South Korea’s Kia Motors Corporation recently signed a memorandum of understating (MoU) with the Government of Andhra Pradesh, for setting up a greenfield automobile manufacturing facility in the state of Andhra Pradesh. The total project investment in a phased manner is $2 Billion.
The gestation period for the transaction was over 12 months, commencing May 2016 and ending with Kia Motors and Government of Andhra Pradesh executing the MoU on 29th April 2017.
| Deal | Kia Motors signs MoU with Andhra Pradesh to construct a manufacturing facility |
| Value | $2 Billion |
| Sector | Automobile |
| Type | MoU |
| Law Firms | Kia Motors- Ashurst (Hong Kong), IPN Associates LLP and Indian Law Partners |
| Heads/Partners | Ashurst – John Kim, Huiyeon Kim; IPN Associates LLP – T.M.Kumar, Guru Prasath, Abhishek Kumar Pandey, ILP – Gopika Pant |
Kia Motors was represented by Ashurst Hong Kong, IPN Associates LLP, New Delhi and Indian Law Partners.
John Kim, Partner & Head of Korea Corporate Practice and Huiyeon Kim Corporate Counsel represented Ashurst.
IPN Associates team was led by T.M.Kumar, Senior Partner cum Designated Partner & Head of India Project Development Practice, Guru Prasath, Designated Partner-Corporate Practice and Abhishek Kumar Pandey, Designated Partner-Litigation & Regulatory Risk Practice.
Indian Law Partners team was led by Partner Gopika Pant.
The Government of Andhra Pradesh designated authorities for the transaction were the Secretary Industries & Director, Industries. The Honorable Chief Minister was proactively engaged in the project site selection, planning the site leveling to evolving the state support package for the project investment.
Several barriers came in the way of this transaction, including absence of ready to use social infrastructure, non availability of international standard skill development centers and regulator hurdles in the form of uncertainty surrounding the interpretation of sector-specific economic laws.
However, Andhra’s top ranking for ‘Ease of Doing Business’ has created a favourable regulatory milieu for Backward Area Ultra Mega Integrated Automobile Project, making it seamless to overcome significant project issues.
(Read Press Release issued by the Government of Andhra Pradesh)
