Gold SEZ coming up in Rangareddy district

​Hyderabad: Gold jewellery will be cheaper for Telangana people who usually spend more on buying the yellow metal.

One of the largest Gold SEZs (Special Economic Zone) in the country is coming up in Telangana soon. The Hong Kong-based Huntton and India’s Biyani group have come forward to establish gold refineries in the SEZ for which the government has earmarked nearly 30 acres of land at Kongara Kalan village in Rangareddy district.

The gold refinery plants will process raw gold imported from different parts and prepare gold biscuits and bars. The refineries will purify the raw gold by separating impurities from the raw gold. The gold SEZs have already been established in Gujarat, Maharashtra and Karnataka and Kerala where the companies set up gold refineries and jewelry manufacturing units.

The two companies have proposed to set up gold refinery units with an annual turnover of Rs 43,000 crore. Biyani group has come forward to open the refinery with a capacity of 30 tonnes and the Hong Kong-based company will establish the unit with 110 tonne capacity.

Taking into consideration the two companies readiness to set up units, the Telangana’s Group of Ministers (GoM), in the recently held meeting, instructed the Industries department to take all necessary steps for the establishment of the refineries. The Industries department requested the state Commercial Taxes department to conduct a study on the quantum of revenues to be generated by the establishment of the refineries in the SEZ. Officials said that the SEZ will facilitate the investors to set up refinery and jewellery processing units.

According to them, it is expected that the Telangana’s GSDP will increase by 6 per cent by the establishment of gold refineries. At present, the total turnover of the manufacturing sector is around Rs 69,209 crore. The total turnover of the manufacturing sector will be increased by 41 per cent with the establishment of the two proposed gold refineries. 

Besides generating huge revenues by the refineries, officials said that gold prices will also come down in Telangana as the local product is exempted from the Inter -state GST. The establishment of jewellery processing units will also help the gold consumers to buy jewellery at lower prices than the existing cost.

Officials said that the two companies are keen to set up refineries as the managements are attracted by the government's TSiPASS industrial policy, air connectivity at the international airport, easy availability of land and other infrastructure facilities and the liberalised labour laws adopted by the government.