IJGlobal is delighted to report that today (10 July) it is welcoming back an established infrastructure journalist who last worked at the title in 2009. Ila Patel returns to IJ as Americas Editor.

Ila – known to most in the industry by maiden name Ila Halai – launched her journalism career at IJ and cut her teeth covering greenfield infrastructure markets, predominantly in Canada and the US.

She has almost eight years’ experience breaking news on key developments and tracking projects in the burgeoning Canadian market, while identifying opportunities in states with P3 agendas and identifying key trends in the region.

Since her last role as a full-time journalist in the infrastructure space (2014), Ila has been freelancing for a number of infra titles while also working in consultancy, predominantly with the top five accounting firms.

As well as being a well-recognised figure in the global infrastructure space (particularly so in North America), Ila is a founding member of the Women’s Infrastructure Network in which she remains active.

IJGlobal editorial director Angus Leslie Melville said: “This is the third time that I have worked with Ila and it’s great to have her back on board at IJ. Her depth of knowledge of the infrastructure market – especially in North America – is second to none, as is her network of contacts.”

Ila said: “I am excited to once again work for a business where I started my journalism career. I look forward to expanding the Americas’ coverage for IJGlobal and reconnecting with contacts.”

Jon Whiteaker, IJGlobal editor, said: “We are delighted to have such a high-profile editor join us to drive our coverage in the Americas. We expect shortly to announce a similar appointment for Asia Pacific complementing our London-based funds, EMEA and secondary markets teams.”