BRICS bank approves $400m loans to India, Russia

SHANGHAI - The Shanghai-based New Development Bank approved two infrastructure and sustainable development projects in India and Russia with loans of $400 million.

The loans will be used to rehabilitate the Indira Gandhi canal system in India and to build a toll transport corridor connecting Ufa city center to the M-5 federal highway in Russia.

"The NDB was established to mobilize resources for infrastructure and sustainable development in BRICS and other emerging economies and developing countries, and the two projects approved today are fully in line with the bank's mandate and national development plans of our member countries," said KV Kamath, the NDB President.

The NDB was set up with an initial authorized capital of 100 billion dollars after leaders of Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa agreed on its establishment during the 6th BRICS Summit in Fortaleza, Brazil, in 2014. It officially opened in Shanghai in 2015.

NDB approved seven projects in 2016 with a total worth of $1.5 billion. The bank said sustainable infrastructure development will be the primary emphasis of the bank's operations in the next five years.