Indonesian paper and pulp company Asian Pulp and Paper Group will set up not just India’s but probably the world’s largest paper mill in India’s southern state of Andhra Pradesh. At $3.5 billion this facility promises to be one of India’s largest FDIs in a greenfield project.
The facility will produce 5 million tons of packaging paper, specialty paper, as well as writing and printing paper annually. With a market size of a little over 17 million tons at the end of FY18, India has been the fastest growing paper market globally, and has expanded at a compounded annual growth rate of 6.3 percent over the past decade.
Due to lower taxation on the paper and packaging industry, the increased demand from the FMCG and packaged food sectors, a rapidly growing e-commerce industry, as well as a government ban on the use of plastic bags, the demand for paper in India – especially packaging paper – remains buoyant. At the same time, supply constraints remain because some paper companies in India have shut down.
Last updated: December 26th, 2025
