Lokesh is looking to invest in clean energy, manufacturing and data centers

HRD and IT Minister Nara Lokesh with Astral Pipes Vice President (Corporate Affairs) Alkesh Panchal in Ahmedabad on Thursday. | Photo credit: SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT

HRD and IT Minister Nara Lokesh on Friday held a series of meetings with executives of leading industrial groups in Ahmedabad and invited them to set up manufacturing, clean energy, data center and infrastructure projects in Andhra Pradesh.

Mr. Lokesh met Torrent Group Chairman Samir Mehta and invited the group to explore renewable energy projects, pumped storage facilities and green hydrogen initiatives in the state. He also sought to expand API and advanced intermediate manufacturing capacities in pharmaceutical clusters of Andhra Pradesh.

Mr Mehta said Torrent Power is developing 3.96 GW of renewable energy projects and 3 GW of pumped hydro storage capacity and is exploring green hydrogen and other clean energy projects. The company was targeting 10 GW of renewable energy capacity by 2030, he said.

During a meeting with Welspun World (India) Group CEO Nitin Jain, Mr. Lokesh invited the company to set up a global capacity center in Visakhapatnam and a multi-sector industrial park in Kakinada, which will include textile, logistics, DI pipe manufacturing, pipe coating and green ammonia units. Mr. Jain said the company is already operating 100 MW solar projects in Kurnool and Kadapa and supplying pipelines for the Kakinada-Srikakulam gas pipeline and the Reliance KG-D6 project.

Edible oil refinery

Mr. Lokesh also sought the establishment of palm and soybean oil refineries in Nellore during a meeting with Gokul Agro Resources Chairman and Managing Director Kanubhai J. Thakkar. The company currently operates an edible oil refinery at Krishnapatnam with a capacity of 1,400 tonnes per day, which will commence commercial operations in 2024.

Chiripal Group Managing Director Brij Mohan Chiripal has been invited to set up a greenfield tire manufacturing project in Visakhapatnam. The group, which has manufacturing units in several states, exports textiles, packaging films, solar products and chemicals to more than 52 countries.

Mr. Lokesh invited ST Telemedia Global Data Centers to invest in Visakhapatnam, which the state government is building as a data center hub. ST Telemedia vice president (strategy and sustainability) Gautam Jena said the company operates data centers with a combined capacity of 400 MW in 10 major cities.

Prefabricated building elements

In another meeting, Mr. Lokesh invited Epack Group Chairman Bhajrang Bothra to set up a prefab construction facility in Visakhapatnam to cater to the requirements of data center projects. Mr Bothra said the group already operated manufacturing and pre-fab plants for building components in Sri City and Mambattu.

Mr. Lokesh also invited Astral Pipes Vice President (Corporate Affairs) Alkesh Panchal to set up a pipe manufacturing plant at Kakinada or Anakapalli. He assured the company of fast-track permits and incentives. Mr. Panchal said Astral Pipes has 13 plumbing plants in several states and will look into the Andhra Pradesh government’s proposal.

Published – 25 Sep 2026 18:44 IST