Andhra Pradesh grabbing investor attention due to Speed of Doing Business and Chandrababu Naidu’s leadership, says IT Minister Lokesh

Andhra Pradesh’s Minister of IT & HRD Nara Lokesh has said investments worth $120 billion have come to the State in the last 16 months, and that the government has not even signed MoUs for some marquee projects like the country’s largest steel plant being set up by ArcelorMittal-Nippon Steel in Anakapalli district.

“This has been made possible due to the emphasis on Speed of Doing Business (SoDB) and confidence in Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu’s proven track record,” Mr. Lokesh observed while addressing the media in New Delhi on November 12, 2025 (Wednesday).

Big-ticket projects

Mr. Lokesh said the ArcelorMittal-Nippon Steel project had been agreed upon through a Zoom call with Aditya Mittal, and Google was apparently impressed by the business ecosystem developed by the State government.

He asserted that five of the top 10 solar manufacturing companies in the country had chosen Andhra Pradesh. Similarly, BPCL was establishing a massive refinery project with an investment of ₹1 lakh crore and NTPC was in the process of developing a green hydrogen hub with ₹1.65 lakh crore, he added.

Many such projects were lined up in Andhra Pradesh due to the efforts made by the coalition government, which set for itself an ambitious goal of creating 20 lakh jobs in five years. This was the underlying objective of the campaign to attract investments, which yielded significant results so far, he observed.

Double-engine govt.

Mr. Lokesh said, apart from SoDB and Mr. Naidu’s leadership, the double-engine government was a compelling reason to invest in Andhra Pradesh. He thanked the CII for giving Andhra Pradesh the opportunity to host the Partnership Summit (in Visakhapatnam on November 14 and 15), asserting that it was a platform for investors, policymakers, the government, and the people to come together and explore future opportunities.

The government was set to sign 410 agreements, which would provide jobs to an estimated 7.50 lakh people, he said.