A&M REPORT SETS OUT HOW MEA CAN UNLOCK MORE VALUE FROM INFRASTRUCTURE INVESTMENT

 Alvarez & Marsal (A&M), the global professional services firm known for its senior-led, operator-driven approach, has published a new report on how investors and operators across the Middle East and Africa (MEA) can unlock greater value from existing infrastructure. The analysis identifies approximately $4 billion a year of residual economic exposure across the selected systems assessed.

The report, The Fourth Question: Beyond Financing, Building, and Commissioning: How Capacity Becomes Realized Value (LINK), focuses on three questions of project delivery: Can we finance it? Can we build it? Can we commission it? With infrastructure investment accelerating, A&M argues a fourth question is now just as important: Can the surrounding system convert what an asset produces into realized value? The $4 billion estimate is directional, covering residual monetary exposure after recognized protection and recovery within the selected systems assessed.

MEA infrastructure investment is accelerating across power, water and digital infrastructure. MENA power-sector investment reached $44 billion in 2024 and is projected to grow by 50% by 2035, while regional renewable energy capacity reached 43.7GW at the end of 2025, with a further 38GW under construction. The GCC also has more than 170 data center projects worth $93 billion in the pipeline.

Value depends on more than the asset itself. A power plant may be operational but unable to deliver all its available electricity to the grid, while utility providers may deliver services without collecting all the associated revenue.

The analysis identifies opportunities to strengthen the interfaces between assets, networks, customers, contracts and payment systems, protecting financial returns even when projects are delivered as planned.