Our doors are wide open for EV players like Tesla: Tamil Nadu minister

Thangam Thennarasu, who holds the industries portfolio, says his state could see Rs 35 trillion in investment by 2030 and projects worth Rs 20,000 crore have come since the new govt took charge

Tamil Nadu saw the closure of the Ford India unit on its soil in September. Despite this, its industries minister Thangam Thennarasu substantiates his contention that the state is still one of the most investor-friendly in India, with mumbers. In an interview with Shine Jacob, Thennarasu said the state is expected to see investment worth Rs 35 trillion by 2030 and already has projects worth Rs 20,000 crore since the new government took charge in May. Edited Excerpts:

What changes are you seeing in the investment climate since the new government took charge?

In August, we organised an international conclave and saw investments worth Rs 17,000 crore coming in. Recently, we held another event in which deals were signed with another 24 companies for projects worth around Rs 2,121 crore. Within five months, the state saw confirmed projects of around Rs 20,000 crore.

Our long-term vision is to have a $1-trillion economy. We expect to see about Rs 35 trillion additional investments by 2030, moving towards this goal, and expect to generate over 2.5 million jobs. Tamil Nadu is traditionally strong in sectors like textile, general manufacturing and leather. In emerging sectors we are giving priority to food processing, renewable energy, fintech, data centers, e-mobility, aerospace components, defence production and semiconductors. In textile and food processing we want to generate a lot of employment.

After the Ola unit in Tamil Nadu, what is your strategy on EVs, with players like Tesla looking at India?

We need to have a realistic approach to this. This is going to be the future of mobility. However, we have to ensure that a proper eco-system, like charging stations, are also in place. Tamil Nadu has already lined up a long-term EV road map to suit the global players.

Tesla has not committed anything to anybody in India. Tamil Nadu’s doors are wide open for EV players Tesla. Others have also shown interests, TVS, Hyundai and Srivaru Motors

Are you roping in someone to take over the Ford India plant, which was closed recently?

The matter is now under consideration at the chief minister’s level. He is directly monitoring it.

What policy changes are you going to bring in?

When you talk about a $1 trillion economy, you need to focus on exports also. Tamil Nadu so far had no export policy. Recently, our chief minister formed an export strategy. We are also looking forward to the export potential.

We have talks going on with several companies. A high-level delegation that came from Denmark is very interested in wind energy. It has indicated that Tamil Nadu has a lot of potential in renewable energy. Companies like Haldia Petrochemicals are also showing interest to come up with investments in the petrochemical segment.

What preparations are you making for a possible third wave?

Even during the pandemic we didnt stop industries. We supported industral operations so that companies could honour export commitments. Tamil Nadu is a major contributor to the national GDP. We want to ensure we really do our best.

During the height of the pandemic situation, we allowed exporters to run their business and all logistical support was given. Those willing to make medical devices and oxygen plants were given special subsidy packages. Construction activity was also not stopped. We had pushed hard for vaccination at the industrial level and factories in the state are now mostly covered. Because of this, the industry is insulated from the pandemic.

During this brief period of five months, we were under the grip of the pandemic for almost three months. Despite this the government was able to bring in investments. This shows industry has a lot of confidence in our chief minister. Even in situations like Covid, people invested in Tamil Nadu because they knew that the state would take care of them. We have also realised the potential of startups and MSMEs and will do whatever we can to support them.

On the other hand, we want to support expansion plans in segments like automobiles where we are strong – like those lined up by players like Nissan.