Govt to make highway projects more attractive for pvt investors: Gadkari

New Delhi, Jan 17 (IANS) Minister of Road Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari on Wednesday said that the government is committed to revive the build-operate-transfer (BOT) model for road projects and make it more investment friendly and attractive for private partnerships.

"This will not only strengthen the road infrastructure but will have a ripple effect that will help to strengthen the economy, increase the employment potential and reduce the logistic cost," the minister said at a conference here.

The conference was organised by the ministry to encourage public private partnership for Build-Operate-Transfer (BOT) projects and foster ease of doing business.

Industry stakeholders like contractors, highway operators, banks and financial institutions as well as technical and financial consultants from the road sector.

Currently, projects are being awarded on Engineering Procurement Construction (EPC) or Hybrid Annuity Mode due to various challenges in implementation of BOT Projects.

The conference saw presentations made by senior NHAI officials on the proposed modifications in the Model Concession Agreement of BOT (Toll) to address concerns and remove roadblocks highlighted by the stakeholders.

The proposed modifications include various provisions to eliminate discrepancies such as determination of termination payments, modifications in concession period based on actual traffic (PCU) vs tolling groups of vehicles, actual traffic exceeding design capacity to be re-visited, and compensation for delays on the part of Authority as well as force-majeure cause to be clearly defined termination payments before project completion with a new provision of buy back in case of additional tollway or competing Road.

Many initiatives have been taken for revival of BOT projects and various schemes like Harmonious Substitution, One Time Fund Infusion, Rationalized Compensation, Premium Deferment and allowing refinancing have been adopted in the past.

Going forward, 53 BOT (Toll) Projects for a length of 5,200 km worth Rs 2.1 lakh crore have been identified and bids for 7 projects with a length of 387 km worth Rs 27,000 crore have been invited. According to the government's 'Vision 2047' plan, a large number of high-speed corridors are envisaged to be developed.

Robust Public Private Partnership in development of road sector will play a pivotal role in realizing this vision and will greatly contribute towards the development as well as Operation & Maintenance of a world class National Highway Network in the country, the ministry said.