Paving the way

Description

The market trends and key factors associated with successfully involving private finance highlighted in the report include: Countries that have been successful in tapping private finance markets have: 1) Created political, legal and economic environments conducive to investment; 2) Established ongoing programmes of opportunities; 3) Instituted contractual and regulatory frameworks to address any issues effectively and fairly; 4) Provided forums for stakeholders to share experiences; 5) Involved the public at all stages. The costs and terms of commercial debt have changed significantly as a result of the economic crisis; reinvigorating the capital markets as a source of finance for infrastructure is difficult but of critical importance in the long term. There will be a move to more specialized infrastructure funds to provide investors with a better alignment of risk to reward. Investors will also place greater value on fund managers with experience in ongoing infrastructure asset management. Retail finance participation in infrastructure funds is likely to grow, but it requires a clear articulation of the value proposition and related challenges. Not all pension funds are the same and, while some are undoubtedly major investors in infrastructure, there are many that still regard infrastructure to be too specialized an alternative investment. While the heightened government financial support of infrastructure through the current financial crisis is expected to diminish, it appears likely that more countries will set up state infrastructure banks. Budgetary issues and increasingly constrained opportunities in the developed world may help steer more investment dollars to emerging economies (particularly BRIC countries) that have increasingly stable political, legal and economic regimes. Private investors care more about whether an investment is based on established practices than if it is green field. Getting private financing remains a challenge when the project is novel, untested or in a new market, but there have been successful examples of investment in more challenging projects in different markets.

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