“First, we seek the government’s approval to reduce their stake to 10 per cent. The government will take a final decision on that,” Das said during the CII Financing Summit 3.0 here.
The company is confident because of the type of equity it needs and what the sector expects from it, he said, “We have initially raised Rs. 4,500 crore has been estimated. Also capital adequacy ratio which is very important.”
He also said that IREDA expects to be included in the list of companies that can raise funds through bonds covered under 54EC of the Income Tax Act and has not decided to raise funds from this instrument.
S&P Global Ratings Limited last week assigned IREDA ‘BBB-‘ Long-Term and ‘A-3’ Short-Term Issuer Credit Ratings, Outlook ‘Stable’, which will enable it to expand its reach in the international market and tap into the lucrative market. . Funding sources and supports its borrowing plan.
Noting that the agency needs to maintain a rating, Das said, “As important as getting a rating, it is just as important to sustain a rating. So we are going about it very responsibly.”
“All development finance institutions and multilateral institutions have been associated with us since 1997 but we have not borrowed from them because the cost of land is high,” he said.
According to Das, currently, the company’s capital adequacy ratio is around 20 per cent and the ratio needs to be ensured at 17-18 per cent in the near future to get a healthy, stable ‘AAA’ rating.
“The process is at an advanced stage, so maybe in a few weeks we will have final news on it,” he said.
Speaking at a panel discussion earlier, Das said that IREDA had submitted a draft green taxonomy to the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) a year and a half ago.
“As announced by the Finance Minister in his budget speech, the climate taxonomy is set to increase the availability of capital for climate adaptation and mitigation projects. By providing a clear list of activities covered under the taxonomy, the nation will attract significant global green funding,” he said.
Das said the company has not received permission from the government to start operations in Gift City as it is still under process and said that when the company gets it, funds will be raised through Gift City.
“We aim to complete this in 2-3 months. We will issue all types of bonds, we have to decide as we have just received the ratings. And also approach all types of sustainable and green financing funds,” he added.
He said that now after receiving the sovereign rating IRDEA will tap the foreign market to further bring down borrowing costs.
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