The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) on Friday said prime Sovereign Green Bonds (SGrBs) would be issued in two tranches for an aggregate amount of Rs 16,000 crore, and proceeds will be utilised for funding public sector projects seeking to reduce carbon emissions.

The first auction would be done on January 25 while the second on February 9, the RBI said in a statement. The proceeds will be deployed in public sector projects, which help in reducing the carbon intensity of the economy, it said. As announced in the Union Budget 2022-23, the central government as part of its overall market borrowings will be issuing Sovereign Green Bonds (SGrBs) for mobilising resources for green infrastructure. "Accordingly, it was notified in the half-yearly issuance calendar for marketable dated securities for the second half of the fiscal year 2022-23 on September 29, 2022, that SGrBs for an aggregate amount of Rs 16,000 crore would be issued.

 "The Government of India has since issued the Sovereign Green Bond Framework on November 9, 2022," it said. These green bonds would be available in five-year and ten-year tenure, it added. Sovereign  Green Bonds will be issued through uniform price auction and 5 per cent of the notified amount of sale will be reserved for retail investors, the RBI said, adding these papers will be reckoned as an eligible investment for Statutory Liquidity Ratio purposes.

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