PM Modi inaugurates India's first global MRO facility of Safran in Hyderabad

New Delhi [India], November 26 (ANI): Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the Safran Aircraft Engine Services India (SAESI) facility located at the GMR Aerospace and Industrial Park - SEZ, Rajiv Gandhi International Airport, Hyderabad, on Wednesday, via video conferencing.

Addressing the event virtually from New Delhi, PM Modi said India's aviation sector is set to take a new flight with this MRO facility.

"Safran's new facility will help establish India as a global MRO hub. It will also open new opportunities for our youth. I am hopeful that Safran's investment in India will continue at the same momentum," the prime minister said.

This new facility of Safran, according to PM, will help establish India as a Global MRO Hub.

"India's aviation sector has advanced at an unprecedented pace in the past few years. Today, India is among the world's fastest-growing domestic aviation markets," PM Modi added.

India, he told the gathering, is dreaming big, doing bigger and delivering the best.

"We consider those investing in India not just as investors, but as co-creators. We consider them stakeholders in the journey of a developed India," he said.

"In the past few years, India's aviation sector has advanced at an unprecedented pace. Today, India is among the fastest-growing domestic aviation markets in the world. Our domestic market is now the third-largest globally. The aspirations of the people of India are reaching the skies," he further said in his virtual address.

"With the rapid expansion of India's aviation sector, the need for maintenance, repair and MRO services has grown significantly. Nearly 85 percent of our MRO work was being carried out overseas, which increased costs, caused delays, and kept aircraft grounded for long periods. This is why the Government of India is now actively developing the country as a strong MRO hub," PM Modi said.

SAESI is Safran's dedicated Maintenance, Repair, and Overhaul (MRO) facility for LEAP (Leading Edge Aviation Propulsion) engines, which power the Airbus A320neo and Boeing 737 MAX aircraft.

The establishment of this facility marks a significant milestone, as it is not only one of the largest global aircraft engine MRO facilities but also the first time, a global engine OEM (original equipment manufacturer) has set up an MRO operation in India.

Spread across 45,000 sqm within the GMR Aerospace and Industrial Park - SEZ, the state-of-the-art facility has been developed with an initial investment of around Rs 1,300 crore.

Designed to service up to 300 LEAP engines annually, the SAESI facility will employ over 1,000 highly skilled Indian technicians and engineers upon achieving full operational capacity by 2035. The facility will feature advanced process equipment to deliver world-class engine maintenance and repair services.

The MRO facility will be a huge step towards the goal of Aatmanirbharta in the aviation sector. Developing indigenous capabilities in MRO will reduce foreign exchange outflows, create high-value employment, strengthen supply-chain resilience and position India as a global aviation hub.

The Government of India is actively working to build a robust MRO ecosystem to support the sector's rapid growth. Key policy initiatives of the government -- including GST reforms in 2024, MRO Guidelines 2021, and the National Civil Aviation Policy 2016--have simplified operations for MRO providers by rationalizing tax structures and reducing royalty burdens. (ANI)

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