With the state government taking control of the Fab City project coming up on the city outskirts and the proactive IT minister Dayanidhi Maran out of IT ministry, several semiconductor manufacturers are now directly knocking Andhra Pradesh’s doors.

Global players are literally making a beeline for the Secretariat to present their business plans to open shop in the country’s first-ever Fab City which would give a boost chip manufacturing in India. Sources said that after the exit of Maran, senior officials in the Union IT ministry too are redirecting the parties to Hyderabad from Sanchar Bhawan.

So far, three major manufacturers of semiconductors and related products have conveyed their willingness to become players in Fab City. Highly-placed sources in the government said the state government has in principle agreed to make them partners in the project. On Monday, Hindustan Semiconductors Manufacturing Corporation (HSMC), one of the major producers in the fab industry, gave a presentation. The Los Angeles-based company’s managing director Devendra Verma held discussions with officials, sources said, adding that Verma had initially planned to set up the unit in Tamil Nadu but now wants to base it in Hyderabad. HSMC has asked for 800 acres to set up its unit, the sources said.

Moser Baer, another major company, which wants to set up two fab units, would be visiting the state on Tuesday. Chairman Deepak Puri is said to have sought an appointment with chief minister Y S Rajasekhara Reddy. Moser Baer is the world’s largest producer of magnetic storage devices such as CD, DVDs, Light CDR and CD-RWs.

Solar Semicondutor, another company set up by an NRI, has also contacted the government. Its chairman Prabhu Goel had met the chief minister and also officials recently. Developed on 1,200 acres, Fab City began with SemIndia joining it as an anchor unit with the mandate to develop its infrastructure. The company was given 100 acres recently to start the work.

Global business and technology outsourcing services major Genpact is planning to expand its presence in the state. The company is working on a plan to set up an IT/ITeS special economic zone (SEZ). The techno-campus is expected to cost about Rs 121 crore and employ about 5,000 professionals. According to a government statement, the SEZ will come up at 50-acre Huda land in Jawahar Nagar at Shameerpet. The 10-lakh sft space that would be created in the new campus would be for Genpact’s captive use.

The government and Genpact on Friday entered into an agreement for setting up of the campus. “Over the past few years, Genpact contributed significantly to the IT development in the state and we are happy to extend this association further. We hope that Genpact will act as a catalyst for other IT companies to invest in the state,” IT minister R Damodar Reddy said in a statement.

Genpact provides business services and technology solutions for various global majors including General Electric Inc. Genpact also offers finance and transaction processing services for companies around the world in dfferent industry segments including banking, financial services, insurance, manufacturing and transportation. The comapny has an annual turnover of about Rs 2,700 crore with an employee base of over 30,000. The company’s operations in the state contribute over Rs 679 crore for 2006.

In Hyderabad, Genpact has a 26-acre campus at Uppal with a constructed area of 5 lakhs sq ft and employs over 8,000 professionals. Genpact has so far invested Rs 276 crore in creating these facilities.

HYDERABAD, JUN 12:  CDs, DVDs and floppy disks major, Moser Baer India Ltd mulls to set up its proposed solar photovoltaic cell making unit in Fab City, Hyderabad, according to the official sources.

Moser Baer chairman and MD Deepak Puri had recently met the chief minister YS Rajasekhara Reddy and sought his support for the project. The company has sought about 75 acre land in the Fab City and plans to make an investment of about Rs 2,000 crore in the next one year. It is targeting a capacity of 80 mw by 2007.

Confirming the development, the state’s industry secretary B Sam Bob said, “We have asked the company to submit its business plan, accordingly a decision will be taken soon.”

Besides the land, the company has evinced interest in joining the Fab City SPV project, which will develop the required infrastructure for the Fab. Moser Baer India had recently altered its Objects Clause facilitating the company to act as developer. Considering the special status the company had accorded for entering renewable energy sector, it is planning to develop an SEZ with upstream and down stream companies.