Alistair Darling will unveil the UK budget for 2010 tomorrow, with infrastructure expected to play an important role in stimulating the economy. The latest news indicates that a £2bn green infrastructure fund is on the cards. InfrastructureInvestor.com assesses pre-budget expectations.
Philippe Camu, the European head of Goldman Sachs Infrastructure Partners, is set to join the board of directors of Eurotunnel, the operator of the Channel Tunnel. Goldman became Eurotunnel’s principal shareholder after a share swap last September.
The Brazilian company has bought a 51% stake in a 1,085km gas pipeline in Peru from private equity firm Conduit Capital Partners. Conduit retains the remaining ownership in the $1.5bn pipeline, which is due to start construction in early 2011.
Why limited partner capital could be finding its way into the wrong funds.
The EU's €1.5bn Marguerite infrastructure fund has reached its first close with over €700m in commitments. Malta’s Bank of Valletta, Portugal’s Caixa Geral de Depósitos and the European Commission have joined the six core sponsors of the fund. The fund will primarily target greenfields with daily operations run from Paris.
The French energy group has received indicative bids for its UK electricity network. Three of the four consortia interested in the sale are thought to have submitted initial offers. But new players could still joining existing consortia, with Global Infrastructure Partners rumoured to be interested in doing so.
The Greek government has awarded a major road project to a consortium of three domestic construction firms and one from Italy. The €291m project, scheduled to complete in 2013, is the first step in an infrastructure programme designed to boost Greece’s ailing economy.
The UK government should publish liabilities from private finance initiatives alongside public sector net debt figures with explanations showing how much risk has been transferred from the taxpayer, a parliamentary select committee said yesterday.
New Zealand investment firm Morrison & Co and investment advisory firm Craigs Investment Partners have teamed up to raise as much as $125m for a fund focused on social infrastructure opportunities in New Zealand.
The $451m Cebu Power project - the ‘first ever internationally financed merchant power project in the Philippines’ – has received substantial bank finance. The first of two planned units designed to alleviate power shortages is due to become operational in about a year’s time.
Business secretary Peter Mandelson said in a speech last week that private sector funding for UK infrastructure will have to be mobilised on 'a totally new scale'. And for that to happen, the government has to examine “the case for public sector-backed financial institutions to achieve this mobilisation”.
The Mexican authorities have informed bidders for the FARAC III road concession that none of their offers met the required terms. The announcement came after transport operator Ascendi told the Portuguese stock exchange that it - together with Macquarie and CCR - was on track to win the concession.
The Spanish infrastructure group has said it wants to sell a 10% stake in Canada’s 407 ETR toll road, owned by subsidiary Cintra. This would reduce Cintra’s stake in the road to 43%, with analysts saying it should have little problem netting €500m for the sale.
The consortium has paid just over €800m for Vattenfall’s German grid in a joint bid that will give Belgian transmission operator Elia a 60% stake in the grid with Australia’s Industry Funds Management owning the remaining 40%.
The government unveiled plans earlier today to build a 335-mile, £30bn high-speed rail network across the UK, dubbed the ‘fourth transport revolution’. Importantly, the door has been opened for the private sector to play a part in funding it.