The National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) plans to raise Rs 9,500 crore by monetising five operational highways through its first asset acquisition under the public Infrastructure Investment Trust (InvIT), Raajmarg Infra Investment Trust (RIIT).
As a public InvIT, RIIT will seek Rs 600–700 crore from retail investors as equity for acquiring the assets. The initial public offer (IPO) is expected to launch later this month, with 10% of the total equity units allocated to retail investors. Individuals can invest between Rs 10,000 and Rs 2 lakh in the units.
Funds for the acquisitions will come from a mix of equity and debt, with equity contributing 60% and bank loans making up the remaining 40%. NHAI, as RIIT’s sponsor, will retain 15% of the units, 30% will go to anchor investors, and the rest will primarily be held by domestic financial institutions.
“Through this public InvIT, retail investors will not only earn stable and attractive returns from operational national highway assets but also share in the pride of contributing to India’s infrastructure growth,” said NHAI Chairman Santosh Kumar Yadav.
RIIT’s maiden acquisition will include five highway stretches totaling over 260 km across four states: the 80.52 km Gorhar–Barwa Adda section in Jharkhand, the 69.4 km Chilakaluripet–Vijayawada section in Andhra Pradesh, the 32.6 km Chennai Bypass, the 33 km Chennai–Tada section in Tamil Nadu, and the 44.6 km Neelmangla–Tumkur section in Karnataka.
Over the next three to five years, NHAI plans to provide an additional 1,500 km of assets to RIIT. Alongside the public InvIT, NHAI is expected to raise further funds this year by monetising two highway stretches totaling 311 km through its private InvIT, National Highways Infra Trust (NHIT).
Proceeds from highway monetisation via InvITs are used exclusively for debt repayment, and NHAI aims to aggressively reduce its outstanding liabilities this year. So far, the authority has raised Rs 12,357 crore from two rounds of monetisation through the Toll Operate Transfer (ToT) mode, with bids for bundles 19, 20, 21, and 22 still open and likely to be finalised this financial year.
For 2025–26, NHAI has identified 24 road assets covering 1,472 km for monetisation via ToT and InvIT, expected to generate around Rs 30,000 crore, with the remainder raised through asset-backed securitisation. In 2024–25, the highway developer raised Rs 28,724 crore through asset monetisation.
