India to Launch the First Public INVIT for Road and Highway Projects

The Centre is planning to launch a New InvIT for National Highways, allowing Domestic Retail Investors to hold trust units. The NHAI is currently in the process of pursuing a public Infrastructure Investment Trust (InvIT).

According to the regulations issued by the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI), it is necessary for the InvIT to have five entities, namely the sponsor, investment manager, project special purpose vehicle, project management company, and trust. Those would have to be set up afresh. The proposed action will be a component of Union Minister of Road Transport and Highways, Nitin Gadkari’s strategic plan to enhance highway infrastructure by encouraging investments from the general public and offering them favourable returns.

The NHAI aims to achieve a monetization target of Rs 15,000 crore for the current fiscal year (2023-24) through two rounds of fundraising using InvITs.

Due to regulatory challenges surrounding the public InvIT, the scope of the target is limited to funds raised exclusively from institutional investors and debt.