Project finance raises long-term debt and equity against the project's assets and future cash flows rather than against sponsor balance sheets. Lenders will not commit capital unless a specific set of structural requirements is satisfied.

Non-recourse or limited-recourse lending

The defining feature of project finance is that lenders look primarily to the project's cash flows for repayment. The project is typically housed in a special purpose vehicle (SPV) that is legally and financially separate from its sponsors. If the project fails, the lender's recourse is limited to the SPV's assets, and not the sponsors' balance sheets.

Cash flow certainty

Because the lender's sole means of repayment is the project's cash flow, lenders require a high degree of certainty about the quantum, timing, and duration of those cash flows. This is typically achieved through long-term off-take agreements, availability payment contracts, or regulated tariffs that provide a predictable revenue stream over the life of the debt.

Disaggregated risk allocation

Effective project financing requires each material risk to be identified, assessed, and allocated to the party best able to manage it. Construction risk is allocated to the contractor through a fixed-price EPC or design-build contract. Operational risk is allocated to the operator. Demand risk is allocated to the offtaker/public users. The SPV (and therefore the lender in case of default) is exposed only to the residual risks that cannot be transferred.

Fixed-price construction obligation

The cornerstone of project finance during the construction phase is a fixed-price, date-certain EPC or design-build contract with a creditworthy contractor. This provides lenders with a guaranteed maximum price (capping cost overrun exposure), liquidated damages for delay and performance shortfalls, and parent company guarantees and performance bonds. Without a fixed-price construction obligation, lenders cannot model the construction phase with sufficient certainty to commit non-recourse debt.

Step-in rights

Lenders require contractual step-in rights (namely, the ability to take control of the SPV and replace defaulting counterparties) if the project encounters distress. Step-in operates through direct agreements between the lender, the SPV, and each key project counterparty, and involves three escalating levels of intervention: cure rights, step-in proper, and novation of a substitute entity.

Debt-service coverage ratios

Lenders assess bankability by reference to the certainty and predictability of the SPV's cash flows against defined debt-service coverage ratios (DSCRs) and loan-life coverage ratios (LLCRs). To achieve acceptable coverage ratios, lenders need confidence that construction costs are capped, the project will be completed on time, the project will perform to specification, and revenue is secured by a long-term contract.


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  1. Introduction
  2. Why does financing remain necessary under collaborative delivery?
  3. What is bankability? 
  4. What are the collaborative delivery models? 
  5. Core principles of collaborative delivery models 
  6. Core principles of traditional project finance 
  7. The issues between collaborative delivery models and traditional project finance 
  8. Available solutions and potential structuring 
  9. Conclusion