India Grid Trust (IndiGrid), an infrastructure investment trust (InvIT) sponsored by Sterlite Power Grid Ventures Ltd, has started roadshows to raise ₹2,500-3,000 crore in fresh capital, said three people aware of the development.
IndiGrid currently owns 10 independent revenue-generating assets, including eight transmission lines of 1,936 circuit km and two substations of 6,000 MVA capacity.
InvITs are trusts that manage income-generating infrastructure assets, offering investors regular yields and a liquid way to invest in infrastructure projects.
“IndiGrid has recently started roadshows for its fresh capital raising exercise. They have appointed investment banks Citi, Axis Capital and Edelweiss to manage the process. They are talking to various institutional investors, including sovereign wealth funds.
The target is to raise ₹2,500-3,000 crore, but the final quantum will depend on the demand from investors,” said one of the people, requesting anonymity. “They need to keep raising capital to acquire new assets.”
Emails sent to Indigrid, Axis Capital and Edelweiss did not elicit any response. Citi declined to comment on the development.
In September, IndiGrid had bought Patran Transmission Co. Ltd, its first third-party acquisition, for ₹232 crore.
The acquisition was done through internal accruals and a debt issuance of ₹250 crore. In 2017, it had acquired three power transmission assets from Sterlite Power for ₹1,490 crore.
IndiGrid is among the only two listed InvITs in India.
In May 2017, IndiGrid had raised ₹2,250 crore through an initial public offering at ₹98-100 apiece. The IPO was subscribed 1.35 times.
In May 2017, road developer IRB Infrastructure Developers Ltd’s IRB InvIT was the first infrastructure trust to go public in India. IRB had raised ₹5,033 crore through the public offering of the trust.
The only other infrastructure investment trust in the Indian market space was a private issuance by L&T Infrastructure Development Projects Ltd (L&T IDPL) in the year 2018.
In May, L&T IDPL had said Canada’s largest pension fund Canada Pension Plan Investment Board (CPPIB) and Allianz Capital Partners (ACP), part of insurance giant Allianz, were participating as anchor investors in IndInfravit Trust, the country’s first private InvIT.
CPPIB has invested about $200 million for a 30% stake in IndInfravit units, while ACP has acquired 25%. L&T IDPL will hold 15% of the units, the company said.
The InvIT consists of five toll roads constructed by L&T IDPL in Karnataka, Telangana, Tamil Nadu and Rajasthan.
In June, Mint reported that Global infrastructure fund I Squared Capital’s India-based roads and highways platform, Cube Highways, is exploring an infrastructure investment trust for its portfolio of operating roads.
Another road developer, Oriental Structural Engineers Pvt. Ltd, has been toying with the idea of raising funds through InvIT, Mint had reported in August.
Source: Mint