AMP Capital has made its first infrastructure debt investment in India via listed road infrastructure company Sadbhav Infrastructure Project.
The global investment manager, through its recently launched infrastructure debt Asia strategy, has committed to co-finance up to Rs550 crore (€54m) in non-convertible debentures for Sadbhav Infrastructure on a private placement basis.
AMP Capital’s funding will help Sadbhav Infrastructure to fund the completion of an existing portfolio of road assets across India.
This debt investment follows AMP Capital’s recent equity investment in India. In December the manager teamed up with Sterlite Power Transmission to develop energy transmission projects.
Simon La Greca, the head of infrastructure debt Asia at AMP Capital said: “AMP Capital is pleased to make its first infrastructure debt investment in India and support the development of quality road infrastructure which will increase connectivity, promote safe mobility and support growth in the Indian economy.
“India offers attractive opportunities for our infrastructure debt Asia strategy, combining a significant infrastructure pipeline with increasingly supportive regulatory and government initiatives to encourage greater involvement of private investors. We look forward to investing further with high quality and experienced sponsors across the infrastructure sector in India.”
Vasistha C Patel, managing director of Sadbhav Infrastructure Project, said: “The investment will infuse liquidity into the company for funding our growth and will also provide resilience and necessary financial strength to our balance sheet over the long term.
“The proposed fundraising will help Sadbhav Infrastructure inter alia to repay existing debt and to fund the ongoing portfolio of Hybrid Annuity Model road assets of the company.”
The Hybrid Annuity Model is a public-private partnership structure which has been created to support the development of India’s road infrastructure, a priority for the Indian government.
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