Vizag CII Summit: Andhra Pradesh attracts mega investments in aerospace, maritime, food Sectors

Union Minister for Commerce and Industry Piyush Goyal, Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu and Deputy CM K. Pawan Kalyan join tribal artistes in beating drums at the inauguration of 31st CII Partnership Summit in Visakhapatnam on Thursday. | Photo Credit: K.R. DEEPAK Andhra Pradesh secured significant investment commitments across aerospace, maritime, industrial manufacturing, and agro-processing sectors at the 31st CII Partnership Summit in Visakhapatnam on Thursday.In a major boost to India’s private space ecosystem, Astrobase Space Technologies signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Andhra Pradesh Economic Development Board (APEDB) to expand its rocket testing facility at Thimmasamudram in Sri Sathya Sai district to 360 acres with an ₹800 crore investment, generating 1,500 direct and indirect jobs.Meanwhile, Union Civil Aviation Minister Kinjarapu Rammohan Naidu announced that an indigenously manufactured civil aircraft will be launched within two years, while highlighting plans to build 100 new airports under UDAN-2 and develop an Aerospace and Defence City near Lepakshi.Strengthening international industrial ties, Japan Research Institute Chairman Kenji Hiramatsu met Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu and expressed interest in developing Sri City-style industrial and shipbuilding clusters near Anantapur or Visakhapatnam.On the maritime front, Roads and Buildings Minister B.C. Janardhan Reddy stated that port expansion projects worth over ₹22,000 crore—including Ramayapatnam, Machilipatnam, and Mulapeta—will raise the State’s cargo capacity to 286 MTPA, alongside a proposed ₹29,000-crore shipbuilding cluster at Dugarajapatnam.In the agro-processing sector, S.L.N. Coffee signed a ₹2,500-crore MoU with APEDB to build an integrated instant coffee manufacturing campus by 2035.Additionally, following Mondelez India’s ₹1,800-crore expansion of its Sri City chocolate unit, the Chief Minister proposed launching a Cocoa Mission to expand cultivation and establish a Centre of Excellence in Tirupati.Adding to the summit’s global milestones, European Union Ambassador Jean-Eric Paquet announced that the landmark India-EU Free Trade Agreement will be signed in Brussels on December 16, granting duty-free access to 99 per cent of Indian exports. Published - November 12, 2026 11:33 pm IST