£164bn planned infrastructure investment

The newly published National Infrastructure and Construction Pipeline sets out planned and projected investment in major economic and social infrastructure over the next 10 years, the workforce requirement to deliver it, as well as a list of near term planned procurements.

The pipeline sets out some £164Bn in planned investment between 2023/24 and 2024/25 in major infrastructure and construction projects.

Infrastructure has been acknowledged as huge economic driver for the country, improving connections as well as opportunities across the nation. The investment is designed to breathe new life into communities and support the levelling up agenda, such as the £36bn investment into Network North which will unlock significant transport benefits to towns, cities and rural areas. The investment in infrastructure opens up regional employment opportunities across various industries such as engineering and construction.

The pipeline sets out some 660 projects and programmes across the public and private sectors in the pipeline of investment, with £700-775bn of planned and projected investment expected over the next 10 years.

More than £64bn worth of investments include delivery through Modern Methods of Construction (MMC) in the next two years, reinforcing the importance of technology and MMC to the sector. This can involve a broad range of approaches, technologies and innovations such as automated design or offsite construction, all with a focus on improving value and efficiency in construction.

Looking to the future there is some £164bn planned for investment by 2024/25 and a further £22bn of forthcoming infrastructure procurements.

The spread of this investment by sector in the next two years shows energy (£36 billion a year to 2024/25) and transport (£19 billion a year to 2024/25) as the highest value sectors, social infrastructure and water & sewage follow.

Nick Smallwood Chief Executive, Infrastructure and Projects Authority commented: “We cannot ignore the fact that the pandemic and war in Ukraine has created a significant challenge for major projects, particularly in the construction sector where inflation is creating pressures. That is why the £700-775 billion planned and projected investment in infrastructure over the next 10 years has never been more critical.

“We also now have our biggest ever Government Major Projects Portfolio (GMPP) on record, so we must maintain a strong delivery record that demonstrates real value.

“Government is clear that growth must now take priority and infrastructure plays a huge part in supporting this. None of us can rest on our laurels – we must all keep assessing the effectiveness of our projects, so they are nothing short of world class.”

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