Central PSUs target Rs 3.29 trillion capex

The central government-owned public sector units would spend Rs.3.29 trillion (around $60-61 billion) on Plan projects during 2013-14, indicating a 10 per cent rise on BE/RE basis, but almost a stagnation on BE/BE basis. The total actual spend by CPUs during 2012-13 was assessed 8 per cent lower in RE, compared to budget expectations.

Other capital expenditure, largely on schemes of departments and ministries etc., like residential and other constructions for police, would be around Rs.310 billion, twice Rs.139 billion in 2011-12 (RE). This would take the total Plan capex of the central government for 2013-14 to Rs.3.60 trillion (+15 per cent). The other segment of Plan outlay, namely plan revenue expenditure including grants by departments and ministries, would rise by 20 per cent to Rs.3.20 trillion.

ONGC (Rs.350 billion), NHAI (Rs.256 billion), NTPC (Rs.202 billion), PGCIL (Rs.200 billion), SAIL (Rs.130 billion) and IOCL (Rs.113 billion) are in the forefront in Plan capex. Central public sector units with mega capex plans (each with Rs.50 billion or more) number 13 and they would be collectively spending Rs.1.72 trillion, which would be nearly two-third of the total Plan outlay of all CPU during 2013-14. Railways, a departmental undertaking, would be spending Rs.623 billion on Plan projects during the year, which is 22 per cent more than that in 2011-12.

The Plan capital expenditure of Rs. 708 billion incurred by CPUs in 2000-01 stagnated at around Rs.838 billion average in the subsequent four years, but found the pace back thereafter and crossed the 1 trillion-mark to scale to Rs.1.23 trillion in 2005-06 in terms of the revised estimates (RE) for the respective years. The pace quickened thereafter and Plan capex of CPUs crossed Rs.2 trillion mark in 2008-09 and scaled to Rs.2.98 trillion by 2012-13. The Plan outlay by Railways rose over threefold, from Rs.121 billion in 2002-03 to Rs.512 billion in 2012-13.

Sources of finance
The quantum jump in Plan capex in recent years has been made possible by sharp improvement in internal and extra-budgetary resources (IEBR) of CPUs, notwithstanding shortfalls in this, compared to budget expectations. The IEBR contributed around Rs.603 billion in 2000-01, then remained range-bound at around Rs.676-689 billion in next four years, and broke through the noose to scale to Rs.981 billion in 2005-06. The subsequent three years witnessed a doubling in IEBR to Rs.1.84 trillion by 2008-09. IEBR dropped to Rs.1.78 trillion in 2009-10, but recorded a bounce back to Rs.2.39 trillion by 2012-13. Budget support in the form of equity and loans in central PSUs etc. grew steadily from Rs.105 billion in 2000-01 to Rs.734 billion in 2012-13 (RE).

CPUs raise bulk of the resources themselves for their Plan investment, depending on the public exchequer for a small fraction of the requirement. Thus, budget support provided just around 20 per cent in the total Plan capex of Rs.2.98 trillion of CPUs (including Railways) in 2012-13, the balance 81 per cent was provided by IEBR.

Petroleum and telecom companies as also coal companies do not depend on budgetary support for their Plan capex. Among the other companies, NTPC, BHEL, SAIL etc. also meet their investment requirements sans support from the exchequer.

Among the mega Plan capex spenders, NHAI, Delhi Metro and other metro rail, and NHPC depend on budgetary support for funding their Plan projects.

Internal finance would provide Rs.1.33 trillion to central PSUs in 2013-14, bonds and debentures would net Rs.742 billion, ECBs and suppliers credit 150 billion, and other external sources around 391 billion. Petroleum companies would come out with Rs.72 billion of bond issues and Rs.46 billion of ECB/suppliers’ credit, power companies with Rs.252 billion of bonds issues and Rs.68 billion of ECB/suppliers’ credit, and NHAI with Rs.140 billion of bond issues during the year.

Following the rapid trend towards corporatisation of economic activities by the government to garner more resources outside budgets, the share of Plan spending by CPUs in overall public sector capital outlay has increased enormously. Constituting, perhaps, the only well organised data source on annual capital account spending (on Plan projects) and the consequent resource raising plans by CPUs for the ensuing year, the budget documents also contain lots of business-relevant information.