Phases of an infrastructure Project

Planning and strategy:?

In this phase, high-level decisions are made to identify what type of investments are required to meet the needs of the population and thus define the specific project portfolios that can address those needs. An example of strategic planning consists of all the actions taken to determine the level of coverage of electricity services in a country and, based on this, to draw up a master plan containing all the necessary investments to bring the service to the geographic areas that do not yet have coverage.

Prioritization:?

The prioritization phase involves defining which projects are a priority for the country, based on the strategic criteria established by the governments and in consensus with the population. Prioritization is key because investment needs are significantly greater than the financial resources available in the countries, and it is necessary to choose which projects we can afford and which will have the greatest possible impact. In addition, this phase offers opportunities to integrate sustainability variables into the budget allocation instead of focusing solely, as is often the case, on minimizing costs. In this regard, climate, environmental, or social impact studies, and a cost-benefit analysis are critical for proper prioritization.

Project planning:?

In the project-level planning phase, specific decisions are made about what that prioritized project will look like. For example: What will be the road layout to be prioritized for construction? What will be the installed capacity of the wind farm, or what will be the best location for the treatment plant?

Design:?

In the design phase, the technical experts define the characteristics of the project to be built. In this phase, it is necessary to define, among other things, the materials and equipment to be used in the construction or the measures to be adopted to address possible climate risks. The design phase represents a critical moment in the project, as it is the starting point for sustainability criteria, such as the use of local or recycled materials and the use of equipment that minimizes water or energy consumption, both in construction and operation.

Bidding:?

The bidding phase generally involves competitive processes to identify the suppliers with the best proposals in terms of price, viability, sustainability, and quality. In some cases, bidding processes help define new requirements to include more innovative technologies or more sustainable practices in future projects, which can have a major impact on sustainable development.

Financing:?

The financing stage formalizes decisions regarding who will pay for the construction and operation of the project and how it will be carried out. Financing often involves international financial institutions, public authorities, or private investors, often through public-private partnerships. In this phase, detailed risk analyses are carried out in-depth, including not only financial but also social and environmental aspects.

Construction:?

Construction is the phase in which all previously made decisions begin to materialize, consistent with the technical documents defined in the design phase and following the contractual requirements stipulated in the bidding phase. Therefore, it is important to pay special attention to minimizing environmental and social impacts, safety, accessibility, and monitoring, among other aspects.

Operation and maintenance:?

In the operation phase, the project, which was finally built, starts up. In this phase, it is essential to ensure proper monitoring and maintenance of the assets to minimize their deterioration and achieve optimal service delivery in the long term. Similarly, it is critical to address the tariff and cost structure in order to ensure financial sustainability during operation.

Decommissioning and reuse:?

The decommissioning and, ideally, reuse phase, is the last phase of the project life cycle. It defines, for instance, how to restore the affected area, which of the resulting materials can be reused, or whether there is any waste that needs to be handled in a special way. Although it is the last phase of the cycle, the protocol to be followed to decommission the project should be considered from the very beginning, particularly to minimize environmental damage and promote the circular economy.

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