The financing models for the four new Metro rail projects coming up in the country will be different from the ongoing Delhi Metro project.
The projects coming up in Bangalore, Hyderabad, Ahmedabad and Mumbai are being modelled on the funding pattern of most international Metros, wherein a government support of around 50 per cent has been envisaged along with low borrowings.
In case of the Delhi Metro project, around 65 per cent of the funds come from Japanese loans and the government's contribution is restricted to around 28 per cent.
According to the feasibility studies for these four projects, a higher government funding has been envisaged to keep the project cost down, since much of the funding is to come by way of grants.
Since the interest on debt stock has been assumed at around 10 per cent for the new projects, lowering of the debt component to the maximum possible extent has been prioritised in the detailed project reports.
Also, much of the debt will come from domestic borrowing, according to the reports.
For instance, the Bangalore Metro envisages a contribution of 40 per cent from the government and another 8 per cent as subordinate debt. The remaining 52 per cent is expected to come from borrowings.
According to experts, the Delhi Metro can afford to have a higher debt component, since the Japanese Bank for International Development loan carries a nominal interest rate of 1.8 per cent and the payback period spans 30 years.
However, the new Metro projects are expected to have an arrangement, whereby both the Centre and the state governments pitch in with equal equity, as in the case of the Delhi Metro project.
While the interest component of the Delhi Metro is very low, a higher interest servicing ability has been assumed for the Delhi project due to high passenger traffic.
After completion of the first phase, the Delhi Metro rail project is expected to ferry around 2.2 million passengers everyday. In comparison to this, the passenger traffic capability of the Bangalore metro is assumed to be just 850000 people per day.
The detailed project report of the Bangalore Metro was ready and the Hyderabad metro study had been submitted to the Centre and the state government, officials involved in the exercise said.
The Ahmedabad Metro detailed project report was expected to be ready in four months, while work on the feasibility report for the Mumbai Metro project had just got underway, officials said.