(FE)
In its maiden attempt to raise funds from overseas, National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) will raise Rs 5,000-10,000 crore via rupee-denominated (masala) bonds sold in offshore market in the current fiscal year. The funds will come “way cheaper” than its average cost of borrowing of 7.44% from the domestic market. an official said. The highway development authority, which conducted a roadshow in Singapore on Monday to woo investors to subscribe to the masala bond, has got tremendous response, including from the likes of GIC and Temasek, Rohit Kumar Singh, member (finance), NHAI, said.
NHAI would also conduct roadshows in Hong Kong and London to lure investors for India’s highway story that has grown at an average pace of 23 km a day during the last fiscal. India targets to build 15,000-km highways in the current fiscal which translates into 41km/day.
The authority raised around Rs 40,000 crore through both taxable and tax-free bonds in 2016-17, a quantum jump from the previous three years average of Rs 24,000 crore. However, in 2016-17 too, it could not exhaust the permissible limit of Rs 59,297 crore.
