International Webinar ‘Sustainable Infrastructure: Price-Quality Balance’ Held by VEB.RF

On 8 September 2021, VEB.RF held the international webinar “Sustainable Infrastructure: Looking for the Balance between Quality and Costs”. The event is in continuation of VEB.RF’s leading the Working group on Sustainable and Quality Infrastructure of the D20 Long-Term Investors Club (D20-LTIC).

The webinar started with the opening remarks by VEB.RF Deputy Chairperson Svetlana Yachevskaya, who stressed the importance of quality infrastructure investment and development institutions’ potential contribution towards this goal. She said: “Identifying and structuring infrastructure projects that are attractive to development banks seem to be the most important precondition for increasing infrastructure investment in developing and developed countries. This is where development institutions can make a difference by helping to prepare high-quality projects, reducing risks, creating the favourable conditions for investment, promoting co-investment mechanisms or providing guarantees.” In response to global challenges of sustainable development, the webinar focused on the following topics: the role of financial development institutions in promoting quality infrastructure investment, and sustainable and quality infrastructure in emerging markets and developing economies.

The first session brought together the European Investment Bank (EIB), the New Development Bank (NDB), Spanish Instituto de Crédito Oficial (ICO), the B20 Finance and Infrastructure Task Force, HSBC Asset Management, and Global Infrastructure Basel (GIB) Foundation. The session was moderated by Christophe Dossarps, CEO, Sustainable Infrastructure Foundation (SIF).

The primary focus of the session was on how to involve development institutions in quality infrastructure investment, modernise existing infrastructure facilities, combat greenwashing and harmonise existing methodologies. In addition, the participants noted the importance of co-financing mechanisms and the development of new financial instruments for quality infrastructure investment and national development programmes.

The second session featured speakers from PT Sarana Multi Infrastruktur (PT SMI), the Long-Term Infrastructure Investors Association (LTIIA), AECOM Europe, and the Global Infrastructure Hub (GI Hub). The session was moderated by Maksim Merkulov, Head of PPP International Practices and Mechanisms, VEB.RF.

The session discussed a wide range of issues related to the particularities and implementation of infrastructural projects in developing countries. Specifically, the speakers noted that project preparation, promotion costs and risks in those countries are higher than in developed economies. However, it would be wrong to differentiate between practices of implementing infrastructural projects on the basis of a country’s level of economic development. As for measures to stimulate private investment, it is advisable to work on the standardisation of financial instruments and documents.

In his concluding remarks, VEB.RF Senior Banker Sergei Storchak emphasised the importance of discussions to find the best possible solutions. He noted that the issue of mobilising long-term investment had first been raised by Russia as early as its G20 presidency in 2013. This issue has since consistently evolved into promoting quality infrastructure investment and making infrastructure attractive to private investors. Efforts to find the best possible solutions are additionally supported by discussions, including the D20-LTIC agenda. According to Sergei Storchak, proposals discussed during the webinar are closely connected with the policy recommendations on infrastructure investment that will be presented by the D20 members to the G20 governments.

https://вэб.рф/downloads/d20-ltic_-_8_september_webinar.mp4

The Long-Term Investors Club (LTIC) was created by European major institutional investors in April 2009 to cope with the aftermath of the 2008 financial crisis. VEB.RF joined the Club at its first conference in 2009.

The D20 (Development 20) was initiated by VEB.RF in 2013 under the Russian presidency in the G20 Group with the aim of bringing together the G20 development banks. The D20 is an informal group with a development, promotional or public mandate.

The D20 and the Long-Term Investors Club merged in 2019.

The D20-LTIC comprises 20 members, including major development institutions and banks. In line with the Italian G20 presidency in 2021, D20-LTIC events are hosted by Cassa Depositi e Prestiti (CDP).