ADB to provide $ 800 m loan for hydro electric project

Shimla, Nov 10 (UNI) The Asian Development Bank (ADB) will provide $ 800 million loan to Himachal Pradesh for execution of four medium to large hydro electric projects under Himachal Pradesh Clean Energy Development Investment Programme.

The MoU to provide loan of Rs 3,800 crore was today signed in Delhi by Mr Govind Mohan, Director (Infrastructure), Department of Economic Affairs, Union Ministry of Finance and Mr Tadashi Kondo, Country Director of Indian Resident Mission of Asian Development Bank.

This is the highest amount of loan sanctioned for hydel power generation in the country so far.

Welcoming the loan agreement, Chief Minister Prem Kumar Dhumal said that it would ensure construction of four medium to large hydro electric projects, namely Sawra-Kuddu (111 MW); Kashang-I, II and III (195MW), Sainj Project (100MW) and the Shongtong Karchham Project (402 MW) and would be funding the generation of 808 MW power from all the above four projects. The annual generation from the projects would be to the order of 3,434 million units on completion.

The total estimated cost of the proposed projects is $ 1.5 billion, about Rs 7,500 crore out of which the ADB has agreed to finance $ 800 million in the form of a multi-tranche financing facility.

The Chief Minister said that the loan would be covering around 53.3 per cent cost of the projects and for the remaining amount, funding would be arranged from equity and other financial institutions.

He said that it had been the biggest achievement for the state since the funding would be on the pattern of 90:10, grant and loan terms respectively to be repaid over a period of 25 years.

UNI XC PS VN1927