Ministry of Finance approves NHAI’s Rs 500 billion SPV plan

NHAI will go ahead with a plan to raise Rs 500 billion through a special purpose vehicle (SPV) with the National Investment and Infrastructure Fund (NIIF) for the Delhi-Mumbai Expressway project. Reportedly, the authority is expected to appoint a merchant banker in this regard soon. NHAI’s external financing route has been recently approved by the Ministry of Finance, and the financing model is expected to be finalised by end July 2020. In July 2019, the NIIF had entered into an agreement with NHAI to invest in road projects. The SPV will allow the NIIF to take sovereign funds on board and co-invest in NHAI projects. The construction risk and land acquisition costs will be borne by NHAI under the SPV.