Indian logistics industry is expected to grow at 15% to 20% per annum, reaching its revenues of $385 billion by 2015, said a report prepared by Cushman and Wakefield, which term the sector as new powerhouse for the real estate sector in times to come.
As per C&W estimates, the market share of organized logistics players is expected to double to approximately 12% in the same period. The new logistics centers will give big boost to the industrial activities in the country.
The report revealed that 110 logistics parks spread over 3,500 acres at an estimated cost of $1 billion are expected to be operational by 2012. Around 45 million sq ft of warehousing space will be ready in the next four years.
Most of these developments are concentrated in 14 locations. Sanjay Dutt, joint MD, C&W India said, “Since almost one-third of the total realty development in the sector is expected to take place in emerging locations, many tier-2 and tier-3 cities and peripheral locations that offer good connectivity to multiple markets will witness increased activity from logistics players, providing a thrust to the real estate market.” Mumbai has emerged as the preferred location for the development of logistics parks with an investment of approximately $200 million. The city will witness the development of seven to eight logistics parks on 600 acres around Mumbai.
The other cities that fall within the established locations include Kolkata, Chennai and Hyderabad. These locations are characterized by excellent port, rail and road connectivity and are witnessing significant investment in infrastructure, said the report. High concentration of organized retail, established manufacturing hubs and proposed SEZ developments will further augment the attractiveness of these locations.
Besides the established centers, a number of hubs like Nagpur, Vizag and Gurgaon have also emerged. But currently they are lagging behind in support infrastructure. However, due to high ratings on other parameters such as geographic location, existing and proposed manufacturing clusters and SEZs and accessibility, they are promising locations for the purpose.
A number of infrastructural developments are taking place in these locations, which would increase the attractiveness of these locations in the next 3-5 years, said the report. Gurgaon has advantage of being situated on the golden quadrilateral with easy access to the dedicated freight corridor.