April 15: Power Finance Corporation (PFC) today announced a marginal 3.4 per cent growth in net profit at Rs 546 crore during 1998-99 over the level of Rs 528 crore in 1997-98. The company also expects to tap the foreign market to raise $ 100 million through external commercial borrowings (ECB) during the current financial year.Announcing annual results of PFC for 1998-99, chairman Uddesh Kohli said PFC's sanctions as on March 31 this year was Rs 3,339 crore, up by 14 per cent over last year, while disbursements were at Rs 2,479 crore as against that of Rs 2,026 crore during 1997-98, up by 22 per cent.PFC expects to mobilise finances to the tune of Rs 2,000 crore for the year 1999-2000. Apart from the ECB of $ 100 million ( Rs 420 crore), the remaining would be mopped up through domestic bonds and loans from commercial banks, Kohli said.During 1998-99 PFC had mobilised about Rs 610 crore through long-term loans from banks at the prime lending rate, Rs 151 crore through tax-free bonds and Rs 212 croreby taxable bonds, he said. Of the sanctions of Rs 3,339 crore, Rs 1,700 crore had been sanctioned for private power projects. Out of this amount, Rs 153 crore had already been disbursed, the PFC chief said.Kohli said during the Ninth Plan period the corporation was envisaging at a Rs 17,000 crore of disbursements as against that of Rs 4,750 crore during the Eighth Plan period.Kohli said that the PFC had recommended to the Government to continue the scheme of providing a one per cent interest subsidy to states that have set up State Electricity Regulatory Commissions (SERCs).So far, nine states have set up SERCs at the initiative of PFC - Orissa, Haryana, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Arunachal Pradesh, West Bengal and Gujarat.Apaprt from this, the corporation had also sanctioned and disbursed Rs 180 crore towards working capital requirements of various SEBs and the recovery rate of PFC is at an impeccable 99 per cent with zero non-performing assets (NPAs), Kohlisaid.
