International Herald Tribune

Sabeer Bhatia, co-founder of the Hotmail e-mail service, plans to raise $550 million to start a high-technology project in India modeled on Silicon Valley.

Project Nano City, located in northern India, expects as much as $20 billion of investments, with a potential to generate a fourfold return, Bhatia said in an interview Friday, without specifying a time frame. The park will attract companies developing drugs, computer software, nanotechnology and energy.

India is offering tax breaks to encourage companies to set up in zones to spur exports and help meet its goal of more than 8 percent economic growth a year. Still, local authorities are stalling approval for the land until the government shows how they will be compensated for the potential loss of tax revenue, making it harder for promoters of the projects to raise funds.

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Posted by pichu at September 19, 2006 3:49 PM