The World Bank and German development finance bank KfW, on Thursday, announced fresh support for Bengal’s energy and logistics sectors, reinforcing the state’s infrastructure push.

Hoon Sahib Soh, practice manager, macroeconomics, trade and investment at the World Bank, said under a broader partnership with the state, the lender is backing the West Bengal Boosting Logistics Efficiency and Trade Facilitation project.

The project will support the preparation of a state logistics master plan and the creation of a logistics council to improve coordination across departments. It aims to ease business operations by reducing land conversion timelines to 25 days from over 60 days and by enhancing the digitisation of land records. Border trade efficiency will be improved through the adoption of Suvida portals and vehicle tracking systems, helping cut truck waiting times.

Soh said the programme will also promote e-governance for MSMEs and exporters, expand energy-efficient cold storage capacity for agricultural exports and support the training of 1,500 women for jobs in the logistics sector.

KfW has supported the first phase of the 112.5 MW Goaltore solar plant and will add a 100 MW second phase with battery storage, implemented jointly with WBSEDCL. “We have signed the contract this week,” said Thomas Gietzen, principal - energy, South Asia, KfW.