Bhubaneswar, Aug. 31: The state has received proposals worth Rs 466 crore for setting up various food processing units at the seafood park in Deras on the city outskirts.

'The state government has received very encouraging response for the seafood park from companies across the country. We are confident that the state-of-the-art facility at the park and Odisha's investor-friendly policies will set new benchmarks for the sector,' Sanjeev Chopra, state industries secretary recently said.

The seafood park is being developed on 152 acres at Deras, around 20 kilometres from Bhubaneswar. The project has been approved under the Mega Food Park Scheme of the Union ministry of food processing industries. Land has already been allotted to 20 companies in the park.

The Odisha Industrial Infrastructure Development Corporation (Idco) is developing the park for an estimated Rs 134 crore.

According to the plan, 41 seafood processing units will be set up in the park in which basic infrastructure support and access to common facilities, such as devices for cold storage, pre-processing and post-processing facilities, ice plant, packaging, polythene unit and a research and development facility and others will be available.

The park will process 90,860 million tonnes of seafood per annum (MTPA). Among the major companies that have already committed investments for setting up units at the park are Falcon Marine Exports Ltd, Magnum Seafoods Ltd, Utkal Exports Limited and Vizag-based Coastal Corporation Ltd. Falcon Marine Exports will set up the largest seafood processing unit with a capacity of 37,000 MTPA.

The state government will provide a financial assistance of up to 20 per cent of the project cost (excluding cost of the land) subject to limit of Rs 15 crore to the special-purpose vehicle which will promote seafood park. Besides, subsidy will also be provided in the form of equity participation through the Idco and the Odisha Small Industries Corporation Ltd (OSIC).

Odisha, which has a 480-km-long coastline, is rich in seafood resources and the state government is keen to utilise the full potential of the sector. The state government has set up a target of annual seafood export of Rs 20,000 crore in the next five years from the present level of Rs 2,500 crore a year. Countries such as Japan, China, Indonesia, Hong Kong, the US, the UK and the UAE get most of Odisha's seafood.