SmartCity keen on Kochi-like project in North.

After starting work on its Rs. 5,000-crore Kochi project, Dubai-based SmartCity India is keen on setting up a much larger facility that could spread up to 1,000 acres, preferably in North India.

'Having stabilised the SmartCity Kochi project with the first phase of 650,000 sft property getting ready by December and the work on another 3.6 million sft to be launched soon, we are keen on looking for a similar but much larger project elsewhere in the country, preferably in the North. Our plan is to develop a new SmartCity project spanning 500-1,000 acres,' SmartCity India MD Baju George told PTI here. However, he did not specify the investment size saying it is too early to comment on that.

Considering the possible size of the project, it could be well over Rs. 10,000 crore. The 246-acre Kochi project has capex of Rs. 5,000 crore.

SmartCity Kochi is a cluster of futuristic buildings planed to house the ICT, media, finance, research & innovation giants from across the world in a 246-acre knowledge hub. SmartCity is the international business parks arm of Dubai Holding.

BS