DMEL raises ₹9,731-cr for Delhi-Mumbai Expressway

The Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV) set up by the National Highways Authority of India for financing the Delhi-Mumbai Expressway (DME) has sealed ₹9,731 crore funding deal with four banks including the State Bank of India, Punjab National Bank, Bank of Maharashtra, and Axis Bank. The major share of the funding came from SBI, which contributed ₹5,000 crore. The DME Developers (DMEL) will soon tie-up with other institutions to generate the balance debt worth ₹38,733 crore to build the 1,276 km Delhi-Mumbai Expressway. The total estimated cost of the project is about ₹87,453 crore, including a land acquisition cost of around ₹20,589 crore. During the construction period, the total capital expenditure is estimated to be ₹53,849 crore, which will be funded through a combination of ₹48,464 crore debt and equity.

Delhi Mumbai Expressway is a flagship greenfield project under the Bharatmala Pariyojna. It is being executed under 48 sub-projects, of which 17 are hybrid annuity model projects and 31 are under the EPC Model. Of these 48 sub-projects, 24 are under construction, 17 are awarded & work is to be started and the rest are under process for awarding. The expressway is expected to be completed by March 2023. DME Developers has received AAA rating from CRISIL, CARE, and India Rating. Delhi-Mumbai Expressways' SPV debt re-payment shall be made from the toll revenue generated from the expressway. To ensure the viability of the model, NHAI has decided to add five running toll plazas on the existing Delhi-Mumbai highway as a sweetener to the SPV. According to Crisil, DME has a monetization potential between ₹50,000-80,000 crore.