Maharashtra signs Rs 4.99 lakh crore in MoUs at Davos

Davos [Switzerland], January 21 (ANI): Maharashtra, on the first day of the World Economic Forum (WEF) in Davos, has signed memorandum of understanding (MoU) worth over Rs 4.99 lakh crore.
This substantial investment promises to create over 92,000 jobs across multiple sectors, including defense, renewable energy, steel, infrastructure, and more.
The largest deal announced was with the JSW Group, which will invest a staggering Rs 3 lakh crore in areas such as steel, renewable energy, cement, infrastructure, and electric vehicles (EVs).
This partnership is set to generate 10,000 jobs in Maharashtra, specifically in Nagpur and Gadchiroli. Chief Minister Fadnavis thanked Sajjan Jindal, Chairman of JSW, for his commitment to Maharashtra's growth.
In another groundbreaking move, the state secured its first-ever agreement for Gadchiroli, a district that has traditionally seen less industrial development. The Kalyani Group will invest Rs 5,200 crore in defence, steel, and EV sectors, creating 4,000 jobs.
This marks a crucial step towards balancing economic growth across the state, with Gadchiroli being the first district to benefit from such a high-profile deal.
In total, a series of major investments were secured across various industries. Reliance Infrastructure committed Rs 16,500 crore to the defence sector in Ratnagiri, while Balasore Alloys Ltd. and Viraj Profiles Pvt. Ltd. will invest Rs 17,000 crore and Rs 12,000 crore respectively in steel and metals, creating thousands of jobs.
Notably, the food and beverages sector also saw significant investments, with AB InBev committing Rs 750 crore for Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar and Bisleri International pledging Rs 250 crore for the Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR), generating hundreds of new jobs.
The agreements span diverse fields including green energy, electronics, logistics, and IT. Among them is a Rs 30,000 crore investment from Wari Energy in solar devices, which will create 7,500 jobs in Nagpur. Another key deal involves Blackstone, which will invest Rs 25,000 crore in IT infrastructure across MMR, generating 1,000 jobs.
Maharashtra Chief Minister Fadnavis emphasised that the state's commitment to "Ease of Doing Business" has been a critical factor in attracting such substantial investments. "There are long queues of investors outside. We are making the process fast, easy, and investor-friendly," he stated.
Speaking to ANI, Fadnavis said, "We have signed an MoU with JSW worth Rs 3 lakh crore. It is a different portfolio. It includes EV, solar manufacturing and steel. Our diverse portfolio with JSW is very significant today...We had very good MoUs today. The speciality of MoUs is that they are from almost all fields and they are in various sectors of Maharashtra, various areas of divisions of Maharashtra. We had very good interaction with all the industries and they are very keen to invest in Maharashtra. We are getting investments in manufacturing, IT sector...".
Notably, the state also secured an agreement with Fuel (Friends Union for Energizing Lives) to train 5,000 youths in Maharashtra in Artificial Intelligence, Digital Marketing, and Business Analytics. Fuel also expressed interest in establishing the Fuel Skilltech University in Pune. (ANI)