ONGC Videsh Ltd. (OVL), the overseas unit of state-run Oil & Natural Gas Corp. (ONGC), has plans raise $1 billion in loan to help finance its Mozambique gas field deal, a person with direct knowledge of the matter revealed.

Requesting anonymity, the person said that OVL sought a five-year dollar loan and asked banks to respond with proposals.

In June this year, OVL and Oil India Ltd.  Jointly hit a deal with Anadarko Petroleum Corp to buy a 10 per cent stake in its Mozambique gas field for $2.64 billion.  The acquisition will boost India's interest in the African country's energy assets.

Last month, OVL hired the services of banks like BNP Paribas SA and Australia & New Zealand Banking Group Ltd to raise a $1.5 billion, one-year term loan.

While the $1.5 billion loan will be used to fund a stake purchase deal Videocon Industries Ltd, the newly reported loan facility will be used to fund the Anadarko deal.

International loans by Indian companies jumped from $2.4 billion in the July-September quarter to $4.3 billion thus far this quarter.  More and more companies are borrowing in dollars after the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) hiked the benchmark repurchase rate by 50 basis points to 7.75 per cent in September.