HCC Group completed the sale of Baharampore-Farakka Highways (BFHL) to Cube Highways and Infrastructure V (Cube) for Rs 1,323 crore, including SPV debt of Rs 646 crore.

HCC Group will receive a total of 941 crore, including an upfront payment of 677 crore and 264 crore payable in two installments by Q3 FY24 and Q1 FY25, depending on traffic projections. Furthermore, according to a press release issued by the company, as part of the agreement with Cube, HCC will be entitled to a revenue share from BFHL over the entire concession period, which is material in nature.

HCC Concessions owns Baharampore-Farakka Highways. It was formed on March 11, 2010 for the Design, Build, Finance, Operate, and Transfer (DBFOT) toll of the 4-lane highway section of NH-12 (previously NH-34) in West Bengal under NHDP Phase III. NHAI granted the company a concession period of 25 years (extendable to 30 years), and BFHL began commercial (toll) operations on May 14, 2014.

BFHL spans 101 kilometres of Bengal's main artery, NH-12, and passes through major cities such as Baharampore, Umarpur, and Dhuliyan. NH-12 connects the capital region/ports of Kolkata and Haldia to India's north-eastern states. The west side of the highway borders Bihar and Jharkhand and the eastern side runs parallel to the Bangladesh border, where considerable import and export of goods occurs. NH-12 is the only viable route for commercial traffic over major rivers such as Bhagirathi, Ganga, Mahananda and Nagri in the region.

Furthermore, it forms part of the critical route to neighbouring Bhutan, Bangladesh and Nepal. The entire border region of West Bengal and Jharkhand is very rich in mining, while crushing is done at major towns like Pakur, Rampurhat and Nalhatti. The land-locked States in the North-East are heavily dependent on nearby towns for industrial goods. Apart from this, other major commodities like agricultural produce, construction items, industrial goods, petroleum products, forest items, automobile and fishery products are supplied via NH-12.

“HCC is proud to have developed the backbone of West Bengal’s arterial highway on NH-12. Our concessions portfolio has been a value generator for the group and this asset sale underscores the material liquidity contribution toward our operations and growth,” Arjun Dhawan, Vice Chairman, HCC said in the statement.

The legal and financial advisors for this transaction were Cyril Amarchand Mangaldas and Edelweiss Financial Services Ltd, respectively.

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