A 231 million dollar loan has been sanctioned by the Asian Development Bank for the generation of electricity capacity in Assam through the construction of a 120-megawatt (MW) hydroelectric power plant over the Kopili river. The loan agreement was signed between ADB and the central government was signed on Wednesday.

This is the third tranche loan for the ongoing Assam Power Sector Investment Program, which was approved by the ADB Board in July 2014, ANI reported.

"The proposed hydroelectric project will help increase electricity supplied from clean energy by 469 gigawatt-hour (GWh) by 2025 and reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 3.6 lakh tonnes of carbon dioxide annually", ADB said in a release.

"Part of the loan will be used for project capacity building of Assam Power Generation Corporation Limited (APGCL) on construction, operations and maintenance and safeguards," it said.

Meanwhile, a USD 2-million grant from the Japan Fund for Poverty Reduction (JFPR) is also sanctioned to finance equipment and consulting services to improve capacity for resource management and community resilience.