The Government of India and the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) on Tuesday signed a loan agreement for a $304 million Assam Intra-State Transmission System Enhancement Project to improve reliability, capacity, and security of the electricity transmission network in the State of Assam.
The project aims to strengthen Assam’s electricity transmission system by constructing 10 transmission substations and laying transmission lines with the associated infrastructure; upgrading 15 existing substations, transmission lines, and existing ground wire to optical power ground wire; and providing technical assistance to support project implementation.
The programme would strengthen the existing intrastate transmission network of Assam by augmenting it with newer networks to achieve affordable, secure, efficient, and reliable 24×7 power. This would, in turn, bring Assam closer to ensuring the long-term sustainability of its electricity supply.
The loan agreement was signed by Baldeo Purushartha, Joint Secretary, Department of Economic Affairs, Ministry of Finance on behalf of the Government of India, and Rajat Misra, Acting Director-General, Investment Operations on behalf of the AIIB.
The total estimated cost of the project is $365 million, of which $304 million will be financed by the AIIB while the counterpart funding from the Government of Assam is $61 million. The $304 million loan from the AIIB has a 5-year grace period and a maturity of 24 years.