As ASEAN prepares for a $600 billion infrastructure expansion, the Southeast Asia Project Finance Conference on September 10 will discuss political and regulatory risks as the region bids to become the new project finance hub of the next decade.

The promise of long-term economic growth in Southeast Asia, and a middle class population that is expected to top 600 million by 2020, has seen demand not only for more, but vastly improved infrastructure.

Asian Development Bank has strengthened the push for this initiative by giving project developers access to the ASEAN Infrastructure Fund, which is expected to partially subsidise about $1 billion worth of projects over the next three years.

The infrastructure expansion however, will not be without risk, and investors looking into the region should understand the political and regulatory uncertainties unique to the area.

Asian Legal Business (ALB), in partnership with Project Finance International (PFI), is providing a platform to discuss project finance in Southeast Asia against the region's political and regulatory backdrop.

The conference, held on September 10 in Singapore, will feature prominent project finance experts from Asian Development Bank, Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation, Korean Development Bank, BNP Paribas, International Finance Corporation – World Bank, among many others, and will tackle arguably the most challenging aspect of Project Finance in Southeast Asia - the political risks involved in infrastructure development.

Aside from dealing with these challenges, participants will also explore how the region’s energy demands can create value, strategies to leverage on the promise of ASEAN integration, making PPPs work, and investing in Project Bond initiatives.

The conference will be held in Singapore on 10 September in partnership with Project Finance International.  For more information, visit the website or take a look at the event brochure.