NHAI seals largest InvIT monetisation deal of over INR 18,00
NHAI seals largest InvIT monetisation deal of over INR 18,000 crore
NHAI arm National Highways Infra Trust (NHIT) has successfully concluded the fourth round of fund-raising at an enterprise value of about INR 18,380 crore.
NEW DELHI — NHAI arm National Highways Infra Trust (NHIT) has successfully
concluded the fourth round of fund-raising at an enterprise value of about INR
18,380 crore, making it the largest monetisation transaction in the history of
the Indian roads sector, according to an official statement issued on
Wednesday.
NHIT is the Infrastructure Investment Trust (InvIT) set
up by NHAI in 2020 to support the government's monetisation programme.
With the completion of this round, the total realised
value across the four rounds stands at over Rs 46,000 crore.
In this round, the NHIT has successfully raised INR 8,340
crore in unit capital from marquee domestic and international investors, along
with INR 10,040 crore in debt from domestic lenders, the Ministry of Road
Transport and Highways said.
These funds will be used for the acquisition of National
Highway stretches viz Anakapalle-Narsannapeta, Gundugolanu-Kovvuru, and the
Chittoor-Mallavaram stretches in Andhra Pradesh, Bareilly-Sitapur and
Muzaffarnagar-Haridwar stretches in UP/Uttarakhand, the Gandhidham-Mundra
stretch in Gujarat, and the Raipur–Bilaspur stretch in Chhattisgarh, at a
concession value of INR 17,738 crore (including premium of INR 97 crore). The
investors subscribed to the units through a book-building process at a cut-off
price of INR 133.50 per unit, reflecting a premium over the December 31, 2024,
NAV of INR 131.94 per unit, the ministry’s statement said.
The issue attracted strong demand from both existing and
new investors. Several domestic pension/provident funds, viz, the EPFO,
L&T PF, Rajasthan Rajya Vidyut Karamchari PF, Indian Oil Corporation PF;
insurance companies including Axis Max Life Insurance; banks/financial
institutions including NaBFID, Axis Bank, IndusInd Bank; and mutual/ investment
funds like Nippon India, Baroda BNP Paribas, Nuvama and White Oak Capital
participated in the issue. In addition, NHIT’s existing foreign investors,
Canada Pension Plan Investment Board and Ontario Teachers' Pension Plan Board,
participated in the book building to their maximum limit, the statement said.
A significant development in this round is subscription
by the Employees’ Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO) of INR 2,035 crore. This is
the first ever investment by EPFO in an InvIT. Also, the NHAI subscribed to its
share of around 15 per cent of the units at the same price.
With completion of this round, the NHIT will hold a
diversified portfolio of 26 operating toll roads (41 toll plazas) with an
aggregate length of 2,345 km spread across 12 states with concession periods ranging between 20 to 30 years, the statement
added.
