Cezary Podkul

Infrastructure investors active in the region can expect more club deals by banks and a resurgence of multilateral and export agencies as sources of liquidity, according to project finance lawyers at law firm Shearman & Sterling.

The global energy buyout firm reportedly committed $500m of equity toward the Longview Power Plant’s construction from its Fund XI. Construction began in early 2007 and is expected to finish in 2011.

The Global Maritime Assets fund will seek to buy vessels at distressed prices and sell them when freight shipping rates recover. The private equity fund will be managed by shipping-focused hedge fund M2M Management and has received an initial pledge of $50m.

A joint venture owned by the Canadian asset manager will provide the largest wind transmission project in the state’s history. Analysts say it could also provide Brookfield with a platform for growth in the US utilities market.

The New Dawn satellite will provide communication capacity to mobile telecommunications networks, internet service providers and satellite television broadcasters across Africa. Its development is being financed 85% with debt and only 15% equity.

The government will have far greater control and involvement over the eastward extension of the toll road than the privately-operated section of the highway known as the 407 ETR.

The North Tarrant Expressway marks Cintra’s second toll road project in Texas and the second major concession the Spanish toll road developer has won in the past week. Paris-based Meridiam Infrastructure fund has a 25% interest in the winning consortium.

Fund placement agents active in the asset class say LPs are likely to stick with infrastructure despite the economic downturn and may even up their commitments as a result of it.

Cezary Podkul looks at how the US stimulus bill will impact the upcoming debate on infrastructure spending.

The American Society of Civil Engineers also assigned a cumulative grade of D to the nation’s infrastructure. It is the fourth time the US earned that grade in the study, while the estimated spending needed to improve the state of the infrastructure continued to climb from $1.6tn in 2005.