合作投资美国基础设施

Every time we turn on a faucet, walk down a sidewalk or connect to the Internet, we’re using infrastructure. Typically, it’s not something we notice or give much thought to, unless we encounter trouble: a road full of potholes, power blackouts or floods, among other potential problems. With all the trouble around us, we certainly are giving infrastructure much more thought these days.

The problem is that the U.S. has underinvested in its infrastructure for decades. Today infrastructure spending as a share of U.S. GDP is around 2.5 percent, much lower than the 3.9 percent average in peer countries such as Canada, Australia and South Korea; nearly 5 percent in Europe; and between 9 and 12 percent in China. In a July 2013 report, McKinsey Global Institute estimated that the U.S. should spend at least an additional $150 billion annually on infrastructure through 2020 to meet its needs. This level of investment would add about 1.5 percent to annual GDP and create at least 1.8 million jobs.

This is a topic that my colleagues at KKR and I recently addressed with the Brookings Institution in a white paper titled “The Way Forward: A New Way to Fund America’s Infrastructure.” As federal and state funds dry up for projects such as bridges and tunnels, we need to start thinking differently about how we can finance our changing transportation, energy, water and other infrastructure needs. Capital from the private sector can play a critical role in making sure that we keep up with these demands.

例如，乘坐新泽西州巴伦讷市政公用事业机构。位于纽约海湾的布鲁克林北部的史丹岛和红钩西部的直接位于纽约湾（Brooklyn），正在努力将其经济基地转移到渔业和石油精炼和技术方面。作为这家重新剖面的一部分，Bayonne的市政公用事业机构在纽约 - 北新泽西大都市地区安装了第一个风力涡轮机，于2012年为其泵站供电，开始投资不断增长的部门。同年，这座城市经历了公私伙伴关系（PPP）来升级和运营水系统，该系统正在努力下降1.25亿美元的债务负担和历史投资。

In partnership with KKR, United Water, a subsidiary of France’s Suez Environnement Co., won the competitive bid to modernize the Municipal Utilities Authority’s system, retrain and hire the utility’s staff and pay off the utility’s debt in partnership with the city. Investors got a 40-year concession, and the utility received an estimated $35 million in cost savings for the life of the contract.

结果已经开始展示。在第一年内，联合水 - KKR合资企业在管道和设备方面取得了重大升级，提供了超过2,500小时的培训，购买了新的舰队车辆并建立了资产管理计划。穆迪因投资而升级Bayonne的市政债券前景，以稳定稳定。

Another great example of a PPP is Detroit, where the public and private sectors are pooling funds with philanthropies to revitalize the city’s downtown. More than $2 billion in private funds has been invested in Detroit’s central business district, Lafayette Park, Rivertown and Midtown between 2010 and 2012. Dan Gilbert, Detroit native and the founder and chair of Detroit–headquartered Quicken Loans, has led real estate investments, purchasing and developing 30 downtown properties, which have attracted 85 businesses to the area. Along with the foundations, which have made more than 3,500 grants worth $551 million in Detroit, the job creation from the real estate development is helping the city recover from its financial crisis and bankruptcy filing. For instance, the Kresge Foundation (seeII“Foundations Throw Detroit’s Art Collection a Lifeline”) is investing in a 3.3-mile light-rail system, providing transit connections across the newly redeveloped area.

The combination of these public and private projects is creating powerful change in Detroit that we believe wouldn’t be possible without the support of government. Working together, Detroit’s public, business and nonprofit sectors are generating much needed economic stimulus. We will likely need more such innovative partnerships to help debt-burdened cities and states make critical investments. Whereas the structure of these public and private arrangements will need to be customized for each deal, there is demand from institutional investors to partner with cities and states in many different sectors.

我们觉得不同类型的基础设施需要不同类型的资金结构 - 所有这些都将呼吁某些程度的公共和私人合作。作为一个国家，我们需要超越对私有化的简单概念，以将来的基础设施的未来是政府机构，私营公司，投资者和公众之间的真实伙伴关系。我们觉得这些类型的伙伴关系在从州和地方的自下而上开始时最强大，以便为经济增长做出最大的贡献。

在许多方面，我们相信美国的充分实现其竞争潜力的能力取决于制定智能基础设施选择。这些决定应响应不断变化的经济，人口，财政和环境因素，确定需要哪些类型的基础设施。在威胁是我们国家的经济未来。我们认为更好地了解公共和私营部门的作用，以及他们之间的伙伴关系的潜力，将有助于为美国提供可靠和现代的基础设施，以建立更大的经济机会。

Raj Agrawal是北美主管kkr.’s infrastructure business and is a member of the infrastructure investment committee, based at the firm’s office in Menlo Park, California.

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