Hosting global companies in Tamil Nadu

With several advantages, Tamil Nadu has attracted more than 1,400 firms from many countries and has become a hub for global automakers

Tamil Nadu, misconceived to be a conservative land, has played a perfect host to companies from across the globe. The MNC footprint here has expanded in the past quarter century.

Today the State is home to over 1,400 plus companies from countries such as South Korea, China, Japan, U.K., U.S., Singapore, Australia, and Denmark. Further, it has attracted investors from Germany, France, and Taiwan with 200 plus firms currently operating in Tamil Nadu. Over the years the State has also become home and hub for global automakers. Hyundai from South Korea, Nissan and Yamaha from Japan, Daimler from Germany and Renault, and Peugeot from France have made huge investments for manufacturing.

“Tamil Nadu has lots of advantages against other countries and States in attracting foreign direct investment, relatively good infrastructures including ports, plentiful qualified human resources, and well-established clusters in automobile and IT sectors,” said Young-seup Kwon, Consul General of the Republic of Korea in Chennai.

Details provided by Guidance, the nodal agency instrumental in bringing in investments into Tamil Nadu, shows the state has also emerged as a leading destination for electronics with Taiwan, Japan, and Korea in particular, being at the forefront of investments. Firms such as Delta, Pegatron, Foxconn, Flex, Toshiba, Hitachi, Panasonic, and Samsung have manufacturing facilities here.

The State has also been able to attract investments in renewable energy from Danish companies such as Vestas, Cubic, Fiber line composites and U.S.-based companies like TPI and First Solar.

Most of these companies at a later stage brought in suppliers and other component manufacturers from their countries into Tamil Nadu. For instance, Hyundai Motor came with lots of globally competitive Korean suppliers, including Hyundai Mobis, Mando Automotive, and Hyundai Globis and has created a vibrant and competitive automobile supply chain and ecosystem. More than 150 Korean companies are operating in Tamil Nadu and over 4,000 Koreans are residing, forming the biggest expat community in Chennai.

Mr Young-seup Kwon pointed out that the Korean desk of the Guidance, has always been active in resolving Korean companies’ difficulties, and has been very successful in receiving more foreign and domestic investment.