On November 28, 2019, Asian Development Bank (ADB) and the Government of India signed a $451 million loan agreement to strengthen power connectivity between the southern and northern parts of the Chennai–Kanyakumari Industrial Corridor (CKIC), a part of the East Coast Economic Corridor (ECEC), in Tamil Nadu. ADB is acting as the lead partner of the Government of India for developing ECEC.
Signatories to the loan agreement:
The agreement was signed by Mr. Sameer Kumar Khare, Additional Secretary (Fund Bank and ADB), Department of Economic Affairs in India’s Ministry of Finance, and Mr. Kenichi Yokoyama, Country Director of ADB’s India Resident Mission.
Benefits of Agreement:
- It will aid the Tamil Nadu Government in meeting the increasing demand for power supply from industry and commercial enterprises in the state through the transfer of power from new generation facilities.
- It will also boost the industrial phase of CKIC.
State’s initiatives for further economic development:
- To develop the northern Chennai-Tiruchirappalli area of CKIC as a manufacturing center.
- To build the operational capacity of TANTRANSCO (Tamil Nadu Transmission Corporation Limited), the state-owned company responsible for transmission, by supporting a financial restructuring plan, better facilities and work environment for women workers, and improved monitoring system for social and environmental impacts.
- For the TANTRANSCO project, ADB has approved a complimentary technical assistance grant of $650,000.
About ADB:
Established- 1966
Members- 68
Headquarters- Mandaluyong, Philippines
President- Takehiko Nakao
