Inland Waterways Authority raises ~660 crore via bonds
In line with the Centre’s thrust on fundraising to improve spending, the Inland Waterways Authority of India (IWAI) on Friday announced it has raised ~660 crore through bonds.
The e-bidding for the bonds was organised on Wednesday on the BSE portal, with the issue size of ~300 crore and a green shoe option of ~360 crore. The issue was oversubscribed and the entire amount of ~660 crore was raised in a single tranche, at a coupon of 7.47 per cent.
The resources raised by the IWAI would be in addition to the budgetary support from the central government, said a statement from the ministry of shipping. The IWAI had engaged arrangers, credit rating agencies CRISIL and CARE, registrars, and trustees prior to raising the bonds. The proceeds from the bonds are intended to be used exclusively for the capital expenditure to develop National Waterways (NWs) under the National Waterway Act, 2016, during 2017-18. The interest payment will be on a semi-annual basis and the principal on maturity.
In May, NHAI raised ~3,000 crore worth of masala bonds at the London Stock Exchange (LSE). A similar fundraising exercise was also carried out by the state-owned Indian Renewable Energy Development Agency (IREDA) to raise green masala bonds overseas. It raised $300 million at the LSE, at a coupon rate of 7.1 per cent.
It had earlier raised green masala bonds worth ~700 crore from the domestic market in March this year.