On September 13, ESR Group announced its acquisition of 57 acres of land in Cuttack, Odisha, with plans to develop a logistics park at an investment of approximately Rs 360 crore. ESR, a prominent asset manager in the Asia Pacific region, disclosed that this development holds a total potential of 1.2 million square feet.

ESR Cuttack Logistics Park aims to play a pivotal role in supporting the expansion of e-commerce, retail, and third-party logistics (3PL) customers. Abhijit Malkani, CEO of ESR India, noted the growing online and retail consumer base in Odisha as a motivation for the expansion. The facility will integrate green building features to provide a top-notch logistical solution.

The logistics park's initial acquisition included one operational building, which is now fully leased to one of India's largest e-commerce companies. ESR is currently working on the construction of a second building, with plans to accommodate a total of six buildings at the site.

ESR Cuttack Logistics Park holds strategic significance in the eastern part of India, where large, scalable development sites are relatively rare. This marks ESR's entry into the Odisha market.

The demand for logistics facilities in Odisha has surged due to robust economic growth, with the Gross State Domestic Product (GSDP) averaging an annual growth rate of 7.9% over the last decade (excluding the COVID-19-affected year 2020-21). Factors such as increased income, purchasing power, and digital penetration have further fueled this growth.

The warehousing demand is primarily driven by various sectors, including 3PLs, e-commerce, retail, consumer goods, durables, paints, chemicals, automobiles, and ancillaries.

As of June 30, 2023, ESR has a development work-in-progress worth USD 13 billion. ESR India, a subsidiary of ESR Group, specializes in industrial and logistics real estate development and management, with assets under management (AUM) totalling around USD 1.6 billion.