The Export and Import Bank (EXIM) of India has signed Soft loan worth USD 210.73 million (≅INR 1567 crore) to the government of Guinea for drinking water projects, hospital building and solar projects in the country.
- It includes USD 170 mn Line of Credit (LoC) for strengthening the Grand Conakry-Horizon 2040 drinking water supply project in Guinea
- Loan of USD 20.51 mn for the construction and upgradation of regional hospitals in Kankan and Nzerekore
- Loc worth USD 20.22 mn for financing two solar projects in the country which includes supply of electricity for public universities and health facilities.
- The agreement under the LoC is Effective from August 11, 2021.
What is a soft loan?
i.A loan with no interest or below market rate of interest is known as a soft loan.
ii.Soft loans have lenient terms like extended grace periods.
iii.They also offer longer amortization schedules than bank loans.
Purpose:
Soft loans are given out by multinational or federal banks to support developing countries or to form political or economic ties with them.
Additional info:
i.Exim Bank has around 270 LoC’s covering 62 countries in Africa, Asia, Latin America and the Commonwealth of Independent States(CIS) with credit commitments of around 26.75 billion USD, available for financing exports from India.
ii.These LoC’s showcase the expertise and capabilities of project execution in emerging markets of India.
Recent Related News
In July 2021, The Export-Import (Exim) Bank of India extended a USD 35.26 million loan for Mumbai based Kalpataru Power Transmission Ltd (KPTL) to execute a power transmission project in Senegal.
About Export and Import (EXIM) Bank of India:
Establishment– 1982
Deputy Managing Director (MD)– Harsha Bangari, N. Ramesh
Headquarters– Mumbai, Maharashtra
Regulated By– Reserve Bank of India
About Guinea
President – Alpha Conde
Capital – Conakry
Currency – Guinean Franc
