A new report has revealed that private investment in infrastructure projects has surpassed pre-pandemic levels in Oceania and Australia, despite eight consecutive years of stagnant global spending.
The Infrastructure Monitor Report 2022, published by the Global Infrastructure Hub, identified Oceania as the main driver behind overall growth in private investment in infrastructure projects globally.
Oceania’s 2021 result surpassed pre-pandemic investment levels, thanks to strong growth in the transport sector, which mainly reflects the successful financial closure of Australia’s large Melbourne Northeast Link motorway project.
Despite this, the report shows overall private investment in infrastructure projects has remained stagnant for the eighth year running, despite recovering to pre-pandemic levels.
Global Infrastructure Hub CEO, Marie Lam-Frendo, said the flatlining private investment is particularly notable alongside rising levels of dry powder and the strong performance of infrastructure investments.
“Dry powder – that is, available but uninvested private capital – has quadrupled since 2010, to USD$298 billion,” said Ms Lam-Frendo.
“It is unacceptable that we aren’t investing in badly needed infrastructure when we have the capital, and we know investments in infrastructure exhibit strong performance compared with investments in other asset classes.”
The report finds a ‘green lining’ in unprecedented levels of green private investment, largely in the renewable energy sector. However, it also indicated that green investment outside renewables remains low and needs to grow to meet climate goals.
“We cannot afford to ignore either the infrastructure investment crisis or the climate crisis. Through public and private sector collaboration, we can work towards solving both,” Ms Lam-Frendo said.
“The immediate and absolute priority for the infrastructure community is to join forces and activate a massive surge in investment.”
The Infrastructure Monitor Report 2022 provides governments and investors with data insights to target their investments for maximum impact. This is the third edition of the GI Hub’s flagship report and covers trends in:
- Private investment in infrastructure projects
- Infrastructure investment performance
- Availability of private capital for infrastructure
- The role of multilateral development banks in private investment in infrastructure.
View the full Infrastructure Monitor Report 2022 here.
