Ahmedabad, Jan 17 THE newly-floated Infra-structure Finance Company Gujarat Ltd (IFCG), created to handle a unique debt-cum-equity Gujarat Infrastructure Fund (GIF) of Rs 4,700 crore to attract private participation in `fast-track' projects in the state over the next seven years, may go in for private placements within two months.According to official sources, IFCG is, at present, finalising the structure of the funds, comprising Rs 1,500 crore in equity and Rs 3,200 crore in debt, for raising funds from the domestic market as well as foreign institutional investors (FIIs), in addition to funds from the government.
As per its commitment, GoG just released Rs 65 crore as the first tranche as part of its commitment to provide seed capital for GIF from the total budgetary provision of Rs 95 crore made during the current financial year itself. IFCG has been jointly promoted as a special purpose vehicle (SPV) by the Gujarat Industrial Investment Corporation (GIIC), IDFC and AIA Capital (American Insurance Group) in June 2000. The GIIC is the state's premier nodal agency for financing large and medium projects in the joint and associate sectors.
The sources said the merit of the projects happened to be one of the most important criteria of funding especially by the FIIs.At present, working from the GIIC office premises at the state capital at Gandhinagar, IFCG is likely to be shifted to the state's prime city at Ahmedabad shortly.
In a unique document called `Gujarat Infrastructure Agenda -- Vision 2010', unveiled in December 1998, GoG has envisaged an investment of Rs 117,000 crore in 383 projects in power, ports, industrial parks, transport, urban and other infrastructure projects till 2010.
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