Infrastructure fundraising is struggling to recover – and the problems of the Eurozone are a contributory factor
Australia´s New South Wales government has issued a call for expressions of interest from the private sector to maintain and operate Sydney Ferries. A consortium of Transfield Services and Veolia Transdev has already said it will bid for the contract.
The third of French rail agency RFF’s high-speed rail line public-private partnerships is scheduled to receive final offers from consortia comprising Bouygues, Eiffage and Vinci in mid-October.
Two ministers have reportedly advised Prime Minister David Cameron that the UK should ‘look at’ the way EU procurement rules are operated. This follows news that Bombardier, which lost the Thameslink PFI bid, is shedding 1,400 UK jobs.
Ray Mills, a local government and social infrastructure specialist, has been promoted to head of infrastructure and government at PwC. The firm has announced a handful of other moves, including Stuart McKee as the new UK corporate finance leader.
The global real estate services giant has recruited Umer Ahmad from Barclays as its new head of infrastructure, focusing on financial advisory services. His appointment follows the firm’s recent hire of Sir Andrew Foster as a strategic advisor on infrastructure.
The ratings agency has said in a note that the EIB’s proposals to get the capital markets back into infrastructure financing ‘would be capable of credit-enhancing PPP project bonds from low investment-grade to single-A ratings’.
John Roberts has retired as chairman and director of Macquarie International Infrastructure Fund (MIIF) to be replaced by deputy chairman Heng Chiang Meng. Also today, MIIF has announced an increased stake in Taiwan Broadband Communications.
The new government has left the door open to re-evaluating the project with a view to cutting costs and procuring it within a different timeframe. If it decides to cancel the project, the state will have to pay around €150m in compensation to the concessionaire of the first stretch of the line.
Bosnia’s Serb Republic has issued a market teaser to gauge interest in a potential roads package. The concessions would last for 30 years and would require the private sector to build, finance and maintain over 116km of roads.
The results of a new survey present a mixed bag as far as the future of infrastructure investing in Indonesia is concerned. While the potential of the country is recognised, there are strong reservations regarding its legal and regulatory frameworks.
The government wants to lease a proposed high-speed rail line linking London to Birmingham, Manchester and Leeds to the private sector one year after it is completed. Construction of the line would be on balance sheet, but the private sector would be called upon to help fund its stations.
Spain’s airports operator will tender both airports for a period of 15 years, extendable for a further five years. Revenues will come from the exploitation of airport infrastructure, regulated tariffs and commercial activities.
The Paris-based fund manager, which is raising a debut €1bn fund for investment in the southern and eastern Mediterranean, has announced the hire of Gary Neville from John Laing – bringing to an end the recruitment of its management team.
Joe Sinyor, an operational expert who has held senior roles at private equity firm Terra Firma and media group Trinity Mirror, is to head Actis’ Value Creation Group, where he will oversee the performance of the firm’s infrastructure and private equity portfolio companies.