BNP Paribas-backed fund manager Antin Infrastructure Partners has warned investors that the risk attached to infrastructure should not be trivialised.
"People may still think that infrastructure is some kind of bond investment and 10 to 11 per cent IR [investment return] is enough. We are totally against that; it is a misrepresentation of what the risks in infrastructure are," Antin investor relations director Sebastien Lecaudey said.
"We are really cautious in trying to explain to investors that an infrastructure investment is not a bond; you are taking a near equity risk," he said.
The tendency to classify infrastructure as low-risk investments is partly the result of the continuing segmentation of asset classes by investors.
"Segmentation is coming in, and more and more investors are putting you into a box where they view you as core, or core plus," he said.
"We are trying to convey the message to investors that this is an investment in the real world," Lecaudey said. "Even in a [government] regulated asset, a gas pipe can explode," he said.
Antin targets a return of 15 per cent in its Fund I. The manager closed the fund in September last year after it raised €1.1 billion ($1.4 billion) in committed assets under management, of which 3 per cent comes from Australian investors.
It has acquired four assets in Europe so far, and Lecaudey said the firm still sees good opportunities, especially in the sectors of telecommunication and energy, despite the struggling economies in the region.
"We are pretty confident that we will have good assets to buy," Lecaudey said. "You have to look at it asset by asset."
In a hypothetical case, he looked at Athens Airport in Greece.
Despite the Greek crisis, the Athens Airport might see a heightened activity from tourists who see the beleaguered country as a cheap holiday destination.
"[But] if you went to invest in a Greek farm in Greece, with a guarantee of the government, it would be a different story," he said.
Lecaudey said there were enough opportunities to start thinking about a second fund.
"It is possible we will be back in the market in the second half of next year, but that is not certain," he said.
Lecaudey said the fund's mandate did not allow it to invest in infrastructure debt, an area that recently has attracted some interest from industry super funds.
"There is a lot of discussion in Europe on that front. Our view is that it is not going to be a success. I don't see a pure need on that front," he said.
