News & Highlights, November 2023 No images? Click here Insights InfraCo Asia News & Highlights, November 2023 Dear , Welcome to Insights InfraCo Asia. In this edition:
HIGHLIGHTSCelebrating the Asia launch of the 2030 PIDG StrategyPIDG CEO Philippe Valahu addresses guests at the Asia launch of the PIDG 2030 Strategy Our project partners, government Owners, and team members from around the globe came together for the Asia launch of the PIDG 2030 Strategy on 12th October. The strategy puts climate and nature, together with sustainable development at the centre of everything we do. Read the strategy here. As part of PIDG’s Development Arm – and blended with other PIDG infrastructure financing solutions – InfraCo Asia will play a key role in increasing the pipeline of projects developed through de-risking impactful early and mid-stage projects, and also invest in the roll-out of local currency capital enhancement facilities across Asia. PIDG CEO Philippe Valahu shares more on the “Why Us, Why This, Why Now” of the strategy on LinkedIn.
InfraZamin Pakistan launches South Asia’s first Gender BondInfraZamin Pakistan CEO Maheen Rahman rings the gong at the Pakistan Stock Exchange InfraZamin Pakistan launched South Asia’s first Gender Bond with Kashf Foundation at the Pakistan Stock Exchange today. The bond was issued by Kashf Foundation in July, in partnership with InfraZamin Pakistan and Arif Habib Limited. The bond has been completely subscribed at a value of PKR 2.5b (~US$ 8.7m) which will go towards enhancing Kashf Foundation’s portfolio towards lending exclusively to Pakistani women from low-income households to develop micro-infrastructure like rural area schools, flood rehabilitation of damaged homes and expansion of women-led micro businesses.
The bond is supported by a 100% principal amount credit guarantee and subsequent partial guarantee for interest instalments by InfraZamin Pakistan. InfraZamin Pakistan is a PIDG initiative in partnership with Karandaaz Pakistan. It is financed by PIDG through funding from InfraCo Asia and PIDG Technical Assistance, and a contingent capital facility by GuarantCo. To learn more about the role of local currency guarantees in Pakistan’s infrastructure ecosystem, watch our 5-part video series Ba Lai Water Treatment Plant Begins OperationsCutting the ribbon to officially open the Darco Ba Lai Water Treatment Plant The Darco Ba Lai Water Treatment Plant has begun operations with a capacity to treat 5000 cubic meters of water per day bringing affordable, clean piped water to up to 20,000 households in Vietnam’s Ben Tre Province. The treated water will be more affordable than current sources of water, including street water vendors, as well as water, rainwater, and river water, which require treatment with filters, chemicals, or boiling before use. InfraCo Asia invested U.S. $2.45m in equity into the project via Darco Viet Water Company Limited, a joint venture between InfraCo Asia and Darco Water Technologies Limited. PIDG Technical Assistance (TA) provided a U.S. $2.7M viability gap funding (VGF) grant to partially subsidise the construction cost. The primary purpose of a VGF grant is to address the gap between project costs and expected project revenues while ensuring the water tariff remains affordable.
PIDG Institute holds its inaugural event in AsiaThe first PIDG Institute event in Singapore was held across four days in October, welcoming participants from PIDG project companies and partnering organisations, as well as PIDG team members from around the globe. The PIDG Institute is PIDG’s learning initiative. It serves as a platform for building new skills, exchanging knowledge, and training. At the Singapore event, we covered topics ranging from governance, safety culture, and leadership; investing for sustainable development; applying a climate and gender lens to infrastructure investment; biodiversity and nature-based solutions; and human rights safeguarding. Click to watch highlights from this year's Learn more about what happens at PIDG Institute through insights from the PIDG team. Khmer Cold Chain welcomes its first clientsKCC Team welcome their first client Khmer Cold Chain (KCC) has begun onboarding clients from the Cambodian food and agricultural sectors ahead of its official opening in 2024. Its first few clients are from the seafood industry, including well-established players and SMEs. The companies will utilise KCC’s services and facilities to store and distribute their food products to domestic and international customers. KCC also received its first cold shipment of fresh farmed salmon from Chile this week, marking a start in its operations in supporting the import-export industry in Cambodia. Khmer Cold Chain offers international-level cold-storage and cross-docking services accessible to small-and-medium Cambodian enterprises as long-term or pay-per-use solutions.
InfraCo Asia Compliance Workshop 2023InfraCo Asia staff and project company colleagues As part of the PIDG Institute, InfraCo Asia’s Legal and Compliance team conducted our annual compliance training in the form of the Compliance Workshop on 13 October. The event brought together representatives of InfraCo Asia’s project companies together with all InfraCo Asia staff - in-person and online. The workshop was also supported by the PIDG and InfraCo Africa Compliance teams, who shared their experience and market-specific insights with the participants. The workshop covered topics such as anti-bribery and corruption management, implementing HSES best practices, and navigating sanctions in project implementation. Panellists from project companies, PIDG, InfraCo Africa and InfraCo Asia share their experiences Participants shared insightful stories of how they navigated legal and compliance challenges in their work which were unique to the different markets they operated in. IN CONVERSATIONPIDG colleagues meet with Vietnamese Government representatives The past few months saw the InfraCo Asia team engaged in many industry, community and government-level conversations. Karen at the 'Blended Finance in ASEAN' panel In August, Karen Tsang-Hounsell, Head of Business Development, represented PIDG in an online briefing by Convergence Blended Finance on 'Blended Finance in ASEAN'. The panel was moderated by Convergence's Ritesh Thakkar, and including Allotrope Partners’ Marc Stuart and UOB Optimus Foundation’s Gayatri Suri. Hoai Phuong Vu, Regional Manager, Southeast Asia, attended the UK-VN Business Forum on 23 August and shared PIDG’s work with UK Embassy Representatives and business leaders from both the UK and Vietnam. In October, Phuong participated in the Australia-Laos-Vietnam trilateral Public-Private Partnership workshop hosted by the Australian Embassy in Vietnam. He then joined PIDG CEO Philippe Valahu and colleagues from across the group, in a series of conversations with local stakeholders and Vietnamese government representatives for setting up a local currency credit enhancement facility in the country. Wrapping up the quarter, Erik Peper, President Director of the Endikat Hydropower project, contributed to a session on 'Financing hydropower to meet 2050 targets' at the World Hydropower Congress in Bali. Erik at the World Hydropower Congress 2023 CAREER OPPORTUNITIESWe are inviting applications for the following roles at InfraCo Asia.
About InfraCo AsiaInfraCo Asia a company of the Private Infrastructure Development Group (PIDG), is headquartered in Singapore and invests in early-stage project development to grow the pipeline of commercially viable projects in emerging markets in South and South-East Asia. InfraCo Asia brings bankable infrastructure projects to the market through complementary partnerships. Our investments and capabilities mobilise private sector capital and drive sustainable impact. We are committed to international standards of governance, and our projects prioritise HSES and development impact, guided by PIDG’s frameworks. We exist to catalyse positive outcomes for communities, countries, and the climate. The Private Infrastructure Development Group (PIDG) is an innovative infrastructure project developer and investor which mobilises private investment in sustainable and inclusive infrastructure in sub-Saharan Africa and south and south-east Asia. PIDG investments promote socio-economic development within a just transition to net zero emissions, combat poverty and contribute to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). PIDG delivers its ambition in line with its values of opportunity, accountability, safety, integrity and impact. Since 2002, PIDG has supported 211 infrastructure projects to financial close which provided an estimated 222 million people with access to new or improved infrastructure. PIDG is funded by the governments of the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, Switzerland, Australia, Sweden, Germany and the IFC. This communication is confidential and/or privileged and/or subject to copyright and is intended only for the recipient(s) to whom it is addressed. If you are not the intended recipient, then please do not read, copy, use or disclose the contents of this communication to others. The following conditions apply to and are deemed to be incorporated by reference in this communication: InfraCo Asia Communications Disclaimer. InfraCo Asia Development Pte. Ltd. Contact Us | Privacy and Personal Data Protection Policy | Subscribe |