Infrastructure manager Minerva Advisory has pouredcold water on recent tax incentives to make it easier for infrastructureinvestment in Australia, saying the Government needed to fundamentally changethe structure of underlying investment.
Speaking at a BNP Paribas Investment Partnersand Antin Infrastructure breakfast in Melbourne, managing director of MinervaLee Burnell said the tax incentives announced in the last budget were notenough to encourage investors to invest more in core infrastructure.
“There are not enough deals available to satisfythe domestic appetite for infrastructure, and I think importantly, theredoesn’t seem to be a solution bridging the gap,” Burnell said.
Heavy investment was needed in greenfieldinfrastructure, but offering tax incentives did nothing about the problems oflack of operating history, construction risk, and the lack of early revenue, hesaid.
While the biggest super funds in Australia werecapable of funding infrastructure projects because of their sheer size, smallerfunds and institutional players were unable to secure exclusivity in aninfrastructure project because of the scarcity of smaller deals available,Burnell said.
That made it likely that participants wouldincur breaking deal costs, he said.
That was a real problem for both investors andfund managers, Burnell added.
ASFA has launched a central online hub to help super funds, employers and service providers prepare for Payday Super reforms.
The Super Members Council is calling on the government and regulators to impose additional safeguards to prevent superannuation switching harm and has put forward multiple suggestions for improvements.
The Assistant Treasurer has reaffirmed the government’s commitment to strengthening retirement outcomes, consumer protections and cyber resilience in superannuation.
The industry super fund has advanced reconciliation efforts with a new initiative focused on improving outcomes for First Nations members.