Projects suffer from $150 billion fall in investment

Large resource projects have been postponed or scrapped to the tune of $150 billion in the past 12 months according to the Bureau of Resources and Energy Economics (BREE), the Federal Government’s specialist research unit.

While the current crop of major projects has hovered around $268 billion since April 2012, the number of projects being funded has dropped due to projects coming to completion, delays and cancellations. The additional value coming from increased costs.

“The decline in the number of committed projects reflects the emerging trend for high value projects at the Feasibility Stage to be delayed or cancelled,” said Professor Quentin Grafton, executive director and chief economist at BREE. “The value of committed investment has remained close to record high levels due to cost increases to several key projects.”

There are 73 projects still under construction, of which 40 are minerals projects, 18 are gas and petroleum projects, and 15 are infrastructure projects. Mega projects, those valued at $5 billion or greater, account for 80 percent of the $268 billion in committed investment, Grafton added.

BREE has begun to offer investment projections based on its research, which shows which projects are likely to go ahead. To download the Resources and Energy Major Projects report, visit BREE > Publications.