Rating agency ICRA on Thursday said state-owned NHAI’s targeted asset monetisation of road assets could fetch the government up to ₹60,000 crore in the current fiscal year.
In April 2024, the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) had released an indicative list of 33 road assets it plans to monetise in FY2025, through a mix of toll-operate-transfer (TOT) and sale to the NHAI’s Infrastructure Investment Trust (InvIT).
These assets are spread across 12 states, cumulatively spanning nearly 2,750 km and with an annual toll collection of ₹4,931 crore.
“ICRA estimates a monetisation potential of ₹53,000 crore to ₹60,000 crore from the sale of 33 road assets through TOT/ InvIT mode,” it said.
NHAI intends to club the 33 identified assets into large (more than ₹6,000 crore), medium (about ₹3,000 crore – ₹4,000 crore) and smaller bundles (₹1,000-3,000 crore), for different types of investors.
Under the government’s National Monetisation Pipeline (NMP), road sector monetisation was expected to account for ₹1.6 lakh crore, viz. 27% of total monetisation during FY2022-FY2025.
“In case the identified 33 assets garner the estimated ₹53,000 crore – ₹60,000 crore of monetisation in FY2025, the achievement against the NMP target could end-up between 65 per cent to 71%,” ICRA said.