Three SEZs, one airport to come up in Maharashtra

Our Bureau

MIDC signs four agreements with IDFC, Feedback Ventures

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More SEZs
Two special SEZs will only produce power and supply to other SEZs in the
State.
At Kagal in Kolhapur, a textile SEZ is being planned, while the proposed
new airport will come up at Sindhudurg.
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LANDMARK PACT: (From left) Mr Shailesh Pathak, Head, PPP Initiative,
IDFC; Mr V.K. Jairath, Principal Secretary, Industries, Maharashtra; Mr
Ashok Chavan, State Minister for Industries; and Mr Rajiv Jalota, CEO,
MIDC, after signing the agreements in Mumbai on Thursday. — Paul Noronha

Mumbai , Jan. 11

Maharashtra Industrial Development Corporation (MIDC) on Thursday signed
four agreements with Infrastructure Development Finance Company Ltd
(IDFC) and Feedback Ventures for developing three Special Economic Zones
and one airport in the State.

Of the three SEZs, two are special SEZs that will only produce power and
supply to other SEZs in the State. The power SEZs are coming up at Usar
in Raigad district with a capacity of 250 megawatts and Bhadrawati in
Chandrapur district with a capacity of 1,000 megawatts. At Kagal in
Kolhapur, a textile SEZ is being planned, while the proposed new airport
will come up at Sindhudurg.

Public-private tie up

The four ventures will be developed under India Infrastructure
Initiative, which is being jointly promoted by IDFC and Feedback
Ventures. The Initiative will undertake project preparation and partner
selection for four projects, which would develop as public private
partnership. IDFC holds 20 per cent stake in Feedback Ventures.

The Usar SEZ, which will be located about 12 km from Alibag in Raigad,
will come up on 103 hectare area and is expected to attract investment
of Rs 1,000 crore. The Bhadrawati SEZ, located 26 km from Chandrapur,
will come up on 1,100 hectares and is expected to attract investment of
Rs 4,000 crore. The textile SEZ will come up on 104 hectares at Kagal in
Kolhapur, well-known textile centre of the State. It is expected to
attract Rs 230 crore of investment.

The airport at Sindhudurg is being developed in order to attract
tourists. The area is scenic and there are beaches similar to Goa. The
airport will be located 25 km from Kudal city and will come up on 306
hectares. The project is expected to attract Rs 507 crore of investment.

Centre's permission

Mr Rajiv Jalota, CEO of MIDC, speaking to the media after signing the
agreements said that the Union Power Ministry has given approval for
power SEZs in the State. The power produced from these SEZs would be
wheeled to other SEZs, which are coming up all over the State.

The surplus power would be sold to other utilities at rates higher then
the SEZ rate. Power plants at Bhadrawati SEZ would be coal-based, while
Usar will have flexibility of opting for coal or gas base plants. About
100 MW of power from Usar has already been tied up, he said.

Mr Vinayak Chatterjee, Chairman of Feedback Ventures, said that the
India Infrastructure Initiative offers a "no-cost" solution to the
Government and its undertakings. The Initiative will handhold them
through the process of project preparation and partner selection for the
identified infrastructure projects.

For its services to create a pool of bankable infrastructure projects,
the Initiative does not charge the Government. Instead, it recovers its
costs from the selected private sector partners for the projects, he said.

http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/2007/01/12/stories/2007011203900200.htm