Ahead of the Vibrant Gujarat Global Summit (VGGS) in 2024, the Indian conglomerate Essar stated that it has inked three MoUs with the state government, pledging an investment of £5.5 billion. The company hopes to create about 10,000 employment opportunities by investing in the electricity, port, and energy transition sectors.
Over the past 40 years, the firm has made investments totaling £10 billion in the state's energy, metals, mining, and infrastructure sectors. Among these investments were a steel plant in Hazira and an oil refinery in Vadinar that can produce 20 million tonnes of oil annually. Essar has started a second wave of investing after selling these projects a few years ago to pay off debt.
Of the total proposed investment, £3 billion will go towards developing a 1 gigawatt green hydrogen project. Over and above this, Essar Group’s entity - Essar Power - will invest £1.6 billion for phase-II expansion of Salaya power plant. Essar Ports has also committed to transform the Salaya port into a logistics hub with an investment of £1 billion. The group, however, did not give timelines for the completion of these projects.
Prashant Ruia, director, Essar Capital, said, “Gujarat has consistently been at the forefront of Essar's strategic investments. We are delighted to further contribute to the state's economic progress with an additional investment of £5.5 billion in the energy & infrastructure sectors.”