Coastal Energen raises Rs. 1,950 cr for Mutiara power project from SBI-led consortium.

Coastal Energen, part of the $ 1.75 billion Coal & Oil (C&O) Group, said it was in talks with Japanese firms to support the company’s proposed expansion plan involving setting up of a new 1200-MW power unit at Tuticorin in Tamil Nadu.

'We are talking to the government to take up the expansion (adding another 1200-Mw) in the same location.Going by the current value, to set up a one mega watt of coal-based power plant, it would cost around Rs. 5 crore, which translates into around Rs 6,000 crore for the upcoming expansion,' said Ahmed Buhari, founder president & CEO of Coastal Energen.

The company is expecting to get some more funding from large infrastructure finance companies, including India Infrastructure Finance Company Limited (IIFCL) and IFCI Limited. According to Buhari, the company was planning to raise around $100 million from these institutions through external commercial borrowings (ECB).

Coastal Energen is also talking to Japanese firms, including government-run institutions, banks, large financial institutions to fund the expansion plan. “We are talking to them to fund equipment part of the expansion plan,' said Buhari.

Recent last week, the company announced it had raised the last mile term loan and working capital worth Rs. 1,950 crore from SBI and a consortium of banks to complete its ongoing 1200-MW power plant. For the project, with an estimated investment worth around Rs. 7,600 crore, the company had invested Rs. 6,200 crore till December last year.

Buhari said the first unit of 600-MW Mutiara plant went live on December 23, 2014, and has generated over one billion units till last Friday with a revenue of over Rs. 500 crore ($ 81 million).

The second 600-MW unit is expected to go on stream by the end of this year.

BS