NHAI to offer Rs 44,000 cr worth of BOT road projects in FY25; PPP mode may return to fast lane
National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) plans to offer 15 road projects worth Rs 44,000 crore, covering 900 km, for bids under the build-operate-transfer (BOT) mode in FY25. If successful, this could mark the comeback of public-private-partnership projects in highways.
The government earlier this year amended the model concession agreement to make it attractive for the private sector to invest in road construction. The 15 projects for this fiscal year are a part of the government’s plan to offer 53 projects worth over `. 2.2 lakh crore, covering route length of 5,200 km, under BOT mode over the next three to five years.
Capitalising on Interest:
“There is a lot of traction for BOT projects following the amendments to the model concession agreement, and the ministry will capitalise on this,” a senior government official told ET.
Under the build-operate-transfer mode, the successful bidder constructs, operates and maintains the awarded highway, recovering the investment through toll rights for a specific concession period.
The BOT-toll model, which saw aggressive bidding on the expectation of higher revenue till 2014, had taken a back seat soon after the NDA government took charge due to project delays and financial stress at developers and banks.
Of the 176 projects awarded in 2023- 24, only one project was on BOT mode while all the others were awarded on engineering procurement construction basis or the hybrid annuity model. No projects have been awarded in the current fiscal year so far since the election
