In a statement, the World Bank said it has given the loan to the Power Grid Corp of India and the debt is guaranteed by the Government of India.
The project – the Fourth Power System Development Project (PSDP IV) – aims to strengthen the transmission grid to improve power transfer between regions and states, and cut the cost of energy transfer.
The Bank added: ‘It will also contribute to the clean energy initiative through both the ability to transfer surplus hydro energy to power deficit regions in India and relive some of the pressure to build generation facilities, particularly in and around the major load growth centres.’
Over the last 15 years the Power Grid Corp of India has almost tripled the size of its transmission network. The World Bank has made three loans to the company in the period, from shortly after Power Grid Corp of India was established, in 1989.
