNG buses, thus contributing to keeping Uttarakhand the way it is now - green and clean," he said.

The projects are the beginning blocks of the group's presence in Uttarakhand.

"We are only getting started. The Adani Group is excited by the great range of investment opportunities now emerging in Uttarakhand - in parallel power distribution, digital services, roads and highways, multimodal logistics, renewable energy - and much more," he said.

Adani said Uttarakhand has now become one of India's most attractive gateways for private sector investment because of its policies including single-point clearances, competitive land prices, affordable power and efficient distribution, highly skilled manpower, close proximity to the national capital and a very stable law and order environment.

JSW Energy Chairman and MD Sajjan Jindal said the firm will invest Rs 15,000 crore to set up two pump storages of 1500 MW capacity in the state.

It will give direct employment to more than 1,000 people, he said.

ITC Managing Director Sanjiv Puri said the firm is looking for a mega site in Uttarakhand to establish its paperboard industries which currently have their largest unit in Bhadrachalam in Telangana which has reached its saturation point.

"We want to invest Rs 4000 crore to establish an integrated pulp mill in Uttarakhand," he said.

Kalyan Chakravarti, CEO, Emaar India, part of the builder of the world's tallest building Burj Khalifa, said how Prime Minister's Narendra Modi inspiring leadership has increased India's prestige internationally.

"I have been travelling around the world for the last 25-30 years and I can see the difference in the manner in which we are treated now. We would also like to make our small contribution to realizing the Prime Minister's vision of a developed India," he said.

Yoga Guru Ramdev announced Patanjali will make an additional investment of Rs 10,000 crore and give employment to 10000 more people. He showered praise on Modi as a prime minister who believes in "culture-based prosperity".