Jaypee Infratech Limited (Yamuna Expressway)

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Jaypee Infratech Limited (JIL), part of the Jaypee Group, was incorporated on April 5, 2007 as a special purpose company to develop, operate and maintain the Yamuna Expressway in the state of Uttar Pradesh, connecting Noida and Agra. The Yamuna Expressway was a 165-kilometre access-controlled six-lane concrete pavement expressway along the Yamuna River, with the potential to be widened to an eight-lane expressway. The company also obtained the right to develop 25 million square metres (approximately 6,175 acres) of land along the Yamuna Expressway at five locations for residential, commercial, amusement, industrial and institutional purposes. The expressway that would cut the travelling time from Greater Noida (the city next to New Delhi) to the wonder of the world Taj Mahal in Agra from four hours car to two hours. The expressway is planned to be a dual carriageway initially consisting of three 3.75-meter wide lanes in each direction. The expressway was planned to initially include a 3.25-meter wide paved shoulder and a paved 0.5-meter wide edge strip on the median side in order to facilitate the potential future expansion to four lanes in each direction. The Yamuna Expressway Industrial Development Authority (YEA) of Government of Uttar Pradesh awarded the project to Jaypee on BOT basis and with a 30-year concession period. The Uttar Pradesh state government approved the construction of the Yamuna Expressway in 2001 and the tender process began in 2003. In February 2003, YEIDA awarded the build-operate-transfer (BOT) contract to Jaiprakash Industries, which later merged with Jaypee Cement (JCL). In April 2007, Jaypee Group incorporated Jaypee Infratech (JIL), a special purpose vehicle for planning, investing, implementing, operating and maintaining the expressway. JIL is also working on the development of the expressway's related real estate projects. The project management consultants include LEA Associates South Asia Private (LASA), Intercontinental Consultants & Technocrats (ICT), Scott Wilson India (SW) and Consulting Engineering Services India (CES). In 2009, JAL awarded two contracts of INR4.33bn to Brahmaputra Infraproject for the construction of about 59km of the expressway. The scope of work includes construction of major interchanges, minor bridges, earthen embankment, cart track and vehicular track underpasses. YEA agreed to make available the land for expressway and real estate development on lease at a consideration of the acquisition price plus lease rental. The construction on expressway started in May 2007 and the expressway was likely to get completed by 2011. The land for real estate development would be provided in five parcels of about 1,250 acres each at locations namely Noida, Agra, Dhankur, Tappal and Mirzapur in Uttar Pradesh. Tthe estimated land cost of land acquisition for real state was about Rs.1,719 crore. The toll road, which was also referred to as the Taj Expressway, had an estimated to cost Rs80.2 billion (US$ 1,753.8 million including estimated land cost, construction cost and contingencies), according to CARE Rating in July 2009, the rating agency that rated the debt of the project. The major costs would come from road construction (Rs53bn) and acquiring land (Rs26.2bn).Funding would comprise an equity portion of Rs12.5bn and debt of Rs60bn (US$1.3bn). JP Infratech raised a Rs60bn debt facility to finance the Taj Expressway on January 2010. The loan, which has a 15-year tenor, pays a floating interest rate linked to respective banks’ PLRs. The effective rate is 12.50% on the date of documentation, and there is an option for annual resets. Arrangers were Axis Bank, ICICI and SBI Capital, and they were joined by Corporation Bank, Dena Bank, IIFCL, Oriental Bank of Commerce, Punjab & Sind Bank, Punjab National Bank, SREI Infrastructure Finance, State Bank of Hyderabad, State Bank of Patiala, UCO Bank and Union Bank. Initial completion date was 2013, but the concessionaire expected to