Project Finance - The Institute for Public-Private Partnerships® a Tetra Tech Company

Certified Project Finance Specialist

The Institute for Public-Private Partnerships® (IP3) designed the Project Finance Certified Specialist Program to provide a critical core body of knowledge and skills in project finance and financial modeling. 

An IP3 Project Finance Specialist Certification validates a breadth of knowledge acquired through immersive training in financial modeling and contractual structuring.

Specialists will develop skills including:

  • Developing an effective feasibility study screening processes based on financial data analysis
  • Identifying and allocating the various risks associated with each project to the appropriate stakeholder
  • Constructing and creating financing models that calculate value-for-money (VfM) and public sector comparator (PSC) benchmarks, and that evaluate feasibility assumptions and net present values (NPV)
  • Preparing sensitivity analyses to stress test the project’s cash flows, projected internal rate of return (IRR), and debt service coverage ratios (DSCR)
  • Assessing the underlying economic and financial assumptions contained in the financial models developed by the private sector 
  • Identifying and understanding sources of finance, including both equity and debt
  • Communicating and discussing findings with stakeholders
Certified Project FInance Specialist Exam

The IP3 Project Finance Specialist Certification is achieved by completing 24 CEUs in the Project Finance track and a final exam. CEUs may be acquired through both online and in-person training.

The exam is administered online through the IP3 Learning System and can take anywhere from 4-6 weeks to complete. This open-book exam is graded by an independent evaluator who is an expert in the field of project finance.

The final exam is comprised of the following elements:

  • Ten one-page essay questions
  • One action plan (six steps, 7-10 page finished product)
    1. Identify the problem or opportunity statement for the action plan.
    2. Create an action plan title, develop a mission statement, set goals, and develop a description.
    3. List and rank performance indicators and stakeholders.
    4. Prepare a work plan (schedule) for action plan implementation.
    5. Identify the resource requirements.
    6. Bring the above together as a final product
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Get Started With an Associate Certificate

Achieving your Project Finance Specialist Certification takes time. Show your progress with IP3’s associate certificates.

Earn your associate certificate in Climate Finance, Risk Analysis, Financial Analysis, or Financial Project Management. Complete Financial Analysis Techniques for Infrastructure Projects online or in-classroom (6 CEUs) and the associated course of your chosen field (6 CEUs) for a total of 12 CEUs.

Choose Your Track

Project Finance

IP3 Certified Project Finance Specialists possess a deep understanding of how to structure and negotiate successful project-backed financing that is viable to lenders and investors. They have acquired practical, process-oriented knowledge in conducting VfM analyses, structuring a PPP transaction appropriately, and action planning.

This program addresses implementation issues often encountered in PPPs. It enables participants to interpret financial statements, including cash flows, profit and loss, and balance sheets to analyze whether a project is bankable, affordable, and financially sustainable. It also focuses on the essential financial input data required to develop an appropriate PPP financial model and exposes participants to practical financial modeling design skills. Additionally, they understand and can effectively implement the PPP fiscal risk assessment model (PFRAM) developed by the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank.

Project Finance Specialists from ministries of finance, public agencies, and state-owned enterprises involved in delivering public infrastructure are prepared to use public-private partnerships without adversely affecting fiscal sustainability.

Courses include:

Financial Modelling

Through hands-on, practical exercises, Certified Project Finance Specialists in the Financial Modelling track are prepared to lead teams in proper financing and accounting techniques. Participants are versed in building, interpreting, and analyzing a financial model using Microsoft Excel®.

While the development and analysis of project finance models are often delegated to external financial advisors, certain selected public officials involved in a transaction must understand how financial models work and have the capability to manipulate them.

Specialists are fully proficient in the essential structure of power purchase agreements (PPA) and interrelated contracts, such as engineering, procurement and construction (EPC); fuel supply and operating agreements; and financing agreements.

Courses include:

Utility Regulation

Certified Project Finance Specialists in the Utility Regulation track are policymakers, regulators, and business community members who are well-versed in designing and implementing effective regulatory analyses. Through mastering the regulatory impact analysis (RIA) roadmap, specialists are prepared to undertake action planning and form the legal and policy framework to conduct RIAs in their own countries and organizations.

IP3 certified specialists in Utility Regulation are adequately prepared to plan and execute strategies to negotiate and regulate telecommunications and information technology transactions in their countries, while effectively regulating and licensing competition in the telecommunications sector.

In addition, these specialists are able to create and execute quality of service (QoS) programs involving a combination of instruments, including regulations directly related to QoS measures, standards with their corresponding indicators, and enforcement and compliance mechanisms.

Courses include:

Upcoming Project Finance Courses