Insights
EDHECinfra often publishes short research-backed opinion pieces or blog posts. Find the latest ones below.
August 30, 2023
Deal of the month: Perth Airport (July 2023)

Latest
August 30, 2023
Good times are over, now it gets harder

July 27, 2023
Deal of the month: Angel Trains (June 2023)

July 27, 2023
Q2 2023 InfraMetrics Data Release: infrastructure flat as macroeconomic environment stabilises

July 18, 2023
Is Thames Water just a case of bad management?

June 27, 2023
Deal of the month: Millau Viaduct (May 2023)

June 27, 2023
Do you have your “Climate Comps”?

May 25, 2023
Social Acceptability Index Highlights Growing Concerns Over UK Sewerage Sector

May 25, 2023
Deal of the month: Anzi Windfarm (April 2023)

April 25, 2023
Benchmark your Climate Risks in infraMetrics®
Previous Insights
Towards more frequent marks
Recently APRA, Australia’s pension regulator called for comment on the update of “SPG 530 Investment Governance” – a Prudential Practice…

Is UK Wind still expensive?
In March 2023, INPEX Corporation acquired a 16.7 percent stake in the Moray East Offshore Wind Farm, which is currently…

Q1 2023 infraMetrics Data Release – Demand for infrastructure assets supports valuations despite higher rates
The infrastructure asset class showed resilience this quarter amid various macroeconomic and geopolitical headwinds with both infrastructure equity and debt…

Report Q1 2023 Revenue Forecast Updates
Central banks continue to tighten monetary policy in the UK, Europe and the US. As of March 2023, the Federal…

$1.77bn for Scottish Energy Transmission Stake
SSE plc has sold a 25% stake in its SSEN Transmission SPV, which operates the energy transmission network in the…

Q4 2022 infrastructure update – inflation, interest rate rises and energy crisis: what happened to infrastructure in 2022?
In a year where global stocks and bonds lost more than $30tn[1] on account of high inflation, rising interest rates,…

The Denominatrix Effect
Why suffer at the hands of the denominator effect when the true market value of private assets is available? When…

Report Q4 2022 Revenue Forecast Updates
The Q4 2022 release of the EDHECinfra indices presents our updated views in the light of recent government intervention in…

Insights by Vincent Levita on market shocks and infrastructure investment
With the support of LTIIA, EDHECInfra recently published a new paper “Is Infrastructure Shockproof?” examining the resilience of infrastructure equity…

EU renewable energy revenues grows 7% in Q3
The cut in gas flows from Russia to Europe has had a significant impact on the electricity market in Europe,…

UK Mini-budget destroys $6.5bn of infrastructure investor value
Well, what an interesting month it has been. The shortest and perhaps most chaotic term of any UK Prime Minister…

Q3 2022 infrastructure update – infrastructure isn’t immune to market volatility
A multi-decade high inflation, aggressive monetary policy tightening by the central banks, and the effects of the Russia/Ukraine war, have…

Report Q3 2022 Revenue Forecast Updates: Energy view
The cut in gas flows from Russia to Europe has had a significant impact on the electricity market in Europe,…

Appraising valuations
In July the FT reported ($) that Calpers suffered losses on both its fixed income and public equity portfolios of almost…

An Open Letter to ClientEarth, WWF’s European Policy Office, Transport & Environment (T&E), and BUND (Friends of the Earth Germany)
Dear Sir/Madam, Following your announcement on September 19, 2022, that you were taking legal action against the European executive to…

Wanted: data on pricing climate risks
Private markets function on data – but the data to accurately price climate risks in investment decisions is sorely lacking.…

Did Alteria overpay for the Chicago Skyway?
On September 14, Atlas Arteria announced it acquired a 67% majority stake in the Chicago Skyway Toll Bridge for US$2…

Q2 2022 infrastructure update – inflation linkage provides some relief from rising rates
Even if partial, and limited to certain sectors, inflation-hedging characteristics of the infrastructure asset class were on display in this…

Report: Q2 2022 Revenue Forecast Updates
The Q2 2022 release of the EDHECinfra indices incorporates the views and asset-level revenue forecasts of our team of financial…

An Open letter to Stuart Kirk
Dear Stuart, It takes courage to express non-conformist views to a room full of evangelists. During your now infamous speech…

Report: Q1 2022 Covid-19 Revenue Forecast Updates
Report: Q1 2022 Covid-19 Revenue Forecast Updates The Q1 2022 release of the EDHECinfra indices incorporates the views and asset-level…
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[infraStack] What do airspace closures, compound interest and aircraft manual subscriptions have in common?
Answer: They are driving cost of international sanctions to investors in Russian airports In this research note, we look at…

First Global Ranking of Infrastructure Investment Strategies
Boston Consulting Group and EDHECinfra present the results of the first global study of infrastructure investment strategies and performance The…

How much do investors in Russian airports stand to lose?
International sanctions have to date had little impact on the value of Russian airports, but their apparent resilience may not…

Which infrastructure investor peer group outperformed in 2021?
Has the direct `Canadian’ model delivered compared to investors who chose to access infrastructure via fund managers? What happened to…

Report: Q4 2021 Covid-19 Revenue Forecast Updates
The Q4 2021 release of the EDHECinfra indices incorporates the views and asset-level revenue forecasts of our team of financial…

Q4 2021 Index Data Release – infrastructure equity marches on, while debt faces the tough reality!
After three consecutive quarters of positive returns, infrastructure equity ended the year 2021 strongly at an all-time high. The infra300®…
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[infraStack] Gas is in the black, not green
Would excluding natural gas from the green taxonomy prevent the financing of transition fuels? In a new research note,we look at…

Q3 2021 Index Data Release – steady recovery but risks remain
With two consecutive quarters of strong performance, the unlisted infrastructure asset class is inching closer to its all-time high of…

Report: Q3 2021 Covid-19 Revenue Forecast Updates
The Q3 2021 release of the EDHECinfra indices incorporates the views and asset-level revenue forecasts of our team of financial…

infra300 monthly index release, July 2021
The unlisted infrastructure asset class continues its recovery from Covid-19 ending six consecutive quarters of losses. The infra300® index, which…

Q2 2021 Index Data Release – Resilience and recovery of infrastructure returns
The unlisted infrastructure asset class is finally showing signs of recovery from Covid-19 with a significant drop in the equity…

Report: Q2 2021 Covid-19 Revenue Forecast Updates
The Q2 2021 release of the EDHECinfra indices incorporates the views and asset-level revenue forecasts of our team of financial…

A new era of data & analytics for infrastructure investors
This post is the editorial of the June 2021 EDHECinfra Newsletter (Volume 5 issue 1) Infrastructure investment is evolving from…

Three questions to Thierry Déau on volatility and infrastructure investment
With the support of LTIIA, EDHECinfra recently published a new paper exploring the nature and drivers of the issue of…

The Economist: Infrastructure is a key driver of post-Covid recovery plans…
…but can investors understand the risks? With new data that accurately describes the yield and risks of infrastructure investments, institutional…

Wall Street Journal: Investors should heed losses in the airport sector
This article was originally published in the Wall Street Journal in April 2021. The impact of Covid-19 lockdowns on the…

FT: Is the return profile of infra funds too good to be true?
This article was first published in the Financial Times in April 2021. Unbelievably Smooth If one examines the annual reports…

Bloomberg: Hurdles not set in the interest of investors in funds
This article was originally published by Bloomberg in April 2021. The Bottleneck Fund raising by infrastructure fund managers is at…

FT: Bad data means lower allocations to infrastructure
Investors have been at pains to benchmark unlisted infrastructure investments. However, using better data is now possible. This article was…

Wall Street Journal: The Price of Inertia
High hurdle rates are not in the interest of investors in infrastructure funds. This articles was first published in the…

FT: Ignorance is not bliss: can investors ignore losses in airports?
The risk of default in airports has increased, as has the risk of bankruptcy. This piece was originally published in…

FT: How exposed are infrastructure investors to inflation risk
The sensitivity of the value of unlisted infrastructure equity investments to changes in the discount rate is about 10% on…

Q1 2021 Index Data Release – Bond-like characteristics?
A quarter of rising interest rates highlights the role of duration in infrastructure investments. After a year which tested…

Report: Q1 2021 Covid-19 Revenue Forecast Updates
The Q1 2021 release of the EDHECinfra indices incorporates the views and asset-level revenue forecasts of our team of financial…

Towards a Scientific Approach to ESG for Infrastructure Investors. A Publication of the EDHEC Infrastructure Institute
New research finds that ESG reporting schemes for infrastructure investors are not focused on measuring risks despite upcoming SFDR requirements…

Strategic Asset Allocation with Unlisted Infrastructure. EDHECinfra Use Case Series
New Data Highlights the Role of Infrastructure in Multi-Asset Portfolios Latest benchmark data shows that unlisted infrastructure equity and debt…

Q4 2020 Index Release – Infrastructure and Covid: Was 2020 a bad year or the worst year?
A first look at the performance of unlisted equity and private debt after a year of Covid-19. 2020 was…

Report: Q4 2020 Covid-19 Revenue Forecast Updates
The Q4 2020 release of the EDHECinfra indices incorporates the views and asset-level revenue forecasts of our team of financial…

Strategic Asset Allocation and Unlisted infrastructure: first results
Abhishek Gupta, Senior Research Engineer and Product Specialist at EDHECinfra, answers 4 frequent questions following our latest webinar on Strategic…

A G20 Reference: EDHECinfra helps to fill the data gap
EDHECinfra help fill the data gap and is now included in the GIH Infra Monitor 2020. Several years ago, the…

Q3 2020 Index Release – Back in positive territory thanks to a strong cash yield.
Back in positive territory thanks to a strong cash yield. Roads are back in the black but airports struggle on.…

Report: Q3 2020 Covid-19 Revenue Forecasts Update
The Q3 2020 release of the EDHECinfra indices incorporates the views and asset-level revenue forecasts of our team of financial…

Failure of regulation means unfair tolls for users of French roads in new study endorsed by Senate investigative committee.
18 September 2020 – The high level of tolls on privatised highways is a sensitive matter in French politics. The…
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Archaïsme et injustice de la gestion des péages autoroutiers en France [in French]
18 Septembre 2020- Une nouvelle publication de recherche de l’EDHEC Infrastructure Institute dont les conclusions sont reprises dans leur intégralité…

Q2 2020 Index Release: More negative returns for unlisted infrastructure investments but Contracted assets show resilience to Covid-19
The Q2 2020 release of the EDHECinfra indices marks a new quarter of negative returns for the unlisted infrastructure asset…

Report: Impact of Covid-19 on Infrastructure Companies Forecast Revenues in Q2 2020
By Jack Lee and the data team. Overview IC10 Power Generation x-Renewables IC40 Energy and Water Resources IC60 Transport 4.1 …

Infra unknowns – key questions that need to be answered
As someone who straddles both the academic and finance worlds I’m always interested in research that can help better inform…

Measuring ESG to understand value in infrastructure investments
There is growing recognition in the industry and academic field alike that an effective analysis of ESG is fundamental to…

Superannuation Fund and unlisted assets, why the fuss?
There has been a lot of commentary in the Australian financial press about superannuation funds exposure to unlisted assets and…

Do unlisted infrastructure investors live dangerously?
Infrastructure businesses are usually impacted by the tail end of recessions as demand for essential services flags or public counterparty…

Q1 2020 Index Release: Covid-19 lockdown highlights the importance of understanding risk in unlisted infrastructure investments
Q1 2020 Release of the EDHECinfra Indices Infrastructure businesses are usually impacted by the tail end of recessions: demand for…

Report: Q1 2020 estimates of Covid-19 impact in infrastructure companies future revenues
By Jack Lee – Deputy Head of Data In response to the coronavirus Covid-19, many governments have put their nations…

Know your TICCS®, understand your risks
Infrastructure index provider EDHECinfra releases 2020 version of its industry-backed infrastructure investment taxonomy, which enables investors to build customised benchmarks…

UK Water Utilities: Why the negative returns in 2019Q4?
In this note, we provide some details and clarifications about our 2019Q4 index release with a focus on the performance…

2019Q4 Index Release (Erratum)
In the 2019Q4 Index Release made on January 16, 2020, it was mentioned that South East Water suffered a negative return…

2019Q4 Index Release: Up on the Year, Down on the Quarter
Unlisted infrastructure equity gave back some of the year’s gains in the final quarter of 2019 as rising bond yields…

An asset class is born
New indices, better benchmarks The next generation of EDHECinfra indices is ready. Computed quarterly, they use meticulously curated private data…

Part 3: A factor revolution in unlisted infra
A version of this blog was originally published on top1000funds.com. This blog marks our third and final article on the…

Part 2: Infra performance benchmarks wanting
A version of this blog was first published on top1000funds.com The EDHECinfra/G20 survey of infrastructure benchmarking practices included representatives of 130…

Part 1: infra risks misunderstood
The 2019 EDHECinfra/G20 survey of infrastructure investors is a detailed study of benchmarking practices amongst asset owners and managers and…

An uncomfortable truth: infrastructure investors do not know their risks
We carried out the largest survey of infrastructure investors ever made. Here’s what we found: The largest survey of infrastructure…

New research shows that infrastructure credit spreads are fair
A new paper drawn from the Natixis/EDHECinfra research chair sheds new light on the drivers of returns in private infrastructure…

No financial pain or gain for ESG management and reporting
New EDHECinfra research finds there is no financial penalty or gain (based on Return on Assets) for infrastructure firms to…

Infrastructure prices don’t show a bubble
This blog was initially published in top1000funds.com. No asset is an island… Infrastructure equity prices do not exist in a…

New EDHECinfra study shows that ‘peak infra’ may be behind us
New EDHECinfra research documents the factors behind the evolution of unlisted infrastructure prices over past 15 years. Common risk factors…
Infrastructure: Calling time on borrowed definitions
This blog was originally published in IP&E Real Assets. It’s time to stop saying apples are just round pears Infrastructure…

Does Europe need a new model for private roads?
Over-charging and under-investment: is the model broken? Private investment in European roads is under fire once more. The typical charge…

Three routes to maximizing infrastructure finance for development
There are big hurdles in place right now The industry needs to promote better standards, methods and benchmarking. That’s the…

Bad procurement creates systematic risk for infrastructure investors
Singapore, 10 April 2018 – A case study of 10 Spanish toll road projects shows that ill-designed procurement can lead…

An industry standard for the infrastructure asset class
From ad hoc to world class Today infrastructure investors use ad hoc benchmarks for unlisted infrastructure investment. They know that’…

Building benchmarks for infrastructure investors: a long but worthwhile journey
This blog was originally published on the World Bank’s PPP Blog Website. It’s past time for proper infrastructure benchmarks The…

Listed infra funds should be clearly labelled
Listed infrastructure, in its current form, cannot be called an asset class. Asset managers offering so called ‘infrastructure funds’ are…

EDHEC calls on regulators to take measures against ‘fake’ listed infrastructure
Singapore – 9 October 2017: In open letters to the chairman of the European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) and…

Listed infrastructure investment is a great story but it’s fake
This post was originally published in the Financial Times. For the past 15 years infrastructure investment has been the preserve…

Fake infra threatens real deal
This post was originally published on the top1000funds website. Support for infrastructure investment, the idea that asset owners should commit…
Appetite for infrastructure investment outpaces perceived investment opportunities
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA // 29 July, 2016: The Global Infrastructure Hub (GI Hub) and EDHEC Infrastructure Institute-Singapore (EDHECinfra) have released the…

There is no listed infrastructure asset class
“Listed Infrastructure Asset Class” establishing that class.…

Asset owners’ next battle
This blog was originally published on the top1000funds website. Private equity funds have long been characterised by high fees. Even…