CHENNAI – A Singapore company will invest $5 billion in several areas including infrastructure, technology, sustainability and data centers in Tamil Nadu, expanding Singapore’s presence in India’s southern state.
The announcement was made on January 7, on the first day of the two-day Tamil Nadu Global Investor Conference in Chennai, the capital of the state.
A media release from Singapore’s Ministry of Trade and Industry (MTI) said the investment includes $500 million from CapitaLand Investment in business parks, logistics, warehousing and data centres.
CapitaLand Investment already has a presence in over 20 technology parks, business parks, industrial estates, logistics facilities, accommodation facilities, data centers and co-working facilities across seven Indian cities, including Chennai.
Separately, Lionsbot, which designs and manufactures industrial-scale self-cleaning robots, will partner with a top university in Tamil Nadu to set up a training lab and design courses in hardware and software. .
Singaporean companies are also creating jobs in Tamil Nadu, with Crayon Data aiming to create 150 direct jobs and 350 ancillary jobs over the next three years. Crayon Data provides his AI-driven solutions to the banking, fintech, and travel industries. The company has a global development center in Chennai and has 150 employees.
“The latest pipeline of joint initiatives and related investments shows that Singaporean companies are strategically building on the breadth and depth of their involvement in Tamil Nadu,” said the MTI agency. said EnterpriseSG deputy chief executive Tan Soon Kim. .
“This is evidence of the state’s strong opportunities and investor-friendly policies.”
A memorandum of understanding was signed between a Singaporean company and GuidanceTN, the investment promotion agency of the Government of Tamil Nadu.Investments by Singapore companies will be made over several years
MTI noted that Tamil Nadu is “often the first port of call for Singaporean companies looking to south India, given the cultural and historical affinity between the two states.”
The state, with a population of 72 million, is the second-largest contributor to India’s gross domestic product after the state of Maharashtra, whose capital is Mumbai.
Tamil Nadu’s ambition is to become a US$1 trillion (S$1.33 trillion) economy by 2030, and it has been actively recruiting foreign investors. Prime Minister MK Stalin visited Singapore in May last year to attract investment from the Southeast Asian country.
The Singapore delegation to the investor meeting, led by Singapore’s High Commissioner to India Simon Wong, includes officials from MTI, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and EnterpriseSG, as well as 60 business representatives from the Singapore Business Federation and the Singapore-India Chamber of Commerce and Industry. was included. And the industry.
Mr Wong, speaking at one of the sessions at the conference, highlighted the potential for Tamil Nadu and Singapore to explore the export of promising renewable energy solutions such as green hydrogen and green ammonia from India to Singapore.
A number of other deals were announced at the investor summit between the Tamil Nadu government and Indian and foreign companies including Tata Electronics, Pegatron and Hyundai Motors.