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IFC to invest $450 mn in Tata Mundra project
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NewsByte on 09 April, 2008 10:36:00
 
Mumbai:The International Finance Corporation (IFC), a World Bank group, will be
investing $450 million in Coastal Gujarat Power Limited's Tata Mundra project to
help expand access to electricity in five states of western and northern India.
Paolo Martelli, IFC director for South Asia, said, "We are pleased to support
this project, which reflects the World Bank Group's strategy to help India's
power sector increase energy access and rural connectivity, while improving
transmission and distribution efficiency." Of the total project cost of $4.2
billion, IFC will provide $450 million with a 20-year tenure long-term financing
that improves the risk profile of the project and complements commercially
available financing from local banks of around 15 years maturity, said an IFC
statement.
The project's 4,000 MW coal-fired power plant is expected to supply affordable
power to industrial and agricultural users and serve 16 million domestic
consumers. The first of the power plant's 800 MW units is expected to be
commissioned in mid 2011, with the other units launching at intervals of four
months each. The plant will create 5,000 jobs during construction and 700 jobs
once it is operational.
IFC fosters sustainable economic growth in developing countries by financing
private sector investment, mobilising private capital in local and international
financial markets.(IANS)