Second Vivekananda Bridge Tollway Company Limited

Active

In September 2002, Second Vivekananda Bridge Tollway Company Limited (SVBTC) entered into a 30 year BOT agreement with National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) to finance, design, build, operate and maintain a 6.1 km long six laned bridge across river Hoogly on NH-2, near Kolkata in West Bengal. The scope of the project included the construction of 0.88 km long bridge and six lane approaches on both Howrah (3.67 km) and Kolkata (1.56 km) with many ramps. Construction time of three years was included in the contract term of 30 years. This project formed the critical eastern link of NHAI’s 5,486 km Golden Quadrilateral Program that linked the four major Indian cities of New Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai and Kolkata. SVBTC was a special purpose vehicle formed by Pacific Alliance-Stradec Group Infrastructure Company (PASGIC) and India’s Larsen and Toubro Limited (L&T). PASGIC had a 67% equity interest in SVBTC and the balance was held by L&T. PASGIC in turn was a consortium that comprised of infrastructure development, investment, engineering and construction firms from the US, Philippines, Malaysia, and India. The lead investor in PASGIC was Malaysia’s IJM Corporation Berhad. The project reached financial closure in March 2004 with an estimated cost of US$ 144 million. The project cost was funded through a senior debt of US$ 89 million, NHAI grant worth US$ 27 million and US$ 28 million equity and convertible equity from the sponsors. The debt was raised by a consortium of 14 banks led State Bank of India and IL&FS Investsmart Limited on a project recourse basis. Construction on the project began in 2004 and the bridge was expected to be operational in 2007.