Era Infra nears fund tie-up for Rs 1,660 crore road plans

New Delhi-based Era Infra Engineering is close to achieving financial closure for its two road projects in Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand worth Rs 1,659 crore, said chief financial officer Joy Saxena.

Era Infra, the flagship company of the Era Group, is executing both the projects with Russian firm OJSC-SIBMOST. They hold 74% and 26%, respectively in the projects. The first project is for four-laning of 80 km on National Highway (NH)-58 between Muzaffarnagar and Haridwar on a toll basis at a cost of Rs 1,007 crore.

The second one is also for four-laning of 39 km on NH-58 and NH-72 between Haridwar and Dehradun for Rs 652 crore through the annuity mode. Both the projects, part of National Highway Development Programme (NHDP)-III, were awarded in January.

Saxena said the equity component of the project would be about 22-23% and rest debt.

“We have got the loan underwritten and should finalise the interest rate and other details in less than a month,” Saxena said.

People in the know said Axis Bank has underwritten the loan for the first project and IL&FS for the Haridwar-Dehradun highway. Construction of the highways will begin immediately after the financial closure and will be completed in 2-1/2 years.

Saxena said Era Infra would do all the engineering, procurement & construction for both the projects.

Era currently has orders worth Rs 10,300 crore.

The first 3 road projects of Era will be commissioned between December and March, said Saxena.

The company is in the process of finding backers for its latest NHAI project, the Rs 1,723 crore road on NH-24 between Bareilly and Sitapur in Uttar Pradesh.