L&T To Set Up SEZ In Coimbatore To Build Missile Systems, Anti-Tank Weaponry For Armed Forces

Larsen & Toubro (L&T) MBDA Missile Systems Ltd has urged the government to grant it a provisional Letter of Approval (LoA) for the company's proposed Special Economic Zone (SEZ) unit in Coimbatore to start constructing the facility, reports The Hindu BusinessLine.

This gains urgency given the said unit has already signed export contracts with critical delivery timelines with French missiles systems major MBDA to supply missile sub-assemblies to be used to develop missiles will then be supplied to the Indian Armed Forces.

Incorporated in April 2017 as an Indian company with 51 per cent ownership with L&T, the said company is a joint venture (JV) between Indian engineering conglomerate L&T and France's MBDA which is a jointly owned by Airbus Group, BAE Systems and Leonardo.

The JV company aspires to develop and supply fifth-generation anti-tank guided missiles for coastal and high-speed target drones and setting up the said SEZ unit at Aspen Infrastructures Ltd SEZ of Coimbatore in Tamil Nadu would help the company save on custom duties on inputs.

The unit would focus on assembly, integration, and functional testing of missile sub-systems and missile weapon systems, thus also boosting the ‘Make in India’ programme of the Government of India.

L&T MBDA has been trying to get the approvals from Board of Approvals (BoA) of the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) which runs under the Ministry of Commerce & Industry.

However, so far its efforts in this regard have not met with fruition, creating delays as without an LoA, the company cannot enter into a lease agreement with the SEZ developer and undertake construction of manufacturing facilities.