REC raises USD 1175 million syndicated term loan

"In a landmark transaction, REC successfully raised USD 1,175 million from a consortium of seven banks as the Mandated Lead Arrangers and Bookrunners (MLABs)," the company said in a statement issued here.

This is the single largest syndicated loan raised in the international bank loan market by any Indian NBFC, the Navratna company said.
The proceeds from this facility shall be utilized to fund infrastructure power sector projects as permitted under the ECB guidelines of the Reserve Bank of India, the company said.

Commenting on the development, REC Chairman and Managing Director Sanjay Malhotra said, “This ECB represents REC’s efforts in diversifying its sources of borrowings at competitive pricing, while remaining attractive to the Indian and international lenders. We are pleased with the overwhelming response of the banks to this ECB, which is the largest ever offshore term loan facility for any Indian NBFC.”

The deal, benchmarked to USD LIBOR, was anchored by seven Indian and international banks, namely Axis Bank, Bank of Baroda, Bank of India, Canara Bank, DBS, MUFG and SMBC.

"The deal will be launched in the Asian Loan Syndication market shortly to capture interest from wider investor community," the company said.
REC provides financial assistance to state electricity boards, state governments, central/state power utilities, independent power producers, rural electric cooperatives and private sector utilities.

Its business activities involve financing projects in the complete power sector value chain including generation, transmission, distribution and renewable energy segments.