OVERVIEW

Amid the rush to raise and deploy capital in the infrastructure space, it is inevitable that concerns have been raised. Some see this sudden enthusiasm as the problem in itself, ie too many new funds, driving up prices and driving down yields. Others point out that investors have got used to operating in a low interest rate environment - as rates creep up, what will be the return implications? Plus, there are some question marks as to whether the specialist skills exist within funds to handle the huge strategic management demands of investee assets.

In this special report, we run the rule over all of these issues and more by way of in-house features, guest articles and interviews with leading industry participants. All the evidence, in our view at least, seems to be pointing in one direction: that infrastructure, already considerable, is morphing into something much, much bigger. No less, it would seem, than an asset class in the making.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Building foundations
A decade of extradordinary growth is predicted for global infrastructure investment. Andy Thomsen surveys a landscape ripe with opportunity, and considers a few of the pitfulls too.

Strength in diversity
Robert Swift, chief executive officer of the MENA Infrastructure Fund, takes a closer look at the infrastructure and energy investment opportunities in the MENA region.

Private pioneer
Nigel Middleton, managing director at Barclays Private Equity, discusses how his firm became a key player in the PFI and PPP market and what the future holds for infrastructure in the UK.

Concrete opportunities in Vietnam
Vietnam is in dire need of more infrastructure. Lots of it. William Lean and Fiachra Mac Cana of VinaCapital report on a country struggling to cope physically with it's rapid economic growth.

Assets in plain view
Christopher Beale, managing partner of $3bn debut fund Alinda Capital Partners, discusses the size of the market opportunity and the influence of gorvernment budgets.

Flying high, but no bubble
Mark Weisdorf, chief investment officer and managing director in the Infrastructure Investments group at JP Morgan Asset Management, talks bubbles, alternative asset overlap and the evolution of the infrastructure market.

Indiana's big score
Looking to plug a $3 bn funding gap, the state of Indiana recently leased its namesake toll road for $3.8bn, kick starting a rash of toll way privatisations in the US.

Full steam ahead
A wave of investments has hit the ports sector in the last two years - could even more be on the horizon?

Port of call
New York private equity group Lincolnshire Management made a bet on portside transport services company Amports and, with infrastructure fever breaking out, was able to dispose of the company for a hefty profit.

Capital watch
A selection of infrastructure funds that have either closed recently, are currently in the market or are coming to the market in the near future.