Friday, April 10, 2009

PowerGrid to borrow $2 bn from World Bank, ADB

Central transmission utility PowerGrid Corp today said it will borrow $2 billion (about Rs 10,000 crore) from the World Bank and Asian Development Bank to part finance Rs 55,000 crore investment plans till 2012.
PowerGrid would get the global apex monetary body's loan of $1 billion by June, 2009, and that from ADB ($1 billion) in the next financial year 2010-11. These loans would be utilised for financing the company's projects over a period of 3-4 years.
"The World Bank loan would be approved by June this year, it is also the end of their (WB) financial year, and this amount would be utilised for projects till the end of the current plan and beginning of next plan (2012-17)" CMD PowerGrid S K Chaturvedi told PTI.
The ADB loan would be utilised for building the transmission link for the 4,000-MW Tilaiya Ultra Mega Power Project in Jharkhand, slated for commissioning in 2015, sources said.
This is part of company's plan to invest Rs 55,000 crore for setting up transmission lines in the country during the on-going XIth Five-Year Plan.
PowerGrid plans to augment its transmission capacity to 23,400 MW in the current fiscal, from the existing 19,800 MW and further enhance it to 37,000 MW within the plan period.

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