There is every possibility that the Thane-Belapur industrial zone could become the state's first special economic zone (SEZ). The state government has appointed Pricewaterhousecoopers as consultants to explore the establishment of an SEZ in the belt. While the government is hardselling Dronagiri in Navi Mumbai as its first-ever SEZ, sources say that the Thane-Belapur area could get off the ground quicker because it already has the infrastructure and in place. Dronagiri, on the other hand, is merely a huge strip of land and still is scouting for buyers. SEZs have been touted as a solution to the economic slowdown. They are designated as "foreign islands'' within a country and all production is for export. The country's labour and don't apply within the SEZ. The main condition for an SEZ is that the exports of individual units should be greater than their imports. The feasibility study to establish an SEZ for some of the units in the Thane-Belapur belt got under way three months ago. Industries secretary V S Dhumal said that Pricewaterhousecoopers has been told to determine the number of export units in the area and whether they make up a contiguous area of about 1,000 hectares- another essential condition for establishing an SEZ. "There is a distinct possibility that our SEZ will beat Dronagiri as the first such zone in the state,'' president of Industrial Association said.