External Commercial Borrowings (ECB) for Infrastructure within National Manufacturing Investment Zone (NMIZ)
AS per the guidelines, availing of ECB is permissible for the infrastructure sector, which is defined to include (i) power, (ii) telecommunication, (iii) railways, (iv) road including bridges, (v) sea port and airport, (vi) industrial parks, (vii) urban infrastructure (water supply, sanitation and sewage projects), (viii) mining, refining and exploration and (ix) cold storage or cold room facility, including for farm level pre-cooling, for preservation or storage of agricultural and allied produce, marine products and meat. Developers of SEZ were also allowed to provide such infrastructure facilities within the SEZ.
Keeping in view the infrastructural needs of the proposed National Manufacturing Investment Zones (NMIZs), it has now been decided to allow developers of NMIZ also to avail of ECB under the "approval route" for providing infrastructure facilities within the NMIZ.
The modifications to the ECB policy will come into force with immediate effect. All other aspects of the ECB policy, such as, recognised lender, average maturity, all-in-cost, prepayment, refinancing of existing ECB and reporting arrangements shall remain unchanged.
These directions have been issued under sections 10(4) and 11(1) of the Foreign Exchange Management Act, 1999 (42 of 1999) and are without prejudice to permissions / approvals, if any, required under any other law.
RBI A. P. (DIR Series) Circular No.85, Dated: February 29, 2012