Maharashtra Govt offers land near Nagpur to Safran Aerospace

* Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis hard-sells Vidarbha region’s strengths to industrial giants at World Economic Forum
* Government also projects Amravati, Nagpur as possible investment destinations for Toray International, Diageo
By Kartik Lokhande 
With the shifting of power-balance in its favour, things are changing for the better for Vidarbha region. Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, who hails from the region, projected Nagpur and Amravati as investment destinations for international giants during World Economic Forum meet at Davos. In fact, Maharashtra Government has offered land near Nagpur to Safran Aerospace.
Safran is a French multinational aircraft and rocket-engine, aerospace-component manufacturer. The Government has offered it land in Nagpur given the existing ecosystem in the region for this sector. “Already, Nagpur area has got investment environment in aviation sector with Boeing coming up with its Maintenance-Repair-Overhaul unit. Given the scale and expertise of Safran, Chief Minister suggested it to invest near Nagpur,” Apurva Chandra, Principal Secretary (Industries), told ‘The Hitavada’ over telephone on Wednesday.
Nagpur is fast emerging as an attractive investment destination in aviation sector. It is centrally located, has an unit of Tata Aeronautics Limited (TAL), Boeing’s MRO unit is coming up in Multimodal International Hub and Airport at Nagpur (MIHAN) and Special Economic Zone (SEZ). Further, the Headquarters Maintenance Command of the Indian Air Force (IAF) also is located near Nagpur. In the recent past, Nagpur also was in the headlines when the ‘Hot Weather Trial’ of light combat aircraft ‘Tejas’ was conducted here. Since then, Nagpur has been attracting the attention of investors in aviation sector. Against this backdrop, Maharashtra Government offering land near Nagpur to Safran Aerospace comes as a big push.
During the World Economic Forum meet at Davos, Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis held talks with Jean Pierre Cojan, Chief of Safran Aerospace. He told Safran boss that Nagpur should be the preferred destination for the company’s investment as land was available here. Safran is a $18.9 billion French multi-national aircraft and rocket-engine, aerospace component, Defence technology, and security company headquartered in Paris.
The Government also suggested Toray International to consider Amravati, Nagpur for its investment plans in technical fibres and polyester. “The company has plans for investment in fibres in India. Since there is ample availability of Cotton, natural fibre, in Amravati belt, the Government has suggested them to consider the place. We have assured them all requisite support for integrated textile park,” Apurva Chandra said.
Apart from this, the Government also suggested other companies like Diageo Plc and Visy to consider Vidarbha region for investments. Diageo is a British multi-national alcoholic beverages company headquartered in London (England). It took over United Spirits promoted by Vijay Mallya recently. “Since spirits business requires abundance of water, the Government suggested Diageo to consider water abundant locations like Vidarbha,” said Apurva Chandra. Already, Diageo has large operations in Maharashtra and it is looking to further expand its operations.
As far as Visy is concerned, it is an Australian paper manufacturing firm. It is keen on investing in a paper recycling plant. Its team is coming to Mumbai in February for the ‘second round’ of discussions. It is gathered that the company also has shown interest in Nagpur.

About Safran Group
Safran is leading supplier of jet engines and carbon brakes for airlines operating in India and neighboring countries. Its operations in India began in 1950s with the sale of equipment for airplanes and helicopters. “Very quickly, the business evolved to include long-term partnerships with local industry, based on production and support licenses for airplane, helicopter and rocket engines, as well as landing gear, navigation systems, etc., and associated support services,” states the website of Safran Group.
Already, Safran Group has three companies and a training centre in India. Snecma HAL Aerospace Pvt Ltd (SHAe) is an equal joint venture between Snecma (Safran) and Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd, which manufactures high-tech components for CFM56 aircraft engines in Bangalore. Safran Engineering Services India Pvt Ltd provides end-to-end engineering services to global and local customers. Turbomeca India Engines Pvt Ltd is MRO unit that provides support and maintenance for Turbomeca engines owned by Indian customers. Its main partners are HAL and Pawan Hans Helicopters Ltd. CFM Training Center, located near the Hyderabad Airport, provides maintenance training for ground crews from airlines that use CFM56 engines. 

(29-01-15)