Active Stocks
Thu Mar 28 2024 15:59:33
  1. Tata Steel share price
  2. 155.90 2.00%
  1. ICICI Bank share price
  2. 1,095.75 1.08%
  1. HDFC Bank share price
  2. 1,448.20 0.52%
  1. ITC share price
  2. 428.55 0.13%
  1. Power Grid Corporation Of India share price
  2. 277.05 2.21%
Business News/ Politics / India offers Zambia $75 million line of credit
BackBack

India offers Zambia $75 million line of credit

India offers Zambia $75 million line of credit

Growing demand: A copper mine near Kitwe, Zambia. The country is a major exporter of copper and its exports are expected to grow. BloombergPremium

Growing demand: A copper mine near Kitwe, Zambia. The country is a major exporter of copper and its exports are expected to grow. Bloomberg

Lusaka, Zambia: India has extended a $75 million (about Rs350 crore) line of credit to Zambia, which is augmenting its power generation capacity and other infrastructure to meet demand from copper miners.

Growing demand: A copper mine near Kitwe, Zambia. The country is a major exporter of copper and its exports are expected to grow. Bloomberg

An line of credit is a specified amount of money a borrower may obtain without a special credit check..

“We will now await proposals from Zambian authorities in the area of health, infrastructure, education among others to utilize this line of credit," Vivek Katju, secretary (west) in ministry of external affairs, said on Wednesday. Katju is accompanying vice-president Hamid Ansari on a visit to Zambia, Malawi and Botswana.

“This $50 million will go towards Zesco’s equity participation in this (Itezhi Tezhi) project," Katju said. Zambia’s power demand is about 1,500MW.

“The vendors for the project have been finalized," said Raman Dhawan, managing director, Tata Africa Holdings. He declined to name them.

India plans to offer credit lines of about $5.4 billion by 2012 to woo African countries. It has so far extended lines of credit of about $1 billion and will give an additional grant of $500 million to these nations.

“There is now a need, as our vice- president put it, to reinvigorate and re-energize the relationship between the countries. That process began in 2008 with the India-Africa forum summit," Katju said.

India has in recent years scrambled to come up with a cohesive Africa policy to catch up with its larger neighbour China to tap the energy and mineral resources of the continent.

Zambia is a major exporter of copper and its exports are expected to grow because global demand for the metal is picking up.

India’s trade with Africa is about $39 billion, including $206.32 million with Zambia.

Unlock a world of Benefits! From insightful newsletters to real-time stock tracking, breaking news and a personalized newsfeed – it's all here, just a click away! Login Now!

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Utpal Bhaskar
"Utpal Bhaskar leads Mint's policy and economy coverage. He is part of Mint’s launch team, which he joined as a staff writer in 2006. Widely cited by authors and think-tanks, he has reported extensively on the intersection of India’s policy, polity and corporate space.
Catch all the Politics News and Updates on Live Mint. Download The Mint News App to get Daily Market Updates & Live Business News.
More Less
Published: 06 Jan 2010, 11:00 PM IST
Next Story footLogo
Recommended For You
Switch to the Mint app for fast and personalized news - Get App