More infrastructure in construction than planning stage latest NIP reveals

Britain’s plans for infrastructure investment built up over the life of the coalition government are now firmly in the delivery phase.

Jackie Whitelaw
03 December 2014

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According to the National Infrastructure Plan 2014 60% of projects and programmes in the pipeline are now in construction or part of an active programme compared with 45% in 2013.

Overall the infrastructure pipeline is worth an estimated £466bn with £277bn of projects currently under construction and a further £189bn of future investment proposed.

Energy projects make up almost half of the investment for 2015/16 at £25.7bn, followed by transport (£17.7bn), communications (£5.4bn), water (£4.7bn), waste (£0.7bn), science and research (£0.5bn) and flooding (£0.4bn).

The new and improved NIP contains information on financing and funding of projects, providing an outline to investors as to how they can expect to earn money back from investments. And according to ACE analysis of the report “as this information continues to improve it will provide government with a more comprehensive view of what its financial commitments are going forward.”

“This is especially important given the need for government to balance investment need with the resultant productivity potential and overall affordability for consumers.”

Of the current infrastructure pipeline to 2020/21, £675.bn is anticipated to come from public investment with a further £45bn from a mix of public and private sources. Water, waste, energy and communications investment are either totally or largely reliant on public private or solely private funding. Transport is 95% reliant on a mix of public funding (55%) or public/private funding (40%) with a small element of private funding (5%).

Commenting on the updated plan, ACE chief executive Nelson Ogunshakin said: 'This National Infrastructure Plan update is a welcome evolution of the government's key strategy document, and we are pleased to see more detail emerge around the projects contained within it. Working with Danny Alexander as co-chairs of the National Infrastructure Plan Strategic Engagement Forum (NIPSEF), we must now ensure knowledge of the plan becomes more widespread, and all sectors involved in the delivery of infrastructure continue to engage with government on further improvements.'

For ACE’s independent summary of NIP 2014 with charts, projects and regional plans click here 

For the full document click here 

NIP14: Flood investment plans highlight decline in maintenance spending - read here