"GMR Secures ₹3,215-Crore Term Loan for Vizag International Airport"

In a significant development, a consortium of five lenders has sanctioned a term loan amounting to Rs. 3,215 crore to GMR Visakhapatnam International Airport, marking a crucial milestone for GMR Group's endeavor to construct its fourth airport in India.

GMR Airports, a subsidiary of GMR Group, currently manages Indira Gandhi International Airport in New Delhi, Rajiv Gandhi International Airport in Hyderabad, and Manohar International Airport in Goa, along with airports in the Philippines and Indonesia.

The consortium of lenders includes REC (sanctioning Rs. 1,245 crore), India Infrastructure Finance Company (sanctioning Rs. 860 crore), Exim Bank (sanctioning Rs. 455 crore), Central Bank of India (sanctioning Rs. 364 crore), and Bank of Maharashtra (sanctioning Rs. 291 crore).

With an estimated project cost of Rs. 4,727 crore, the funding structure comprises Rs. 3,215 crore in debt, Rs. 1,377 crore in equity and equity-linked instruments, and a grant of Rs. 135 crore from the Andhra Pradesh government.

The term loan, with an 18-year tenure covering the construction period and a one-year moratorium, carries a weighted average interest rate ranging from 10 per cent to 10.5 per cent.

Upon the airport's operationalization, GMR will establish an escrow account with lenders, providing control over the airport development fee. This financial arrangement swiftly follows the acquisition of a 4.7 per cent stake in GMR Airports' holding company by global fund GQG Partners for Rs 1,672 crore.

GMR Group, under the leadership of founder Grandhi Mallikarjuna Rao, ventured into airport development in 2003 through its subsidiary, GMR Airports Limited. Beyond India, the group operates Mactan Cebu International Airport in the Philippines and New Heraklion International Airport in Greece. Additionally, GMR Group has revealed plans to elevate Nagpur Airport into a world-class aviation hub, drawing inspiration from its successful upgrades at Delhi Airport in India and Cebu-Mactan in the Philippines.

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