IDAA Infrastructure Private Ltd

Active

In July 2006, National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) signed a 15 year concession agreement with IDAA Infrastructure Private Limited (IDAA) to upgrade, finance, operate and maintain the 65 Km stretch on National Highway 8 (NH-8) between Bharuch and Surat, in Gujarat State. The project included six laning of the existing four lane stretch; construction of 12 major and 33 minor bridges, 6 flyovers, two rail overbridges, 27.5 km of service roads, and 10 pedestrian underpasses. The 15 year concession term included the construction period of 30 months. The Bharuch-Surat highway project, an important link in the high density corridor connecting Mumbai and Delhi, was the first project to be awarded under National Highway Development Project (NHDP) – Phase V. Under this phase, about 6,500 km of National Highways including the Golden Quadrilateral were to be widened from 4 to 6-lanes. IDAA Infrastructure Private Limited was jointly owned by four Indian firms namely - Ideal Road Builders Ltd, Aryan Toll Road Company, DVJ Leasing and Finance Pvt Ltd and ATR Infrastructure. However, information on the exact shareholding structure of IDAA was not available from public sources. IDAA won the project in an international competitive tender, conducted by NHAI, by offering to make an upfront payment of US$ 111 million for the right to collect tolls during the term of the concession. India’s highway development policy allowed ‘viability funding’ by NHAI to the tune of 40 percent of the capital costs as grant to the concessionaire, subject to competitive bidding. However, in high traffic density corridors that are very profitable, the bidders usually offered an upfront payment to NHAI instead of seeking a grant. The total capital cost of the project was estimated at US$ 199.8 million. The project reached financial closure in December 2006 with US$267.3 million of debt and US$43.7 million of equity. Construction work on the project began in Jan 2007 and was expected to be completed by July 2009. As per NHAI, the project was completed in September 2009 and is currently operational.