GMR Energy seeks rescheduling of Rs 2,600-cr loan

Power-to-airports major GMR Group has approached IDBI Bank, the lead bank to GMR Rajahmundry Energy, to reschedule its Rs 2,600-crore loan.

The group has also asked the lenders to allow the company to delay the commissioning of the project to April, 2014.

"We have requested the lenders consortium, led by IDBI Bank, to reschedule the loan to the 768-mw gas-fired power plant at Rajamundry in Andhra (GMR Rajahmundry Energy), due to unavoidable circumstances. We are hopeful that it will be done," GMR Energy Chief Financial Officer Bhaskar Rao told PTI.

He said this is not a debt restructuring, but rescheduling of a standard loan.

The highly-indebted GMR Group has debt of Rs 35,000 crore or 3.2 times its balance sheet size at the end of the second quarter.

The Rs 3,250-crore, 768-mw coal-fired Rajamundry project has a loan component of Rs 2,600 crore taken from 11 banks, Rao added.

Despite many attempts, IDBI Bank Executive Director Ravindra Nath, who looks after the GMR account, could not be reached for comments.

Rao said they have asked the lenders to allow the company to delay the commissioning of the project to April 2014 as gas supply issues are yet to be resolved and the civil work not over so far.

GMR Infrastructure, which is the holding company of GMR Energy, is setting up a 768-mw gas-fired power plant in Andhra Pradesh's Rajamundry district, and was scheduled to be commissioned this April. However, the project is running behind the schedule.

It had incurred a cost-overrun of Rs 810 crore so far, according to the company.