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French financial agency, Agence Française de Developement (AFD), is likely to make its final commitment on providing loan to the Kochi Metro project by the end of December 2013.
A team of transport experts from AFD led by Xavier Hoang held discussions with Elias George, managing director of Kochi Metro Rail Limited and E Sreedharan, principal adviser, Delhi Metro Rail Corporation.
This is the second team visiting Kochi to evaluate the project. The next team from AFD is expected to visit in September.
The French agency is expected to provide a loan of up to euro 130 million (roughly Rs 1,000 crore) with a tenure of 20 years plus a moratorium of nine years. The rate of interest will be 2 per cent. The project needs an external borrowing of about Rs 2,170 crore.
The AFD representative said they had visited sites and collected information for evaluating the project. The third team would make the detailed investigation based on which their board would finalise its decision to extend the loan.
Addressing the media, George said, " After deliberations with the AFD, we believe that we are in line with the pre-requisites for the funding. If things go well, we will get a commitment by the end of this year." He added that both Kochi Metro and AFD agreed that more attention had to be given to environmental and social impact and replacement and rehabilitation (R&R).
Kochi Metro has already invited expression of interests from international agencies for preparing the social impact and R&R policy.
Meanwhile, Kochi Metro handed over Rs 34.18 crore for land acquisition to the Ernakulam district administration on Monday. The fund will be used mainly for acquiring land at Muttom, near Aluva. With this, KMRL had already handed over Rs 76 crore for land acquisition.
The total estimated cost for Kochi metro is Rs 5,180 crore, and it is scheduled to be completed by 2016. The first phase will have 22 stations and a system length of 26 km. KMRL has also sought financial aid from Japan International Co-operation Agency (Jica).
The loans expected from AFD and Jica work out to about 42 per cent of the total project cost. The state is expected to pool in Rs 2,009 crore (including land acquisition cost) and the Centre Rs 1,002 crore.
