Increasingly, states are relying on creative financing and asset management to maintain and improve the nation's transportation infrastructure since budgetary challenges constrain potential options. One method of tapping into alternative sources of capital is the public-private partnership (PPP or P3). A public-private partnership is a long-term contractual agreement in which the public sector authority assigns a traditionally public responsibility (such as operations and/or financing) to the private sector participant, in hopes of achieving mutual benefit. First employed in the contemporary era in the late 1980's by California and Virginia, the public-private partnership has continued to become a more popular delivery method. A thorough review of the literature on the subject reveals both academic and institutional material covering a wide variety of P3 topics. Garvin's (2007) P3 Equilibrium Framework supplemented the current body of knowledge by building upon past research to better analyze the performance of existing and proposed PPP's or serve as a resource when developing future projects. The Framework allows the user to assess a project or program and determine its potential for producing desirable results. This research utilizes case studies to gain further insight into P3 projects and programs, as well as the performance of the original P3 Equilibrium Framework. The cases include the evolution of legislation in California and Virginia, and four projects that resulted from these programs: the State Route 91 Express Lanes, Dulles Greenway, Pocahontas Parkway, and failed I-81 Improvement proposals. Application of the original framework to the case studies led to several refinements. The changes provide more comprehensive appraisal mechanisms and improve the applicability and consistency of the P3 Equilibrium Framework. In addition, the concept of "tension" is introduced, which in effect is a means of describing the stress between the interested parties of a P3 arrangement. Ultimately, the revised Framework helps to structure perspectives of P3 arrangements and is underpinned by the notion that these strategies must balance the interests of society, the state, industry, and the market for ultimate success. / Master of Science

This research paper aims to explore the use of project finance to fund urban infrastructure in order to aid the development of affordable housing. This is due to the high rate of urbanisation in developing nations, leading to the challenge of providing adequate shelter and the requisite infrastructure. Although South Africa has been lauded for making observable strides in housing and infrastructure provision, infrastructure is still required. There is reluctance to bring private finance into infrastructure development in developing economies because full recovery of invested capital is not easy to achieve. Project finance is recommended to improve the rate of shelter provision as well as to catalyse the eradication of slums. Project finance was investigated through interviewing selected participants, based on their role in the infrastructure provision sector. The outcomes indicated that project finance is an appropriate tool due to its characteristics.

Transportation finance has been historically dominated by assessing taxes to transportation users and taxes on the general public. Innovative financing mechanisms such as tax increment financing, special assessment districts, and others represent value capture techniques that tax property owners to pay for transportation costs. Value capture techniques provide supplemental funds to support capital construction costs but are not substitutes for existing dedicated and traditional tax revenue methods. The major findings of Texas practice indicate that tax increment financing for transit does not significantly contribute towards the transit infrastructure. Instead tax increment funds finance the improvement of public infrastructure surrounding transit stations and stops and can be labeled transit-supportive investments. / text

Thesis (MDF (Development Finance))--University of Stellenbosch, 2010. / ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Infrastructure and related services are crucial for facilitating economic activities, creating employment opportunities and generating economic growth. The African continent has a huge infrastructure gap estimated by the World Bank at US$75 billion per annum. However, the current levels of public sector resources and foreign capital inflows in Africa are insufficient to fund this infrastructure gap. Africa, therefore, needs to explore new sources of funding to finance its infrastructure backlog. It is then natural that Africa should encourage the private sector to invest in the infrastructure sector. According to the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), the worldwide funded pensions market is about US$24.6 trillion of which US$16.2 trillion is held by pension funds (Inderst, 2009). Infrastructure investments provide important benefits including long-term and inflation-hedged cash revenues which are compatible with pension fund interests. Pension funds around the world have been already investing in infrastructure assets, for example in Latin America, Australia, Canada and the United States of America (US) amongst others. However, such experiences of pension fund participation in infrastructure financing in Africa are very rare. Anecdotal evidence suggests that African pension funds currently manage assets of about US$300 billion. If a small portion of the pension fund assets could be invested in infrastructure projects in Africa, the continent’s infrastructure gap could be partly addressed. The New Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD), a programme of the African Union, seeks to address the infrastructure gap and mobilise the necessary resources domestically and from outside the continent. NEPAD, together with the African Development Bank (AfDB) and the regional economic communities, has developed an Infrastructure Plan for Africa. This study explores the possibility of utilising some of the Africa pension fund assets for infrastructure investments especially in the NEPAD infrastructure projects. The global trends in pension fund investments in infrastructure are reviewed to propose a model for infrastructure investments by African pension funds and some recommendations are put forward on how to increase such investments. AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Infrastruktuur en verwante dienste is krities vir die fasilitering van ekonomiese aktiwiteite, die skep van werksgeleenthede en om ekonomiese groei te genereer. Die Afrika-kontinent het ’n groot infrastruktuur-gaping wat deur die Wêreldbank op US$75 biljoen per jaar beraam word. Die huidige vlakke van openbare-sektor hulpbronne en buitelandse kapitaalinvloei is egter onvoldoende om hierdie infrastruktuur-gaping te befonds. Afrika moet daarom nuwe bronne vir befondsing ondersoek om sy infrastruktuur agterstand te befonds. Dit is dan natuurlik dat Afrika die privaatsektor sal aanmoedig om in die infrastruktuur-sektor te belê. Volgens die Organisasie vir Ekonomiese Samewerking en Ontwikkeling (OECD), is die wêreldwye pensioenmark omtrent US$24.6 triljoen waarvan US$16.2 triljoen deur pensioenfondse gehou word (Inderst, 2009). Infrastruktuur-beleggings bied belangrike voordele insluitend langtermyn- en inflasie-verskanste kontantinkomstes wat versoenbaar is met pensioenfonds belange. Pensioenfondse regoor die wêreld het alreeds begin om in infrastruktuurbates te belê, byvoorbeeld in Latyns-Amerika, Australië, Kanada en in die Verenigde State van Amerika. Sulke gevalle van pensioenfonds deelname aan infrastruktuur-finansiering in Afrika is egter seldsaam. Daar word gespekuleer dat Afrika se pensioenfondse tans bates bestuur van ongeveer US$300 biljoen. As ’n klein gedeelte van die pensioenfondsbates in infrastruktuur-projekte in Afrika belê kon word, sou die kontinent se infrastruktuur-gaping gedeeltelik aangespreek word. Die nuwe vennootskap vir Afrika se ontwikkeling (New Partnership for Africa’s Development, NEPAD), ‘n program van die Afrika Unie, streef daarna om die infrastruktuur gaping aan te spreek en die nodige hulpbronne binnelands en van buite die kontinent te mobiliseer. NEPAD, tesame met die Afrika Ontwikkelingsbank (AfDB) en die streek se ekonomiese gemeenskappe, het ’n infrastruktuur-plan vir Afrika ontwikkel. Hierdie studie ondersoek die moontlikheid om ’n gedeelte van Afrika se pensioenfondsbates vir infrastruktuur-beleggings aan te wend, veral in die NEPAD infrastruktuur-projekte. Die wêreldwye neigings in pensioenfondsbeleggings in infrastruktuur word ondersoek om ’n model voor te stel vir infrastruktuur-beleggings deur Afrika pensioenfondse en ’n paar aanbevelings word gemaak om sodanige beleggings te verhoog.

There has been a rapid growth of private participation in infrastructure projects throughout the world in the last three decades. China as the largest developing country in the world has a huge amount of demands for high quality infrastructure projects and public services. The government has actively developed and used the Build-Operation-Transfer (BOT) model to deliver public facilities and services, particularly after 2002. Certain benefits have been brought by the adoption of the BOT model in China's motorway and water sectors. However, issues were also found in the processes behind BOT applications. International organisations as well as scholars suggested that China should learn experiences and lessons from the UK and its PFI scheme. The UK has been the leading country to use private finance in developing public buildings and services. However, very little has been written addressing how lessons from British PFIs can be learnt by China to improve its BOT practice. This study is an attempt to address this vacuum in the existed literature. It was designed to explore the current problems of using BOTs in Chinese motorway and water sectors and looks at what needs to be improved, based upon the PFI lessons in the UK. A mixture of qualitative and quantitative methods has been employed and various methods of data collection used in this study. These included: 21 interviews, 2 observations and one focus group and the analysis on 14 government reports about BOTs in China. The governments' decision-makers, directors, project managers and contractors were involved in the research to explore the results and emerging issues involving the implementation of BOT models in 87 Chinese motorway and water projects in 10 cities covering six provinces. As a result of its findings, the research is able to discuss and identify the relevant experiences and lessons from PFIs in the UK to improve further application of China's BOTs. This study fills the gap in knowledge regarding comparisons between PFIs and BOTs. It also gives recommendations for good practice in relation to Chinese BOT policy decision making, development and evaluation. Finally, the study hopes to give recommendations that enable the implementation of BOT model in Chinese motorway and water sectors to be more successful in the future.