Global infrastructure fund final closes are set to well exceed USD 200bn this year, smashing the previous 2022 record of USD 171bn. But given almost half of this capital has been committed to mega funds, the high numbers do not necessarily reflect a significant spike in demand for infrastructure. As the asset class adapts to deliver the world’s future infrastructure needs, investors have an opportunity to move beyond buy-and-hold strategies, instead managing assets more actively to unlock new possibilities by harnessing groundbreaking technologies and new areas of service and value. As investors grapple with the new world order, and changing LP risk appetite for infrastructure, pulling levers to get the best out of your current core portfolio whilst selecting the next wave of investments and navigating geopolitics will be critical. 

• How are global GPs thinking about macro-economic risks for their portfolios?
• Are infrastructure investors doubling down or moving away from the US?
• Are Europe’s renewed infrastructure plans unlocking new opportunities for private investors? 
• How are investors navigating the compelling yet complex AI opportunity? 
• Where does Australia (and APAC) fit within the global infrastructure investment landscape?

There continues to be a significant shift in how investors view infrastructure as they look to refresh their portfolios moving away from super-core assets pivoting toward core-plus and value-add opportunities that promise higher returns. At the large end of the market, there is hope that 2026 will see mega-deals return and greater clarity around government priorities for driving productivity and approving projects. For foreign investors, while Australia’s fundamentals still make it an attractive market, higher tax rates, regulatory barriers and growing negativity in some quarters about non-domestic investors controlling Australian assets remain causes for concern. It will be interesting to see the direction long-term players take as they commit capital to the asset class and seek to attract LPs on their next fundraising trail.

• Are global funds still seeing Australia and New Zealand as a low-risk and safe long-term bet?
• What other opportunities are exciting investors outside of energy and data centres?
• Where are the returns coming from and how are GPs fundraising plans taking shape?
• How do you exit an asset that has multiple co-investors?
• How is the definition of core-plus infrastructure shifting?
• What lessons have investors learned from their best and worst deals?

With economic uncertainty and an anaemic M&A market persisting, there are fewer traditional exit routes. GP-led continuation vehicles have provided an efficient liquidity solution for GPs to extend the runway for some of their highest quality assets while providing much needed DPI. How LPs view these alternative solutions can depend on the circumstances, and as comfort and familiarity with these structures grows, alignment of interest remains paramount. Industry leaders give their take on choosing the right solution for the right situation.

• Why is momentum for continuation vehicles staying high?
• How can LPs take advantage of liquidity options through these vehicles?
• How will pricing for these products continue to evolve?
• Are continuation vehicles here to stay or a product of the tough exit environment?
• How are alignment of interests being managed between all parties?

The complexity of transitioning to renewable energy while ensuring a reliable supply remains a pressing challenge and has led investors to adopt a pragmatic view of what the energy transition means and requires. After a downturn in activity, investors are increasingly focused on restarting project development and acquiring platforms that can deliver both scale and stability. Pricing assets is still difficult, given ongoing questions around grid access and demand. At the same time, the rise of AI, with its substantial energy requirements, has accelerated the push for renewables and investment in storage solutions. In this session, a panel of experienced energy investors will share their perspectives on how where they see profitable long-term opportunities.

• Where is the sweep spot for a buyer of renewable assets?
• Are investors shifting away from traditional renewables and focusing more on storage assets? 
• With increasing digitisation and electrification, how are private infrastructure investors addressing the surge in power demand? 
• Energy sources, grid connectivity, and profitability - what strategies are investors betting on for long-term success?

As technology companies race to develop cutting-edge artificial intelligence (AI) models, data centres have become some of the most important infrastructure in the world. Data centres’ high energy demands, along with the complexity of different AI workloads, have investors considering how and where they build data centres, and the accompanying power infrastructure. For investors, scaling data centre infrastructure at an unprecedented pace is capital intensive and will require more than a trillion dollars in investment across the ecosystem. Understanding how to manage the risks (and opportunities) around capital expenditure, energy demand, profitability, and the future exit strategies for these massive assets are critical when deciding whether to pull the trigger and join the party.

• What strategies are investors employing to build and acquire data centres?
• How do you manage the associated capital expenditure surge?
• How are power and data centre development capabilities being integrated?
• Is the industry experiencing bottlenecks when it comes to power demands?
• How are investors staying one step ahead as AI technology and infrastructure demands continue to evolve?

For LPs of all sizes and strategies, several key issues are shaping their approach as they drive infrastructure portfolios and plans into 2026 and beyond against a backdrop of macro-economic and political uncertainty. Top priorities include recycling out of long-held, non-strategic core exposures, further diversifying offshore and establishing a local presence, deciding when to commit to blind pool funds, navigating the rise of private wealth LPs and making sense of continuation vehicles. In this session a group of seasoned LPs will share how they are viewing the infrastructure asset class and their plans.

• Institutional capital meets private wealth – how will the two play a part in the future of infrastructure investment without friction?
• Risk-return profile, sectors, new assets, secondaries – what are LPs looking for that they haven’t found yet?
• Are external managers back in favour? If so, under what circumstances are LPs choosing to work with them?
• How are LPs approaching offshore diversification? Does success require having a team on the ground in those markets?
• How are LPs thinking about recycling their current portfolios and deploying new investments?