NHAI Arm To Issue First Ever Green Bonds Worth Rs 1,000 Crore This Month

The last time DME Development had tapped the bond market was in February when it raised Rs 2,896 crore

DME Development, a wholly owned subsidiary of National Highways Authority of India, plans to raise up to Rs 1,000 crore through the issue of green bonds, two people aware of the development told NDTV Profit.

The company plans to tap the corporate debt market by the end of this month. This will be the first green bond issuance in the road sector, one person in the know said.

The issue is likely to have a base size of Rs 500 crore and a greenshoe option of another Rs 500 crore. The bonds are rated AAA by CRISIL Ratings.

AK Capital Services is the sole arranger for this bond issue. Proceeds of this bond issue will be used for the Delhi-Mumbai Expressway and green plantation projects.

The last time DME Development had tapped the bond market was in February when it raised Rs 2,896 crore through bonds maturing in 15 years at a semi-annual coupon of 7.55%.

DME Development is a special-purpose vehicle created by the NHAI in August 2020 for the construction of the greenfield Delhi-Mumbai Expressway that passes through Delhi and the states of Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat and Maharashtra.

DME Development has a total of 1,277 km of the expressway under its purview out of 1,384 km of total expressway length.