Power sector gets funds from Intl agencies

New Delhi: The Ministry of Power said the country's power sector received Rs 8,500 crore worth of financial assistance from international agencies including the World Bank, Asian Development Bank, Japan Bank of International Cooperation and KfW (Germany) in 2007-08.

This amounts to a 175 per cent increase as against agreements for four power projects with aggregate external assistance of Rs 3,100 crore in the previous year.

Agreements in respect of nine power projects spanning across power generation, transmission and distribution were signed throughout the year, according to a statement by the ministry.

The major projects sanctioned during the period with 'external' assistance include projects by power utilities like Power Grid Corporation of India Ltd (PGCIL), Rural Electrification Corporation (REC) and state entities like Madhya Pradesh Power Transmission Company Ltd (MPPTCL).

The statement also mentioned that during the financial year period, the utilisation of external assistance in 23 power projects in central and state sectors was Rs 2,830.80 crore, which is about 18 per cent higher than Rs 2,408.15 crore during 2006-07.