Posco project will inspire South Korean firms to invest in India, says President Park Guen-hye

The success of Posco's $12 billion steel project in Odisha will inspire and determine investments by other major Korean firms in India, South Korean President Park Geun-hye said on Friday.

Addressing a business meeting in Seoul, Park, who is on a four-day state visit here, hoped that the Posco plant would start production soon.

“It will inspire other large South Korean companies to invest in India,” she said.

South Korean steel giant Posco's $12 billion proposed steel plant in Odisha has been stalled since 2006 on land and environmental issues.

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh assured on Thursday that the steel plant would be operational in the coming weeks following revalidation of its environmental clearance.

“Grant of mining concession for the project is also at an advanced stage of processing. I conveyed to President Park our hope that this project will confirm that economic growth and environmental protection can go hand in hand,” the Prime Minister said.

At the meeting, Park asked South Korean and Indian businesses to make concerted efforts to usher in new opportunities for the people of the two countries.

The meeting, Korea-India Economic Cooperation Forum, was organised jointly by the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI), the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) and the Assocham.

Park said trade between two countries has jumped by 70 per cent since operation of Korea-India Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement in 2010.

However, she said, there are more potential for trade and investment through optimum utilisation of CEPA and liberalisation of the visa regime for greater people-to-people contacts.

Commerce and Industry Minister Anand Sharma said India was keen to attract more Korean investments in manufacturing sector, particularly in the National Industrial Manufacturing Zones.

“We have put in place single window approval mechanisms and Korean industries should look at investing in the upcoming industrial townships,” Sharma said, addressing the meeting.

The minister said Korean technology and resources were also welcome in IT, electronics, particularly semiconductors and chip-making.