GMR Infra commissions two highways

GMR Infrastructure Ltd has completed two highway projects ? one each in Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka under Phase III of the National Highway Development Programme (NHDP). The project in Andhra Pradesh is the 181.5km Hyderabad-Vijayawada section of the National Highway 9 (NH9) which has been built by the company?s special purpose vehicle (SPV) GMR Hyderabad Vijayawada Expressways Pvt Ltd on a design, build, finance, operate and toll (DFOT) basis. The ?22 billion project has a concession period of 25 years. Six new bypasses have been built as a part of the project which is expected to give a boost to local pharmaceutical and cement industries in addition to agriculture products. The second project was to convert a 98km two-lane stretch of NH13 which connects Mangalore and Solapur into a four-lane stretch. The ?16.5billion project was carried out by GMR OSE Hungund Hospet Highways Pvt Ltd, a SPV of the consortium of GMR Infrastructure Ltd and Oriental Structural Engineers Pvt Ltd. The project is expected to boost local steel, fertilizer and chemical industries and tourism. Partial toll collection has begun since November 2012 on two of three toll plazas of the project.