Gujarat govt inks deal with Vendanta Group to set up world’s largest Zinc smelter complex in Tapi

New Delhi: Gujarat government, in the presence of Chief Minister Mr. Vijay Rupani, signed an MOU with Hindustan Zinc Limited of Vedanta Group to establish a Rs 10,000-crore Zinc Smelter plant at Doswada in Tapi. It is Vedanta Group’s first investment in the state.

“This new Zinc smelter project with a generation capacity of 300 KTPA will accelerate the economic and industrial development of the state,” said the Chief Minister.

Vedanta Group’s subsidiary – Hindustan Zinc Limited will set up the world’s largest zinc smelting complex at Tapi in Gujarat. The facility will focus on catering to the large export markets primarily of Asia & the Middle East and also on the rising domestic demand.

Taking benefit of Gujarat’s new Industrial Policy, the company will also establish state-of-the-art Research & Development Center,to help conserve natural resources through technology & innovation. It will generate direct employment for over 5,000 people. The project with its scope for setting up ancillary facilities in and around the region will help the livelihood of around 25,000 people.

The first phase of the project is expected to be commissioned within 36 months from the date of signing of MoU. “It is my pleasure to extend all support to make the plant operational within the stipulated timelines. I am hopeful that Hindustan Zinc will benefit from the state’s vision and efforts in creating an efficient and state of the art industrial ecosystem,” added the CM who underlined the progressive and liberal industrial policy that attracted companies such as Hindustan Zinc to choose Gujarat as their favored investment destination.

Mr. Anil Agarwal, Founder and Non-Executive Chairman of Vedanta Group said, “The state government led by Chief Minister Mr. Vijay Rupani has been supportive to our organization since the time we thought of setting up this project. I have hardly experienced such a fast paced and progressive administration in any other part of India. I am delighted that the process for signing the MOU has been completed within a short span of 2 months.” He also expressed the group’s willingness to invest and come up with more projects in Gujarat in future.

In July 2019, JK Papers had inked an MoU with the Gujarat Government to expand its Songadh paper mill in Tapi District with investment of INR 1,500 crore and was expected to commence its operations from January 2021.
However, as on date the company is six months ahead of the envisaged operations date. Majority of the civil work has completed, and the electro-mechanical installation has also reached an advanced stage with the project expected to be ready for inauguration within next three months. The expansion will provide employment to approximately 1,000 more people of the local community and also help benefit close to 10,000 new farmers in this region.

These two projects in the district will open new doors of socio-economic development and create a wave of mass employment for the tribal population of the district.

It is important to note that Hindustan Zinc is India’s largest and world’s second largest zinc-lead miner with an experience spanning over five deacdes.