‘Boeing & Airbus will at some stage have to set up final assembly lines here’: Piyush Goyal

NEW DELHI: Boeing and Airbus will “at some stage have to consider” setting up final assembly lines in India given the potential for air traffic growth in India, Union commerce minister Piyush Goyal said on Thursday. And it is not due to the order for over 1,100 planes worth $140 billion at list price the two majors have won from Tata’s Air India, IndiGo and Akasa in the last 11 months. But because India will continue to be the largest market for aircraft for the next 20-25 years.
“This 1,100 plus order is just the beginning (of aircraft orders from India). We will be talking to Airbus and Boeing (for setting up FTAs). A third original equipment manufacturer (OEM) that makes smaller planes has shown interest to make in India,” Goyal said. FM Nirmala Sitharaman had spoken of the record order placed by Indian carriers in last one year and India’s aviation growth story in her interim budget.
Meanwhile, Goyal said talks are going on with many countries for bilateral investment treaties (BIT). Many BITs were cancelled in 2016 and those places are talking to India. Some don’t want this treaty now as it’s become “passe”. “India is a large investor now. As much as is invested from UK into India, is invested by India into the UK. The difference is that India no longer negotiates from a position of weakness but from a position of strength. Earlier (before 2014) others would dictate terms to India because they needed a free trade agreement (FTA). Some of the FTA signed 10-12 years ago are detrimental to India that were not signed with the required stakeholder consultation as is done now and that saw exports not rising. But that was then,” the minister said.
Regarding PLI, the minister said the scheme will grow by “leaps and bounds”. “PLI is a game-changer scheme,” he said.