China's richest man to invest $10 bn in Haryana.

Weeks before Haryana hosts a global investor summit in March, the state has received investment commitments from eight Chinese companies, with the Dalian Wanda group looking at investing $10 billion in an industrial park at Kharkhoda in Sonipat, outside Delhi.

Promoted by Wang Jianlin, the richest Chinese in 2015, the group claims to be the largest real estate developer in China with ownership of the largest number of 6,000 cinema screens across the world.

Sixty-one-year-old Jianlin, who served in the Chinese Army for 16 years till 1986, met Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal recently during the latter's visit to Beijing. The group will invest $10 billion to develop a comprehensive industrial park known as 'Wanda Industrial New City'.

Haryana's industry minister Captain Abhimanyu told Business Standard from Beijing a preliminary agreement was signed between the Wanda Group and Haryana State Industrial and Infrastructure Development Corporation on Friday. The final agreement will be signed after the terms and conditions are agreed upon by both sides. He said there was no proposal of any equity participation by the Haryana government in the project.

The first phase of the city will come up over an area of approximately 13 sq km. Wanda will be responsible for investing in the project's initial infrastructure. In addition, it would attract other international and Chinese industrial, tourism and residential companies to operate in the park, said a Haryana government press release.

BS