Abu Dhabi's International Holding Company (IHC) plans to invest $11.5 billion in an integrated aluminium project in the eastern Indian state of Odisha through a joint venture with India's Adani Group, a state official said on Thursday. This investment represents the largest foreign investment in India's metals sector.
Investment Details and Joint Venture Structure
Under the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU), IHC and Adani Group will each hold a 50% stake in the venture. The project will comprise a refinery, a smelter, a captive power plant, and a downstream aluminium manufacturing park, creating the state's largest aluminium complex.
The project will have an annual capacity of four million metric tonnes of alumina, two million metric tonnes per annum (MTPA) of aluminium capacity, and one MTPA of downstream aluminium facilities. It will also include a 4,000-megawatt captive power plant.
Strategic Importance for India
The investment comes as India seeks to expand domestic aluminium production to meet growing demand from infrastructure, power, transport, and renewable energy industries, while reducing reliance on imports of value-added metal products. Last year, the federal government outlined steps to boost aluminium output and said domestic demand is expected to reach 8.5 million metric tonnes by fiscal 2030.
While India is the world's second-largest producer of aluminium, it still depends on imports to keep up with booming demand from local industries. Indian policymakers have unveiled a strategic plan to boost domestic output by scaling up production sixfold by 2047 and doubling the national aluminium recycling rate.
Odisha's Role and Employment Impact
Odisha, home to some of India's largest bauxite reserves used to produce aluminium, accounts for 54% of the country's aluminium output. The project is expected to create 53,500 jobs, with 35,000 during construction and an additional 18,500 once operations begin, the official said at the MoU signing ceremony.
Adani Group, led by billionaire Gautam Adani, does not currently operate an aluminium manufacturing facility, though it has announced plans for alumina refining and aluminium projects in Odisha. Its flagship firm, Adani Enterprises, operates a $1.2 billion copper smelter, the world's largest single-site plant of its kind, in the western Indian state of Gujarat.
Executive Statements
"This partnership with Adani Enterprises reflects that strategy and our shared ambition to develop a world-class integrated aluminium project that creates lasting economic value," Syed Basar Shueb, chief executive of IHC, said in a statement.
