Cube Highways and Infrastructure, the biggest buyer of road assets in India, on Tuesday said it has entered into a financing agreement with State Bank of India (SBI) for availing a term loan facility of Rs 3,500 crores for TOT or toll operate transfer-Bundle three projects of National Highways Authority of India.

This is one of the largest financings in the Indian road sector till date, Cube said in a statement.

Cube had won the TOT3 bundle with a bid of Rs 5,011 crore in December, but the transaction got delayed due to the impact on toll revenues due to COVID-19 and the nationwide lockdown.

The TOT model developed by the NHAI uses a one-time, upfront concession fee paid to the government in return for the right to operate, maintain and collect tolls over 30 years on select operational national highway stretches. The TOT3 bundle consists of nine road stretches with 2,265 lane kilometres across four geographically diverse states in India.

These project stretches have shown a healthy ramp-up of the traffic after the lockdown was lifted, Cube said.

India Ratings has assigned a AA rating to the TOT3 bundle. Following the transaction, Cube Highways will have a portfolio of 27 highways across India, totalling close to 8,400 lane-kilometres, including assets under various stages of closing.