WEF: USD 500 mn Mid-TRL aerospace institute to be set up in Navi Mumbai

At WEF Davos, two major projects for Maharashtra were announced. Caneus International will establish a USD 500M global aerospace institute in Navi Mumbai, while CM Devendra Fadnavis revealed plans for India's first 'Innovation City' near Mumbai.

USD 500M Aerospace Institute in Navi Mumbai

Milind Pimprikar, Founder and Chairman of Caneus International, has announced the launch of the Mid-Technology Readiness Level (Mid-TRL) Institute, a global institute platform to be established in Navi Mumbai with an investment of USD 500 million at the World Economic Forum (WEF) in Davos.

While speaking with ANI, Pimprikar said, "Maharashtra is leading or hosting this project because this is a commercial-driven economic project where all the aerospace players from around the world will come here, not just for Maharashtra but to the entire India. India wants to create the next generation of aircraft, spacecraft, and satellites."

"This is a USD 500 million initiative where the government of Maharashtra is a partner. They will be contributing 250 acres of land near Navi Mumbai," he told. "We have 25 years of experience doing this around the world. So the first time this will be a global platform in India that will benefit not just India, but the region and the world in particular," he said.

India's First 'Innovation City' Planned Near Mumbai

In a separate interaction with ANI, Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis told the state is set to build its first 'Innovation City' near Mumbai, bringing in multiple investors and global innovation ecosystems to India Speaking to ANI on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum in Davos, Fadnavis highlighted that the idea was proposed under the AI and the Innovation Ecosystem theme of the 2025 WEF conference before more than 400 investors, and this year the location has been finalised with the project set to begin in six to eight months.

"The city will bring global innovation ecosystems to Mumbai, India. Our goal is to make Mumbai a hub where anyone in the world can easily access a plug-and-play innovation system. Tata Sons has committed $11 billion to develop the Innovation City, including a data centre. Following this announcement, international investors are now expressing serious interest in investing in this city. We are set to build India's first innovation city near Mumbai," CM Fadnavis told ANI.

The 56th Annual Meeting of the World Economic Forum is being held from January 19 to 23, 2026, at Davos-Klosters, with nearly 3,000 participants from over 130 countries, including a record number of world leaders, CEOs, innovators and policymakers, under the theme "A Spirit of Dialogue." (ANI)

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by Asianet Newsable English staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)