Gandhinagar, Jul 19 (IANS): The Gujarat government on Wednesday announced the signing of 15 Memorandums of Understanding (MOUs) in the biotechnology sector, with a combined investment worth Rs 2000 crore.

The signing ceremony took place in the presence of Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel.

The focus of these MOUs is primarily on investments in the fermentation-based Active Pharmaceutical Ingredients (APIs) and biofertilizers sector, as well as emerging areas such as precision fermentation and animal tissue cultivation.

The operations of these industries are expected to commence in various districts of the state, including Kutch, Devbhumi Dwarka, and Vapi-Valsad.

Government said that these MOUs will lead to the creation of approximately 3,000 job opportunities. Thirteen companies from Gujarat and one each from Maharashtra and Delhi participated in the signing.

Among the companies that signed the MOUs, Maharashtra's Ambio Limited and New Delhi's BioTrends India Pvt Ltd were included, along with local industrial units in Gujarat such as Zydus Lifesciences, Concord Biotech, and Hester Biosciences Ltd. Additionally, Meteoric Bio-Pharmaceutical Pvt. Ltd., an emerging domestic technology player, committed investments of around Rs 500 crore, joined by Endoc Biotech Pvt. Ltd., Gujarat Themis Biosyn Ltd., Steviatech Life Pvt. Ltd., Celexis Biosciences Pvt. Ltd., Kaniva Bioscience Pvt. Ltd., and other industrial units.

To facilitate the growth of the biotechnology sector, the Gujarat government has established the Gujarat State Biotechnology Mission (GSBTM) as the nodal agency.