Reliance Power has tied up Rs14,500 crore funds for its 3,960 MW Sasan ultra mega power project in Madhya Pradesh. This would meet nearly 75 per cent of the estimated cost of project of around Rs19,400 crore, while the rest of the cost will be met through equity finance.

Funds for the country's largest coal-based power plant have been arranged from over a dozen domestic banks and financial institutions led by the State Bank of India, the company said in a release.

The debt funding would be at interest rates of around 12-12.5 per cent, with maturities of 15 to 20 years, JP Chalasani, the company's chief executive, said.

The first two units of the project, with a capacity of 1,320 MW, would be commissioned by March 2012, he said.

''Several other large domestic banks and financial institutions like IIFCL (India & UK), Power Finance Corporation, Rural Electrification Corporation, Punjab National Bank, LIC, Axis Bank, IDBI Bank etc have provided debt facilities to the project," a company statement said.

Sasan will supply power to seven states - Madhya Pradesh, Punjab, Uttar Pradesh, Haryana, New Delhi, Rajasthan and Uttarakhand - according to the release.

Reliance Infrastructure is undertaking the engineering, procurement and construction contract while Shanghai Electric has been awarded the order for the main plant equipment, including boilers, turbines and generators.

Reliance Power won the 3,960-MW Sasan UMPP under the revised evaluated bids for the project, with a tariff of Rs1.196 per unit, matching the original winning bid by a consortium of Singapore-based Globaleq and Lanco Infratech.

Reliance Power formed Sasan Power Ltd, a special purpose vehicle, to undertake the project. The SPV was  allotted three coal blocks - Moher, Moher-Amlohri extension and Chhatrasal - in Singrauli coalfields by the coal ministry.

Reliance Power has also bagged two other UMMPs - Tilaiya and Krishnapatnam, besides Sasan.

Reliance Power Limited on its own and through subsidiaries is currently developing 13 medium and large sized power projects with a combined planned installed capacity of 28,200 MW, one of the largest portfolios of power generation assets under development in India.

The 13 power projects have diverse geographic location, fuel consumption, fuel source and off-take, according to Reliance Power.

The government is expected to announce three more new projects in Orissa, Tamil Nadu and Chhattisgarh.