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Here come the Belgians…
Social & Defence EuropeBelgium looks to be on the verge of launching a pipeline of projects – a development that may stay the hand of the European greenfield community which is currently tying a hangman’s noose, one eye firmly fixed on the sturdiest beam
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White-Line Fever – the European malady
Social & Defence Sub-Saharan AfricaIn a perfect world all infrastructure and energy projects are delivered without hitch, operate as expected and run the course of the contract within the parameters outlined in tomes of legal documentation
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Private placements and investors' expanding appetites
Social & Defence EuropeA few years ago, private placements in infrastructure were primarily focused on refinancings. Now, the private placement market has evolved in a number of ways enabling institutional investors to increasingly participate in infrastructure M&A deals, to act on the origination of deals, and going in as primary investors
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Kuwait PPP 10 years on
Social & Defence MENAIt is 10 years since Kuwait launched its PPP programme, which to date has delivered just one project, leading many to question whether procurement agency Kuwait Authority for Partnership Projects (KAPP) will ever deliver most of its pipeline
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Show me the (infra) money…
Social & Defence EuropeJanuary is traditionally a time for reflection, but moreso it’s a time to plan for the year ahead and ensure you’re in position to make the most of the market… which is not so easy these days given, as one old chum puts it nicely: “It’s hard to eke out an existence when there’s a dearth of opportunity”
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The new year – back for another swing
Social & Defence Asia PacificA couple of (hopefully) amusing anecdotes, a preview of our league tables which will be published in a couple of weeks' time and mulling the awards for which we shall hosting judging sessions over the course of this month
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A final hurrah for 2017
Social & DefenceAnd so the year draws to a close and here’s the final missive for 2017, delivered six months after returning to the IJ fold after a break of seven years – the first four at the infra title that doesn’t warrant mention and three highly-enjoyable ones in head hunting...
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Waste PPP projects – trials and tribunals
Social & Defence EuropeThe waste sector has ever been a tricky one for PPP and the latest English project to be tangled up in legal battles serves as a cautionary tale for the global infrastructure sector. Essex County Council and the SPV contracted to deliver and operate the MBT plant – Tovi Eco Park – in Basildon have gone to war...
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Infrastructure funds – big news
Social & Defence Asia PacificIn the same week that IJGlobal goes live with our infrastructure funds database – IJInvestor – it feels appropriate to turn the focus on an interesting trend in the equity space: the rise of technical advisers as investors.
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Gulf tensions chill Lebanon’s development
Social & Defence MENADFI-backed projects in Lebanon appear to be on ice after Prime Minister Saad al-Hariri resigned earlier this month. The latest instability is likely to further hinder project financings in the country
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Goldmans – making PF bankers grind their teeth
Social & Defence EuropeTalking to sources in the market this week, it was fascinating to hear that Goldman Sachs booked the biggest single profit event for the previous two years on HS1 – the high-speed rail line from London to the English end of the Channel Tunnel
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Global equity funds dominate 2017 fundraising
Social & Defence EuropeAmong unlisted, closed-ended infrastructure funds reaching final close in 2017, strategies geared towards global equity investments have taken up a vast chunk of the total capital raised
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Infra banks – a crutch Canada does not need
Social & Defence North AmericaWhat a week it’s been for Canadian infrastructure. Ontario retains its title as the world’s most attractive infra market while the government steps in with a move it hopes will “crowd in” – rather than “crowd out” – project lending to drive future nationwide investments
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Bursa hospital exposes lender limits in Turkey
Social & Defence EuropeTurkish hospital deals are becoming increasingly dependent on DFI and Asian bank debt, as local and European lenders seem less than keen on extending their exposure to the market
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US infrastructure – living the dream/nightmare
Social & Defence North AmericaWriting on Friday the 13th, waiting to board the most cost-effective flight money can buy between New York and London, this hack’s infra career is flashing before his eyes
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Even educated fund managers do it…
Social & Defence EuropeDIF do it, EISER do it, even educated Arcus do it. Let’s do it. Let’s flip a fund. That almost trips off the tongue, and it’s a darn site easier to sing than to achieve. It would appear that when it comes to infrastructure equity funds, Aristotle’s aphorism that “the whole is greater than the sum of the parts” rarely stands true
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Local bank decline in MENA
Social & Defence MENAWhile local lenders become less active in MENA energy and infrastructure transactions, international banks are taking a larger slice of a diminishing pie
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Infra debt funds – brown trouser time
Social & Defence EuropeThere’s an old tale that Admiral Nelson was once asked by a flunky why he wore a red tunic into battle. He coolly replied that, were he to be shot, the blood would not show and the morale of his fighting men would not flag. To this, the attendant replied: “And that’s why I wear brown trousers.”
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Scotland – land of my fathers… and NPD
Social & Defence EuropeThis week we looked on in admiration as Queensferry Crossing – the £1.35 billion bridge linking Edinburgh to the wastelands of Fife – opened to traffic so the Scottish Government can say it went live in August… only for it to close again once the snarl-up had cleared