China’s Midea to invest Rs 1,350cr in Ahmednagar

Pune: Chinese consumer appliances maker Midea Group on Saturday said it will invest Rs 1,350 crore over the next five years in Supa, Parner — an MIDC area in Ahmednagar (which is 80kms from Pune) — to set up a technology park.
Over 50% of this investment will happen within the first year of the company starting operations at the plant. Midea expects commercial operations to start by April 2020 and aims to provide direct and indirect employment to more than 2,000 people over five years.
Chief minister Devendra Fadnavis laid the foundation for the 68-acre manufacturing site, where Midea will make residential and commercial air conditioners, refrigerators, washing machines, compressors and other electronic devices.The manufacturing capacity of different products at the plant will be between 2.5 lakh and 15 lakh units per annum, the company said. However, the facility will produce 45 lakh compressors in a year.
The tech park will also include a manufacturing facility for Carrier Midea India, a 60:40 joint venture (JV) between Midea and US appliances maker Carrier. In India, Midea entered into a JV with Carrier in 2012.
Carrier Midea India and Midea Group MD (India region) Krishan Sachdev said the company has received incentives from the state and the central government. “We get benefits like (waivers on) duties and taxes for purchase of electricity and lower stamp duty on purchase of land, among others,” he said. “The state government thinks that Midea Group’s investment will be a catalyst in bringing larger infrastructure and more employment to the region.”
Sachdev said the company has received commitment from seven of its vendors for investment in the region. “They are in discussions with MIDC for land, and we expect them to make investments in additional 40 acres. That would create direct and indirect employment for another 1,500 people,” he said.
The Fortune 500 company currently has production facilities in Bawal, Haryana — where it has a total capacity to make over seven lakh units of different appliances.
Sachdev said that the company zeroed in on Ahmednagar because it wanted to build an entire ecosystem for itself and be one of the largest players in the area where it operates.
“Midea was looking for a greenfield facility and build it up in a way where we have the opportunity to build it up the way we like it and we can invite our partners to come and make investments over there… We have built similar ecosystems elsewhere and wanted to do something similar here,” he said.