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Projex Survey 71
Surge in projects, slump in projex
Survey Highlights
l Recent surge seen in private sector investment continued in
Q1/FY19
l Mega projects declined sharply from 68 to 36
l Slowdown in government spending in Q1/FY19
l Gujarat attracted 19 percent of the total fresh projex
l Karnataka was the most preferred destination of private
investors
l Irrigation the most neglected sector
l Private sector shuns investment in mining
l Automobiles, Electronics and Real Estate to attract more
private investments
l Government will step up infra investment in coming months
l Good monsoon, stabilised GST regime, revival in rural
demand augurs well for projex in India
As per the 71st Projex Investment Survey conducted by
Projects Today, 2,424 new projects were announced in the
first quarter of the current fiscal (Q1/FY19). Around 238
more projects than the 2,176 projects announced in the
preceding quarter.
However, the same buoyancy was not seen in fresh project
investment. The sharp fall in the number of mega projects
(investment of `1,000 crore or more) dragged down the fresh
investment amount by 29.6 percent on Q-o-Q basis. The last
quarter of the fiscal 2017-18 had seen announcement of 68
mega projects. This number came down sharply to 36
projects in the first quarter of the current fiscal. As a result, the
total fresh projex came down from `2,79,241.5 crore in
Q4/FY18 to `1,96,501.8 crore.
Fresh projex by the government sector, which is peddling the
country’s projex cycle in recent years, slowed down
considerably in Q1/FY19. As a result, the total new projex by
the government sector declined by 47.4 percent on Q-o-Q
basis. This in return pulled down the overall growth in fresh
investment by 29.6 percent.
As against 1,776 govt projects worth `2,06,780.3 crore
announced in Q4/FY18, around 1,856 new projects worth
`1,08,739.9 crore were announced in Q1/FY19. Again, fall
in the number of mega-size projects saw shrinkage in total
quantum of fresh projex despite increase in number of new
projects.
In the last quarter of 2017-18, the government sector had
announced 45 mega size projects pledging investment of
`98,102 crore. The number of such mega projects came
down to just 11 in Q1/FY19.
The Private sector, which is showing some signs of revival in
fresh investment announcements not only announced 168
more projects, but also saw fresh investment increase by a
respectable 21.1 percent during the quarter ended 30 June
2018 on Q-o-Q basis. As against 400 new projects worth
`72,461.2 crore announced in the last quarter of 2017-18,
568 new projects entailing a total investment of `87,761.9
crore were announced in Q1/FY19.
Two major Private projects were announced by Greenko
Energies during Q1/FY19. The company plans to set up a
1,200 MW Saundatti Hydel Based Power unit [Integrated
Renewable Energy with Pumped Storage Project (IRESP)] in
Belagavi district of Karnataka. The project will see an
investment of `4,985.80 crore.
Another major project announced by the company was
Pinnapuram Pumped Storage Hydel Power Project. The
company plans to set up a 1,000 MW Pinnapuram Hydel
Based Power unit (Integrated Renewable Energy with Pumped
Storage Project) in Kurnool district of Andhra Pradesh. The
estimated cost of the project is `4,829.22 crore.
Among the major sectors, barring the Power sector,
Manufacturing, Infrastructure, Mining and Irrigation sectors
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Projex Survey 71
failed to enthuse project promoters and attract increased
investment proposals.
Fifty-five new solar power projects entailing a total investment
of `32,037.8 crore accounted for nearly three-fifth of the total
fresh investment attracted by the Power sector. This included a
`25,000 crore Solar power park project of Dholera Industrial
City Development in Gujarat.
Top Fresh Projects: Apr-Jun18
Promoter Project `Crore State
Dholera Industrial
City Devp
NHAI
Greenko Energies
Greenko Energies
NHAI
Damodar Valley
Corpn
Ardent Steel
Signs of revival in Manufacturing
Solar Park (Dholera) 25,000 Gujarat
Bengaluru-Chennai
Expressway [Phase-III]
Saundatti Pumped
Storage Hydel Power
Pinnapuram Pumped
Storage Hydel Power
Bengaluru-Chennai
Expressway [Phase-II]
Lugu Pahar Pumped
Storage
Iron Ore Pellets
(Phuljhar) - Expansion
5,774 Multi States
4,986 Karnataka
4,829 Andhra
Pradesh
4,355 Multi States
4,303 Jharkhand
4,031 Odisha
Though it would be too early to predict a clear revival in projex
activities, the Manufacturing sector showed some signs of revival
in capacity expansion activities. Notwithstanding a fall of 8
percent in the total fresh investment, the 333 new Manufacturing
projects with a total investment of `41,912.7 crore accounted for
21.3 percent of the fresh investment announced during
Q1/FY19. In the preceding quarter the sector’s share stood at
16.3 percent.
Haier Appliances (India) is planning to set up an electronics
and home appliances manufacturing unit at Noida in
Gautam Budh Nagar district of Uttar Pradesh. The project
entailing an investment of `3,200 crore will create
employment for 4,300 people.
The Infrastructure sector, comprising Social and Transport
infrastructure projects, always accounted for a large portion
of projects investment in India. The slowdown in the
government sector spending saw this vital sector’s share in
total fresh investment pie shrinking from 73.7 percent in
Q4/FY18 to 47.5 percent in Q1/FY19.
Two high-value projects were announced by the National
Highways Authority of India (NHAI) in the Infrastructure
sector during the Q1/FY19. The nodal agency announced
eight-laning of Bengaluru-Chennai Expressway (Phase-II)
from 71.00 km near N G Hulkur village, in Kolar district of
Karnataka which ends at 156.00 km near 190 Ramapuram
village in Chittoor district of Andhra Pradesh (length of 85
km). The cost of the project is `4,354.61 crore.
The Q1/FY19 also saw announcement of the Bengaluru-
Chennai Expressway (Phase-III). NHAI plans eight-laning from
156.00 km near 190 Ramapuram village in Chittoor dstrict
of Andhra Pradesh and ends at 262.57 near Irungattukottai
village, Sriperambudur taluka in Kancheepuram district of Tamil
Nadu in length of 106.57 km. The cost of the project is
`5,774.43 crore.
Irrigation continued to be the neglected sector of the
government and saw fresh investment decline by 50 percent
on Q-o-Q basis. The Mining sector, where private investment
has declined in recent years due to various reasons, attracted
eight new projects worth `4,753.3 crore. The bulk of the total
investment was by the state-owned ONGC and South Eastern
Coalfields.
Gujarat the Winner
Among the states, Gujarat ranked first by attracting 157 new
projects worth `37,395.8 crore of projex and cornered
around 19.03 percent of the fresh investment announced in
the country in Q1/FY19. The state was followed by Karnataka
with 181 projects (`26,572.8 crore), Andhra Pradesh with
147 projects (`13,795.8 crore) and Maharashtra with 267
projects worth `12,365.7 crore.
Karnataka, favourite of Private Promoters
However, in terms of private fresh projex, Karnataka topped
the table with 123 new projects worth `24,837.6 crore. The
state attracted around 28 percent of the total fresh projex
announced in Q1/FY19. It was followed distantly by Andhra
Pradesh and Gujarat with 73 projects each worth `9,500.7
crore and `9,318.4 crore respectively. The three states
together accounted for around half of the fresh private
investment emanated in the first quarter of the current fiscal.
Projex in 2018-19
Good Monsoon, stabilised GST regime, good tax collections,
revival in rural demand for consumer goods, continued
government spending on highways building and other related
infrastructures should see further pick up in project investment
activities in India.
While sectors like Steel, Cement and Pharma are in the
consolidation phase, Automobiles, Consumer Electronics,
Industrial Construction and Warehousing are the sectors
where increased private projex will flow into in coming
months of the current fiscal. Telecom, once a sunrise sector, is
currently in a very competitive phase wherein the top players
are spending their resources in holding their existing market
shares than expanding the same.
The increased central government spending could be
expected in the transport infrastructure sector in coming
months, before the country enters the general election mode.
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