SURAT: The Surat Special Economic Zone (SurSEZ), India's first private sector SEZ at Sachin, is expecting a 20 per cent growth in its export
target in the current year with the exports till January 2010 crossing the Rs 16,900 crore mark, for the first time since its inception in the year 2000.
Officials said that almost 70 per cent of the export turnover Rs 12,000 crore has been generated by the diamond and jewellery manufacturing units. However, the robust jewellery and polished diamond demand in the Middle East, China and Hong Kong is set to contribute heavily to the export target of Rs 18,000 crore for 2009-10.
At present, there are about 45 jewellery manufacturing units including big players like Gitanjali Group, Gemstar, Firestone Group, Dharam Exim, JB Enterprises, Sanghavi Exports, Kiran Jewellery and Gunjan Exports which export to Middle East, US, Europe, China, Hong Kong and Africa.
Sources said the export turnover is expected to register a 20 per cent growth in 2009-10, compared to 2008-09. Last year the total export from SurSEZ in 2008-09 stood at Rs 15,306 crore.
"The economic crisis in the US had badly affected the exports in the last quarter of 2008-09. But, the emerging markets like Middle East, China and Hong Kong showed a positive growth for the diamond jewellery demand," said a senior officer with Kiran Jewellery.
There currently 198 functional units in the zone and another 14 projects are under implementation. Being a multi-product zone, manufacturing units such as diamond and jewellery, textile and garments, metallic yarn, engineering, bio-tech, software and hardware, engineering tools, chemical and pharma, medical tool equipment, writing instruments etc. have generated employment for over 15,000 people.
"Despite the global economic recession, the units in the SurSEZ have performed exceeding well in the second quarter of the current financial year. Based on robust performance of the units in SurSEZ, we have set the export target for the current year at Rs 18,000 crore," said S N Sharma, chairman and managing director of SurSEZ.
According to Sharma, the new units are expected to start production in 2010. As the plots in the first phase are fully occupied, the zone is awaiting approval for the second phase expansion from the Central government.
Source : TOI