The asset monetisation target is unlikely to be revised in the Union Budget 2022-2023, a source familiar with the matter told Business Today. Many media reports talked about the possible revision of the asset monetisation target for FY23 in the upcoming Budget and added that the revised target for FY23 can be around Rs 1 lakh crore. However, the asset monetisation target for the current fiscal stood at Rs 80,000 crore which was made public at the time of the announcement of the National Monetisation Pipeline. The yearly asset monetisation target did not find any mention in the budget document for 2021-2022.
“I don’t think that the asset monetisation target will be revised in the upcoming Budget. Maybe the phasing over of the target happens else it will only be a refinement.” a source, on the condition of anonymity, told Business Today.
The Union Budget 2021-22 has identified asset monetisation as a key means for sustainable infrastructure financing. This includes more than 12-line ministries and more than 20 asset classes. The top 5 sectors (by estimated value) capture 83 per cent of the aggregate pipeline value. These top 5 sectors include Roads (27 per cent) followed by Railways (25 per cent), Power (15 per cent), Oil & Gas pipelines (8 per cent) and Telecom (6 per cent).
The National Monetisation Pipeline (NMP) estimates aggregate monetisation potential of Rs 6 lakh crores through core assets of the Central Government, over a four-year period. The NMP was unveiled by the government in September with an intention to unlock value in brownfield projects by engaging private sector participants, transferring to them revenue rights while their ownership remains with the government.
While launching the NMP, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman had said that this entire pipeline is talking about brownfield projects where investments have already been made, where there is a completed asset that is either languishing or is not fully monetised or is under-utilised.
“So, by bringing in private participation in this, you will be able to monetise it better and ensure further investment in infrastructure building,” she had added.
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