Within the framework of project financing, the participants financing the project can be the state, production companies acting as investors, institutional investors (for example, investment funds). However, banks play the most significant role (in 2017, about 70% of all resources needed to implement projects were provided by banks). The special role of banks is the basis for highlighting the product approach and makes it especially relevant.

The reason for the active participation of banks in the development of project financing is, first of all, the flexibility and adaptability of the bank as an institution that has, on the one hand, the necessary financial resources (or is capable of generating them) and, on the other hand, great analytical capabilities. Project financing requires an individual approach to each project, flexible structuring of the transaction based on the parameters and needs of the project. As a consequence, inter-industry competition from financial market institutions, which is increasing as part of the disintermediation process, is not strong in project financing, which reflects the high potential of banks as participants in project financing.

The quantitative side of participation is characterized not only by the volume of banking products, but also by their diversity: in project financing, banks provide a comprehensive range of banking products - from project loans to participation in capital and hedging of interest and currency risks. The main banking product within the framework of project financing remains a project loan, which is due to the high share of debt financing of the project (up to 90%). At the same time, banks are increasingly participating in the capital of project companies, especially for development banks. The bank, therefore, is the entity that is capable of providing not only individual products, but also providing a complex product that simultaneously combines various services and products necessary for the implementation of a separate investment project. This ability of the bank makes it possible to allocate bank project financing into a separate area of ​​project financing.

The qualitative side of banks' participation in project financing is determined by their influence on economic processes through the development of banking products that contribute to expanded reproduction. Increasing the importance of investment projects in economic development creates a solid basis for increasing the role of banks involved in project financing.

Project financing is a complex banking product provided for the implementation of a separate investment project and based on a combination of lending services, equity financing, the parameters of which are determined based on an assessment of the cash flow generated by the project, and other banking services necessary to ensure the financial feasibility of the project.

The participation of banks in project financing is significantly determined by the state of the economy and the banking system. The main problems of the banking system are the lack of necessary resources, both financial and human, to participate in project financing, as well as the problems of its legal support. At the same time, Russian banks have ample opportunities to study and use the experience of developed countries in the field of project financing.

One of the credit institutions offering project financing services is Vneshtorgbank. Today, Vneshtorgbank is one of the few Russian credit institutions that have long-term resources in volumes that allow them to implement large projects in the construction industry. Active investment support for this sector is an important part of Vneshtorgbank's strategy aimed at ensuring the growth of the Russian economy.

Currently, Vneshtorgbank is an investor in a number of construction projects both in Moscow and in the Russian regions.

In particular, Vneshtorgbank provides investment support for the implementation of a large project for the construction of the Solnechny shopping and entertainment complex in Ufa, where the StroyProektTsentr group of companies acted as a partner of the Bank.

The construction project of the Solnechny shopping center involves the construction of a multifunctional shopping and entertainment center, which will be a three-level building with a total area of ​​46,000 square meters with 770 parking spaces. The total volume of Vneshtorgbank's investments in the construction of the first stage will amount to more than 32 million US dollars, allocated for a seven-year period.

In the future, it is planned to increase the total area of ​​the shopping and entertainment complex to 100,000 square meters. Construction of the second phase of the facility, scheduled to begin in 2009, will make the Solnechny shopping and entertainment complex the largest in Bashkiria and one of the largest development projects in the retail real estate sector outside of Moscow. The city will be offered a new format of a shopping center, which will effectively combine shopping and entertainment components.

For example, PJSC IntechBank not only professionally uses advanced banking technologies, but also creates individual schemes for financing investment projects.

During its work, PJSC "IntechBank" has positively proven itself in financing and implementing together with the initiators of various investment projects, such as: Shopping and entertainment complex "City Center", Kazan water park, the largest in the regional network Kazan fitness center "Planet Fitness" .

Today, our region has favorable conditions for the development of new businesses. This is also facilitated by the implementation of strategic national projects and the construction of affordable housing. The construction and agricultural production sectors are attractive to new players and more and more entrepreneurs are seeking to enter these markets. In this regard, experts predict in the near future a significant increase in demand for project financing services, and consequently, the activation of banks in this area of ​​activity.

The number of classical project financing transactions in Russia is small. Most often, in the products provided by Russian banks, it is impossible to find features characteristic of the European and American understanding of project financing: financing of a specially created project company; the security is focused on the project property; financing is focused on project income as the only source of loan repayment and return on investment; formation of a comprehensive contract structure designed to effectively distribute risks between project participants. The development of “classic” transactions is hampered not only by the state of the banking system and the legal field, but also by some specific factors. In particular, one can note the reluctance of the project initiator to ensure the isolation of the project, since in general Russia is characterized by the “long-term guardianship effect.”

In Russia, it is common to work, as a rule, with one financing bank on a private (non-public) basis, while in developed countries, on the contrary, work is carried out mainly with a syndicate of banks.

The main services provided by Russian banks within the framework of project financing are lending and financing of leasing transactions mainly with the participation of affiliated leasing companies. Temporary so-called bridge financing is used, the purpose of which is to ensure that the project can begin before the main financing is provided. It should be noted that there are no cases of bond placements, and the weak development of equity financing by banks.

The process of interaction between Russian banks and foreign financial and credit institutions is actively underway. This process has two sides: competition and cooperation. In Russia, the positions of foreign and international banks in the field of project financing are strengthening. The most involved in this activity is the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development. At the same time, for many foreign banks, the participation of a Russian bank is a kind of guarantee of the successful implementation of the project, which contributes to the development of their cooperation. In the modern conditions of financial globalization, there are two main areas of improvement for Russian banks: the development of new services and the development of intermediary functions. When implementing project financing, these areas can be successfully combined, since the national bank knows the client and the economic and legal environment better, that is, the principle of analytical transmission of banking products on an international scale can be implemented.

The state of development of project financing is largely explained by conditions external to banks, that is, factors limiting the possibility of implementing project financing in the classical form, using project financing in a number of industries (in particular, in developed countries the use of project financing in the field of social infrastructure is widespread, for example , during the construction of hospitals).

Legal problems associated with the use of special security instruments (for example, escrow accounts), the duration of implementation of contractual obligations, low compatibility with the legal systems most often used in organizing project financing, prevent the active borrowing of foreign experience and lead to banks building various financial schemes that complicate project financing transactions.

In Russia, supporting services are not developed, in particular the services of financial and technical consultants, which leads to underdevelopment of outsourcing and, as a consequence, to an increase in the labor intensity of the bank’s project work.

The global financial crisis, which is gradually developing into an economic crisis, should not become a reason for curtailing innovation programs. The main thing in modern conditions is to find suitable tools for financing them, which could contribute to the further development of the economy of Tatarstan.

The main problems affecting the limitation of financing of investment projects include weak self-organization of business and the growth of bureaucratic barriers to its promotion, low efficiency of government administration and shortage of labor resources, inaccessibility of loans and poor cost reduction of industrial enterprises. All this, in a crisis, increases the negative impact on the economy.

Ensuring the competitiveness of commercial products on the world market is possible only through the introduction of innovations. And sources of financing for innovative projects can be enterprises’ own funds, bank loans, money from venture capital, investment, leasing funds and state corporations (for example, RUSNANO). But the most effective is the mixed form.

The Republic of Tatarstan ranks fifth in Russia according to the regional competitiveness rating, and is a leader in some positions. For example, on investment potential, development of innovative infrastructure. There are a large number of operating energy-intensive industries, technology parks, and a good educational network. The gross regional product has a large share of such industries as petrochemicals, mechanical engineering, aircraft manufacturing, and the agro-industrial complex. But these are precisely the areas that are most sensitive to the crisis.

The Government of the Republic of Tatarstan, regional development institutions and the World Bank should play a key role in creating a direct investment fund in Tatarstan. Western financial organizations, state corporations, state banks and private investment funds can become the principal partners of the project.

As part of the consideration of the banking mechanism of project financing, we will highlight its components (blocks) and give recommendations for their improvement in Russia at the present stage.

Table 2.2.1 Directions for improving the mechanism of bank project financing in Russia

Block of the bank project financing mechanism
I. Bank policy in the field of project financing	Development of unified standards for participation in project financing agreed upon by banks: Equity to debt ratio Requirements for the personnel of the design company Debt coverage ratio Composition of loan collateral Requirements for the contract structure of the project and the mechanisms for its formation
II. Organizational structure of the bank's work	Consideration of organizational principles: Geographical division Industry specialization Outsourcing of support units Personnel mobility Creation of working groups (financing unit - risk unit - supporting unit) Creation of an integrated documentation system
III. Activities (operations) of the bank	Improving the products and services provided by the bank within the framework of project financing (separately considered in the third group of problems)

Particular attention should be paid to the development of interaction between Russian banks and foreign financial and credit institutions. The relevance is due to the growth of this interaction as a result of the intensification of globalization processes, the presence of problems arising in connection with this interaction, and the search for competitive advantages of Russian banks. A number of areas of interaction can be identified:

Linked lending;

Post-financing under import letters of credit;

Financing guaranteed by export credit agencies;

Guarantee using standby letters of credit.

Foreign banks, which have a huge resource base, are undoubtedly showing increasing interest in carrying out credit operations in the Russian Federation.

There are many examples of such activities that can be found. This includes the provision of financing for the implementation of large investment projects by well-known production and financial corporations, and lending programs for small and medium-sized businesses, and lending programs for the population.

Meanwhile, it must be stated that the process of establishing a system of direct financing of a Russian client by a foreign bank is constantly constrained by a number of objective factors.

The first group of factors is associated with the problems of attracting a large loan (loan) from a foreign bank. These undoubtedly include the following:

Costs of staff time and expenses for conducting an international audit of a Russian company (which are often comparable to the size of the loan itself);

Depositing the company's funds in a foreign bank, as collateral for a loan, at meager interest rates, which usually does not arouse enthusiasm among the Russian borrower;

Obtaining a large loan from a foreign bank involves preparing a package of documentation in a Western format and carrying out a number of credit procedures that are unusual for Russian banks and unusual for a Russian borrower;

The actual receipt of a loan from a foreign bank often has illusory prospects and is not defined in time.

Of course, foreign banks planning large-scale expansion in the Russian market in the field of providing large loans to Russian corporations are showing increasing flexibility in the decision-making process. But in the foreseeable future, a radical change in the foreign mentality and the acquisition of experience by Russian banks in providing and monitoring large loans should hardly be expected.

The second group of factors is related to the problems of attracting loans by small and medium-sized enterprises in the real sector of the economy, namely:

The enterprise is interested not only in attracting credit resources for the implementation of one or two projects, but also in receiving comprehensive banking services based on meeting the daily needs of a Russian enterprise in conducting current settlement and conversion operations;

A Russian enterprise often needs the support of a financial organization that is well aware of the realities of the Russian market, capable of assessing risks and promptly making decisions in non-standard situations, based on the current needs of the client’s business;

A Russian company requires methodological assistance and organizational and legal support for current operations, consulting support in organizing financing and structuring foreign trade transactions.

Russian commercial banks (not among the largest ones), as a rule, do not have a long-term resource base to finance investment projects from their own funds. At the same time, the consequences of the financial crisis in Russia have been largely overcome, stable effective demand for imported goods and equipment has been ensured, and confidence in the Russian financial system is being restored. Foreign manufacturers and banks are showing increasing interest in resuming and expanding trade, economic and financial cooperation with Russian partners, including on the basis of commodity and bank loans. As a result, Russian banks again had the opportunity to offer their clients so-called “preferential programs for financing import operations.” First of all, this relates to the cost of foreign credit resources, which, even taking into account the margin of a Russian bank, are significantly “cheaper” than most other credit products. Indeed, for a Russian importer, obtaining a loan at a rate of up to 10% per annum is an extremely attractive way to implement even the most ambitious import program. In addition, the timing of such financing is of great interest to importers. Documentary limits of foreign banks allow Russian financial institutions to provide importers with such preferential loans for a period of up to 18-24 months. Of course, a separate topic of conversation here is long-term (up to 8.5 years) loans for the purchase of foreign machinery and equipment.

In general, there is undoubtedly a high interest of both Russian banks and Russian trading and manufacturing companies in the development of programs for financing foreign economic projects and programs from funds from foreign sources. The development of small and medium-sized enterprises, the creation of competitive import-substituting industries in the Russian Federation on the one hand, as well as ensuring the procurement of high-quality imported goods abroad, on the other, are a task of the utmost national importance. Attracting resources from foreign financial institutions to organize preferential programs for financing foreign economic activity not only contributes to solving this problem, but also provides the basis for financial prosperity and the development of Russian manufacturing and banking activities.

The leading role in organizing project financing schemes is played by initiating banks; banks also act as consultants on the organization of project financing.

The lending bank is assigned a large role in the development (analysis and evaluation) of various options for the presented project, organizing its financing, developing risk distribution schemes for the project, etc. The Bank carefully analyzes the specific requirements that a proposed project must satisfy for its successful implementation. First of all, a satisfactory financial situation, appropriate qualifications and intentions of the founders are required, as well as the fame (image) of the founders and those behind them, their interest in making a profit from the project, the absence of difficulties and misunderstandings in the process of working with the founders. The main requirement in such an analysis, which determines the usefulness and viability of the project, is the existence of a need for the product or service offered by the project. At the same time, the possibility of meeting this requirement must be confirmed by a professional analysis of the economic and financial viability of the project. An important condition for the success of the project is also the stability of the political situation in the country and region where the project is implemented.

Review of projects by the bank carried out in a certain sequence. The main stages of consideration are the assessment of partners and the scope of the project, assessment of its viability and effectiveness, identification of project risks and development of measures to distribute and reduce them, selection of the method and conditions for financing the project.

A major role in deciding on the further implementation of a project is played by its feasibility study, which must contain an objective assessment of the effectiveness of investments in the project under consideration from the standpoint of ensuring the expected income. Based on the essence of project financing, making a positive decision on participation in project financing requires, first of all, confirmation of the reality of receiving income that ensures timely repayment of loans (obligations of the enterprise implementing the project) during its implementation.

Preparation of a feasibility study organized by the initiator of the project, regardless of the form of the created structure, its implementation goes through three stages: identification of investment and other opportunities for the implementation of the project; conducting preliminary studies and preparing a detailed feasibility study. Each stage involves analyzing information, developing and evaluating project options, and deciding on the viability and utility of the selected option. When a bank decides to finance a specific project, the latter subjects it to independent analysis from a qualitative and quantitative perspective. Such analysis is usually called economic and financial, respectively. These types of project analysis by the bank should not be confused with the assessment of the project's effectiveness carried out as part of its feasibility study.

Qualitative (economic) analysis, which is often called preliminary, includes the bank's assessment of the financial position of the project founders (partners in the joint venture), an assessment of the area of ​​​​activity in which the investment object is being created, and the capital investments required for its implementation.

Quantitative (financial) analysis provides calculation and assessment of real money flows for the project and full accounting of the conditions for its implementation. In this case, the bank uses the materials of the feasibility study presented by the project initiator, but carries out additional verification of the reliability of the information used and the correctness of the calculations performed. Accounting and assessment of the influence of various factors on the implementation of the project, as well as the calculation of the financial and economic indicators of the project are carried out in predominantly uncertain (most unfavorable) conditions.

When considering a project, the bank requires the organizer (sponsor) of the project to submit a request form for its financing accompanied by a corresponding feasibility study. The form of such a request may be arbitrary, but its content must include answers to all questions that may affect the bank’s investment decision. The scheme (structure of work) for the assessment and analysis of the project by the bank is presented in Figure 10.1.

Figure 10.1. – Scheme (structure of work) for the assessment and analysis of the project by the bank

Table 10.2 – Types and content of information provided to the bank by the project initiator (sponsor)

Required Investments	The total volume of necessary investments for the implementation of the project, including: own investments, mastered investments, required financing
Form of investment and return period (payback)	Loan, direct investment of the bank (participation in capital). Interest rate on the loan, the bank's share of profits
Information about the enterprise implementing the project (project operator)	Legal statute (including the privatization stage). Founders and size of authorized capital. Number of employees. Management structure and information about managers (previous work). Main types of activity and its characteristics (volume of production and sales, products and services, cost of fixed assets)
Information about the organization of work on the project	Permitting documents (land plot, buildings and structures, approval of the implementation of a specific investment project). Contracts (for the development of design and estimate documentation, zero-cycle construction work, construction, finishing work, commissioning work, industrial cooperation, product supply, etc.). Marketing research (on domestic and foreign markets, on our own or by a professional organization, an independent company). Feasibility study and business plan (opportunity studies, preliminary or detailed feasibility studies). Positive conclusions from supervisory authorities. Government support
Sources and terms of loan repayment (return of funds raised)	Income from the implementation of the project, from other activities of the enterprise implementing the project, loans. Estimated loan repayment schedule (return on attracted investments). Lender's share of project sales revenue
Collateral (guarantees) for the loan	Government guarantees, bank guarantees, other guarantees, foreign currency deposits, pledge of real estate (rights to it), pledge of securities, other types of pledge
Ready for bank service	Fully, partially, temporarily (for the duration of the project)

Next, the bank begins to organize financing for the project by creating a banking consortium, attracting investors to the concession company, preparing the issue of debt securities, and attracting guarantors and insurers.

Under project financing understand the form of implementation of financial and credit relations of participants regarding the organization and implementation of financing of an investment project using a variety of financial instruments, provided that the sources of debt repayment are the cash flows generated by the project, and the debt is secured by the assets of the financing participants. The scheme of this type of financing is presented in Fig. 9.3.

Rice. 9.3.

This financing mechanism is characterized by the following features:

• to implement the project, a special company is created, which takes upon itself the organization of work and responsibility for the risks of the project;
• financing is based solely on the cash flow generated by the project, which must ensure repayment of the loan and interest payments;
• the only guarantee of return is the project capital.

In most cases, the object of project financing is the social and industrial infrastructure sector, which is characterized by significant capital intensity, low commercial efficiency, but is of strategic importance for the country's economy. This sector covers transport, energy, communications, water supply and sewerage facilities, solid waste processing, etc.

Project financing schemes are also used for the construction or restoration of large industrial facilities (for example, oil or gas production), reclamation of large areas under quarries and waste heaps.

The implementation of these projects is associated with large technical, economic and political risks that even large companies cannot afford, so the risk obligations are divided between the project sponsors and the banks involved in their financing. It should be emphasized that project financing is not a new source of resources, but an investment mechanism that allows financing to be better tailored to the specific requirements of each project. With this form of financing, resources are raised on national or international financial markets under public or private bank guarantees.

Modern forms and methods of project financing include certain financial, commercial and insurance operations that give sponsors of investment projects the opportunity to:

• – firstly, reduce your liability and costs for repaying loans attracted to the project;
• – secondly, to more reliably distribute the financial risks accompanying the project, including those associated with relations between suppliers and consumers;
• – thirdly, use guarantees from various financial and credit institutions involved in the project.

In Russian practice, project financing methods are of limited use, since its very idea and concept are completely new to our economy, characterized by weak connections between market participants and a lack of trust between them.

The following organizations take part in the implementation of project financing.

1. Sponsor or organizer of the project– a company that takes the initiative to develop the project. The sponsor can be a commercial entity or a private company, or a government organization. Initially, the project can be initiated by one company, then other companies can be involved in it on a parity basis, which also become sponsors of this project.

The sponsor performs the following functions:

• – participates in the establishment of the project, forms the authorized capital of the enterprise created for its implementation, and analyzes the prospects for the development of the project;
• – coordinates all current work on the project, conducts market research;
• – invites other companies to participate in the project, conducts negotiations, analyzes commercial proposals of contractors and suppliers;
• – involves financial and legal advisers.
• 2. Contractor, which is any engineering and construction firm engaged to design and construct projects under the project.
• 3. Supplier of equipment or materials, necessary for the implementation of this project, as well as various branches or subsidiaries signing a contract for the supply of equipment or provision of services.
• 4. Operating organization (operator) - an operating company or group specifically created to manage the project.
• 5. Creditors, providing loans to finance the project and creating funds taking into account its characteristics.
• 6. Borrower– a company that is specifically created to implement a project if it is financed as a limited project, and the borrower does not simultaneously act as a sponsor.

Project financing can be realized through:

• 1) the enterprise’s own funds;
• 2) borrowed funds (usually investment loans and corporate bond issues);
• 3) raised funds (shareholders, partners, shareholders, etc.);
• 4) funds from the state budget;
• 5) other internal and external sources of financing.

These sources can be used in various combinations.

Thus, if an investment project is implemented at the expense of the enterprise’s own funds, then the main sources of its financing are depreciation charges and retained earnings. This type of financing is called corporate project financing. Note that very rarely an enterprise that has decided to implement a capital-intensive investment project is able to finance it only from its own funds. Therefore, in order to obtain the resources it needs, loan sources of financing are very often used, which include:

• loans from banks and other financial institutions;
• bond loans;
• commercial loans (deferred payment under contracts provided by suppliers of machinery and equipment and contractors);
• bill loans;
• financial leasing, factoring, forfaiting, etc.

If in the process of implementing an investment project the predominant source of financing is bank loans, then we are talking about bank project financing.

Lending to investment projects is carried out on the security of real estate, equipment, shares, as well as guarantees or guarantees.

A separate type of project financing using borrowed funds is financing based on the use of a mechanism financial leasing. The advantage of this type of financing compared to bank lending is the attraction of investments with less risk for the investor, since the leasing company retains ownership of the leased object and thus assumes part of the risk. That is, leasing schemes in many cases are an option for protecting a credit transaction.

Financing, which is carried out at the expense of raised funds, is associated with the issue and placement of shares, funds of partners, share contributions, etc. This financing mechanism provides for the participation of the investor in the management of the investment project in the event of acquiring a controlling stake.

The state plays an important role in project financing. On an irrevocable basis, state budget funds can be provided to enterprises, institutions and organizations of state and private ownership for the implementation of investment projects with a social focus, as well as innovation and concession projects.

There are two types of project financing.

Project financing without recourse to the borrower. In this case, the lender assumes all commercial and political risks associated with the implementation of the project, assessing only the cash flows generated by the project and used to repay loans. This type of financing in international practice is called non-recourse finance. This form of project financing is the most expensive for the borrower, as the lender expects significant compensation for the high degree of risk involved in the project. In reality, this form of project financing is used extremely rarely due to the complexity of organizing such financing schemes.

Limited recourse financing or limited financing (limited-recourse finance). It represents the prevailing type of project financing in world practice. It should be noted that in many cases, project financing primarily means financing with limited recourse rights. Its advantage lies in the moderate cost of financing and the maximum distribution of project risks for the borrower. This type of financing is predominant, for example, when implementing energy complex projects.

To organize limited financing for a promising project, a special company is usually created, the purpose of which is to implement this specific project. Much less often, instead of creating a company, a special contract is drawn up, in which responsibility for the project is assigned to some division of a large company. In practice, the following scheme is usually used. Project sponsors, i.e. companies wishing to take part in the implementation of a large project create a new company - a subsidiary, which will be independently responsible for its implementation. The contribution of the founders is limited to participation in the creation of the authorized capital of the new company, after which it begins to attract the necessary funds for the implementation of the project, including in the form of long-term loans. At the same time, lenders are unconditionally focused on insuring high risks accompanying projects, which is ensured through the use of various credit and financial instruments.

From the point of view of the project sponsors themselves, the use of limited financing allows:

• limit your liability only to investing a share in the authorized capital of the project, without formally accepting responsibility for the obligations of the new company implementing the project;
• attract significant financial resources necessary for the implementation of the project, using the capabilities of credit and financial institutions, as well as distribute risks on it;
• take advantage of off-balance sheet financing opportunities ( off-balance sheet financing). In this case, the advantages of using the principles of project financing are directly related to the assessment of the ratio of its own and borrowed funds. This ratio, characterizing the ability to cover current debt obligations with its own funds, determines the company’s rating on the world market when assessing its activities by such leading agencies as S&P (Standard & Poor's) Fitch IBCA , Moody's. A high company rating (such as AAA or AA+) implies the possibility of obtaining cheaper loans for the borrower. In this regard, the so-called off-balance sheet financing allows the sponsoring company not to accept obligations on its balance sheet for borrowed funds attracted to the project, i.e. do not worsen your rating by participating in the project.

In the practice of organizing limited financing, the company sponsoring the project focuses on two significant problems: how to attract financial resources to implement the project and how to assess and distribute the risks of this project. Typically, the risk associated with the project was assumed by the primary lender. However, in the last few years the two functions have been separated. Those banks that accept project risk, but may not participate in direct project financing, investments can be attracted by issuing securities or inviting export credit agencies to participate. In addition, guarantees for project risks can be obtained from financial institutions specially attracted for this purpose.

The role of banks in organizing project financing determined by the selected type of financing. In the case of non-recourse financing, i.e. without the right of recourse to the project sponsors, the bank assumes all technical, economic or political risk, but this is used relatively rarely.

In limited recourse financing, the project sponsor shares the risk between him and the bank. As a result, the latter assumes some risk associated with the project, but this is covered by the sponsor's various obligations in relation to other categories of risk. The basic rule is that the lender assumes only that portion of the risk that can be accurately estimated. One of the banker's first tasks in a capped loan arrangement is to prioritize the objectives sought by the project sponsor and to propose the best ways to achieve them. Difficulties in implementing this task are associated with existing contradictions between various goals. For example, transferring a larger share of project risk to banks is incompatible with the desire for minimal financial costs; in the same way, it is difficult to combine an unbalanced payback regime and tax benefits (especially with accelerated depreciation).

To determine the structure that is most optimal for achieving the goals of the borrower and its partners, and to ensure access to various sources of financing on favorable terms, banks conduct in-depth legal, accounting and financial analysis. From this point of view, it is important that banks are well aware of the specific requirements of the various sources of financing that can be resorted to, for example, export loans, Eurocredits, domestic loans, bond issues, private investments, as well as loans, guarantees and other forms of support from the World Bank, International Finance corporation, the European Investment Bank or other international organizations.

A significant place in the work of banks in project financing is occupied by risk analysis, which includes the bank’s preparation of cash flow projects based on “reasonably pessimistic” technical and commercial assumptions and the actual risk analysis that could affect cash flow. When preparing cash flow projects, the bank analyzes two groups of factors that directly influence it: technical and economic.

Assessment of technical factors, for example, in the case of preparing financing for a project related to oil production, includes an assessment of reserves and a production profile (characteristics of reserves, methods and standards of production, potential problems of a particular field). For this analysis, the bank uses a field engineering report made by an independent consultant or bank engineers. Moreover, throughout the entire loan term, experts assess the reasons for the discrepancy between forecast and actual indicators and the impact of new events on oil production indicators. Experts also give their opinions on the chosen production technique, the size of the investment, the time required to complete construction and production costs.

Assessment of economic factors represents banking economic and legal services. In some cases, the price trend for a product (for example, oil) is influenced by political factors or fluctuates widely in the market (for example, raw materials for non-ferrous metals). Since the period for which the forecast is given can reach 12–15 years (two to four years for construction and the production period when the payback of the project is achieved), all estimates of price movements are very inaccurate. In this regard, banks, as a rule, regularly revise price forecasts with adjustments to the amount of a non-recourse loan, and also strive to reach an agreement with the borrower on a possible revision of the mechanism and procedure for arbitration in the event of a conflict. The interest rate is usually chosen to be a pre-calculated average interest rate (including margin) for the period being assessed.

The obligations assumed by banks when analyzing the technical and economic factors that may affect cash flow are generally more conservative than those assumed by the borrower. Typically, the sponsor takes into account the most favorable assumptions, and the banker takes into account the least favorable ones, but which cannot be excluded, which is expressed in the so-called reasonably pessimistic approach. At the same time, banks cannot systematically make overly pessimistic assumptions, since very few projects will be profitable under such conditions.

Cash flow forecasts generated from the "reasonably pessimistic approach" provide the basis for establishing the maximum external non-recourse financing that a project could have at the time of loan origination and the amount of capital and working capital that the borrower must find. They also serve to establish a loan repayment scale, which consists of repayments fixed (targeted) or equal to a certain percentage of net cash flow, or combinations thereof. The last repayment date is determined taking into account the production profile, the borrower's conditions and the market. Target payments or interest are set based on the cash flow forecast in order to achieve full payment by the closing day.

In reality, the assumptions used by both the borrower and the banks to prepare the cash flow project do not correspond to what is realized in practice, and are sometimes very different. Therefore, banks and borrowers agree on methods for regularly reviewing the non-recourse share or interest level to take account of newly emerging assumptions.

A special place in the activities of banks in the implementation of project financing is occupied by management of technical, commercial, economic and political risks, which can affect the project both during its first phase - during the construction period, and in the second - during the production period.

In project financing, the most important thing is risk of non-completion construction, which is covered mainly by guarantees of its completion. This risk may arise from an incident that destroys all or part of the project, failure of the contractor, changes in the construction plan, failure to complete, or a break in the financial balance of the project before production begins as a result of radical changes in the economic environment (prices, taxes, etc.) .). The project sponsor is usually required to provide a guarantee (direct or indirect) to pay the amount given by the bank by the end of a specified period in the event that the sponsor chooses not to complete the project.

Risk of cost overrun due to delays, project modifications, underestimation of construction costs may be generated by the banks themselves. In addition to allocating funds for unforeseen expenses, banks can provide an amount in excess of the previously established limit if the overspending exceeds the unexpected expenses. Beyond this limit, the borrower traditionally agrees to assume the risk of covering all additional costs.

Production risk may be associated with technical (inadequate project design, weak engineering support, etc.) or economic problems (increased production costs, reduced supplies). Typically, the project finance lender assumes this risk.

Market risk may arise due to incorrect market assessment (size, segmentation), product obsolescence, price reductions, deterioration of sales opportunities (for example, cancellation of long-term sales contracts). This risk may not be completely eliminated, but is limited by great care in setting prices, detailed analysis of sales contracts and careful market research.

Financial risk is associated with a possible increase in financing costs when loans are guaranteed on a fluctuating rate basis, or due to a deterioration in the borrower's creditworthiness. This risk can be reduced by entering into restricted contracts, limiting investments, dividends and debt policies.

The political situation in the country can have a significant impact on the development of the project, i.e. political risks. Borrowers are seeking a financial structure that allows them to shift at least some of the political risk of foreign projects to the banks. This movement is one of the factors in the progress of international project finance. Borrowers believe that banks are better positioned with respect to political risk and that capped financing will reduce this risk to the project. They reason that if banks have extensive connections in the host country, they are in a better position than an individual company to negotiate with the government about political trends that may affect the viability of the project. In some cases, borrowers do not turn to domestic, but seek international project finance only to cover political risk, and are willing to bear the technical and commercial risk themselves.

To reduce the risks of project financing, leading managers follow certain basic rules, which include:

• thorough analysis of the technical aspects of the project with the help of well-known independent consultants;
• a pessimistic approach to determining the amount of capital investment, taking into account trade and supply costs, the use of a protective coefficient that determines the amount of a non-recourse loan, the payments of which are ensured by the cash flow of the project;
• search for a common interest connecting the borrower and the lender.

Project financing in all cases must be

tied to the specific characteristics of each project and the requirements of the borrower. It presupposes a clear division of risks; banks take on only those that they can assess and control and for which they have a certain reserve.

Global market for bank project finance in the period 2002–2008. was characterized by steady growth, which was caused by the rapid development of transition and developing economies, and at the end of 2008 amounted to 250.6 billion US dollars. In the 1st quarter of 2009, as a consequence of the global crisis, its volumes decreased to the 2003 level with subsequent growth. At the same time, the leading industries were: energy (36%), transport (22%), production and transportation of oil and gas (15%) and regions: Western Europe (35%), South and North America (15%), Middle East ( 9%), Australia (9%), South Asia (8%) and Eastern Europe (8%). European-Middle Eastern bank project finance accounted for a total of 55% of its global volume; The Russian Sakhalin project became the largest project of 2008 and the eighth largest in the history of project financing.

In our country, project financing began to develop in the 1990s. thanks to the direct participation of international organizations (World Bank, EBRD, International Finance Corporation, International Investment Bank, etc.). According to various estimates, in the period 1997–2007. As part of bank project financing, the Russian economy received $12–22 billion (of which $5.5 billion was invested in the construction of a gas pipeline in Yamal in 1997). During the 2008 crisis, the volume of project financing transactions not only did not decrease, but even increased (from $22 billion as of December 31, 2007 to $25 billion as of December 31, 2010), since such financing is considered conservative and safe and a flexibly structured product.

The number of banks engaged in project financing on an ongoing basis is extremely small. Basically, these are the largest and largest banks (for example, Gazprombank, Sberbank of Russia, Vneshtorgbank, Raiffeisenbank, NOMOS-BANK, URALSIB Bank). They give priority to projects in the mining sector and industries with stable demand for products (fuel and energy complex, metallurgy, telecommunications, construction, production of building materials, wood and paper, food industry, household chemicals).

Justification of a financing strategy for an investment project involves the selection of financing methods, identification of sources of investment financing and their structure.

Investment project financing method acts as a way to attract investment resources in order to ensure the financial feasibility of the project.

The following can be considered as methods of financing investment projects:

• self-financing, i.e. investing only from your own funds;
• corporatization, as well as other forms of equity financing;
• credit financing (investment loans from banks, bond issues);
• leasing;
• budget financing;
• mixed financing based on various combinations of the considered methods;
• project financing.

In the economic literature, there are different views on the composition of methods for financing investment projects. One of the main disagreements is related to the understanding of the term “project financing”. With all the variety of interpretations of this term, we can distinguish its broad and narrow interpretations:

In a broad definition, project financing is understood as a set of forms and methods of financial support for the implementation of an investment project. Project financing is considered as a way to mobilize various sources of financing and integrated use of different methods of financing specific investment projects; as financing that has a strictly targeted use of funds for the needs of the implementation of an investment project;

In a narrow definition, project financing acts as a method of financing investment projects, characterized by a special way of ensuring return on investments, which is based solely or mainly on cash income generated by the investment project, as well as the optimal distribution of all risks associated with the project between the parties involved in its implementation .

In the following presentation, we will proceed from a narrow interpretation of project financing as one of the methods of financing investment projects.

Sources of financing for investment projects are funds used as investment resources. They are divided into internal (equity capital) and external (attracted and borrowed capital).

A general description of investment financing sources was given in Chapter. 3. Here we will consider the main types of these sources in relation to the tasks of financing real investment projects.

Internal financing (self-financing) is provided at the expense of the enterprise planning to implement the investment project. It involves the use of own funds - authorized (share) capital, as well as the flow of funds generated during the activities of the enterprise, primarily net profit and depreciation charges. At the same time, the formation of funds intended for the implementation of the investment project must be strictly targeted, which is achieved, in particular, by allocating an independent budget for the investment project.

Self-financing can only be used to implement small investment projects. Capital-intensive investment projects, as a rule, are financed from not only internal, but also external sources.

External funding provides for the use of external sources: funds from financial institutions, non-financial companies, the population, the state, foreign investors, as well as additional contributions of monetary resources from the founders of the enterprise. It is carried out by mobilizing attracted (equity financing) and borrowed (credit financing) funds.

Each of the used sources of financing has certain advantages and disadvantages (Table 9.1). Therefore, the implementation of any investment project requires justification of the financing strategy, analysis of alternative methods and sources of financing, and careful development of the financing scheme.

The adopted financing scheme should provide:

• a sufficient amount of investment to implement the investment project as a whole and at each step of the billing period;
• optimization of the structure of investment financing sources;
• reduction of capital costs and risk of an investment project.

Table 9.1. Comparative characteristics of sources of financing investment projects

Sources of funding	Advantages	Flaws
Internal sources (equity)	Ease, accessibility and speed of mobilization. Reducing the risk of insolvency and bankruptcy. Higher profitability due to the absence of the need for payments from attracted and borrowed sources. Preservation of ownership and management of the founders	Limited amount of funds raised. Diversion of own funds from economic turnover. Limited independent control over the efficiency of use of investment resources
External sources (raised and borrowed capital)	Possibility of raising funds on a significant scale. Availability of independent control over the efficiency of use of investment resources	The complexity and duration of the fundraising procedure. The need to provide guarantees of financial stability. Increased risk of insolvency and bankruptcy. Decrease in profit due to the need to make payments from attracted and borrowed sources. Possibility of loss of ownership and management of the company

Corporatization (as well as shares and other contributions to the authorized capital) provides for equity financing of investment projects. Equity financing of investment projects can be carried out in the following main forms:

• carrying out an additional issue of shares of an operating enterprise, which is a joint-stock company in its organizational and legal form, for the purpose of financial support for the implementation of the investment project;
• attracting additional funds (investment contributions, deposits, shares) from the founders of an operating enterprise for the implementation of an investment project;
• creation of a new enterprise designed specifically for the implementation of an investment project.

Additional issue of shares is used for the implementation of large-scale investment projects, investment development programs, industry or regional diversification of investment activities. The use of this method mainly for financing large investment projects is explained by the fact that the costs associated with the issue are covered only by significant volumes of attracted resources.

Attracting investment resources within the framework of shareholder financing can be carried out through an additional issue of ordinary and preferred shares. In accordance with Russian legislation, the par value of issued preference shares must be no more than 25% of the authorized capital of the joint-stock company. It is believed that the issue of preferred shares as a form of equity financing is a more expensive source of financing investment projects than the issue of ordinary shares, since the payment of dividends to shareholders is mandatory for preferred shares. At the same time, ordinary shares, unlike preferred shares, give their owners more rights to participate in management, including the ability to control the strictly targeted use of funds to finance an investment project.

The main advantages of corporatization as a method of financing investment projects include the following:

• payments for the use of allocated resources are not unconditional, but are made depending on the financial result of the joint-stock company;
• the use of attracted investment resources has a significant scale and is not limited in time;
• the issue of shares makes it possible to ensure the formation of the required amount of financial resources at the beginning of the implementation of the investment project, as well as to defer the payment of dividends until the period when the investment project begins to generate income;
• shareholders can exercise control over the targeted use of funds for the implementation of the investment project.

However, this method of financing investment projects has a number of significant limitations. Thus, a joint stock company receives investment resources upon completion of the placement of shares, and this requires time, additional expenses, evidence of the financial stability of the enterprise, information transparency, etc. The procedure for additional issue of shares is associated with registration, listing, and significant operating costs. When going through the issue procedure, issuing companies incur costs for paying for the services of professional securities market participants who perform the functions of an underwriter and investment consultant, as well as for registering the issue. In accordance with Russian legislation, the issuer is charged a fee for state registration of the issue of equity securities placed by subscription - 0.2% of the nominal amount of the issue, but not more than 100,000 thousand rubles.

It should also be taken into account that the issue of shares may not always be placed in full. In addition, after the issue of shares, the company must pay dividends, periodically send reports to its shareholders, etc.

Additional issue of shares leads to an increase in the company's share capital. The adoption of a decision on an additional issue may lead to the dilution of the participation interests of previous shareholders in the authorized capital and a decrease in their income, although in accordance with Russian legislation, former shareholders have a preemptive right to purchase newly placed shares. A joint stock company that intends to finance an investment project through an additional issue of shares must develop an effective strategy for increasing liquidity and the value of shares, which involves increasing the degree of financial transparency and information openness of the issuer, expanding and developing activities, increasing capitalization, improving financial condition and improving the image.

For companies of other organizational and legal forms, raising additional funds intended for the implementation of an investment project is carried out through investment contributions, deposits, shares of founders or invited third-party co-founders in the authorized capital. This method of financing is characterized by lower transaction costs than an additional issue of shares, but at the same time, more limited amounts of financing.

The creation of a new enterprise designed specifically for the implementation of an investment project is one of the methods of targeted equity financing. It can be used by private entrepreneurs who are establishing an enterprise to implement their investment projects and need to attract partner capital; large diversified companies organizing a new enterprise, including on the basis of their structural divisions, to implement projects to expand production, reconstruct and re-equip production, reengineer business processes, develop fundamentally new products and new technologies; enterprises in difficult financial condition, which are developing anti-crisis investment projects for the purpose of financial recovery, etc.

Financial support for an investment project in these cases is carried out through contributions from third-party co-founders to the formation of the authorized capital of a new enterprise, the separation or establishment by the parent company of specialized project companies - subsidiaries, the creation of new enterprises by transferring to them part of the assets of existing enterprises.

One of the forms of financing investment projects by creating a new enterprise designed specifically for the implementation of an investment project is venture financing. The concept of “venture capital” (from English. venture- risk) means risk capital, invested primarily in new areas of activity associated with high risk. Venture financing allows you to raise funds for the initial stages of implementing investment projects of an innovative nature (development and development of new types of products and technological processes), characterized by increased risks, but at the same time the possibility of a significant increase in the value of enterprises created to implement these projects. In this respect, venture investment differs from financing (by purchasing an additional issue of shares, shares, etc.) of existing enterprises, shares of which can be acquired for the purpose of further resale.

Venture financing involves raising funds for the authorized capital of an enterprise from investors who initially intend to sell their share in the enterprise after its value increases during the implementation of the investment project. Income associated with the further functioning of the created enterprise will be received by those persons who purchase its share from the venture investor.

Venture investors (individuals and specialized investment companies) invest their funds with the expectation of receiving significant profits. First, with the help of experts, they analyze in detail both the investment project and the activities of the company offering it, financial condition, credit history, quality of management, and the specifics of intellectual property. Particular attention is paid to the degree of innovation of the project, which largely determines the potential for rapid growth of the company.

Venture investments are carried out in the form of acquiring part of the shares of venture enterprises that are not yet listed on stock exchanges, as well as providing loans or in other forms. There are venture financing mechanisms that combine different types of capital: equity, loan, entrepreneurial. However, venture capital generally takes the form of equity capital.

Venture capital usually includes small enterprises whose activities involve a high degree of risk in promoting their products on the market. These are enterprises that develop new types of products or services that are not yet known to the consumer, but have great market potential. In its development, a venture enterprise goes through a number of stages, each of which is characterized by different opportunities and sources of financing.

At the first stage of development of a venture enterprise, when a product prototype is created, minor financial resources are required; At the same time, there is no demand for this product. As a rule, the source of financing at this stage is the own funds of the project initiators, as well as government grants and contributions from individual investors.

The second (starting) stage, at which the organization of a new production takes place, is characterized by a fairly high need for financial resources, while there is still practically no return on the invested funds. The main part of the costs here is associated not so much with the development of product production technology, but with its commercial component (formation of a marketing strategy, market forecasting, etc.). It is this stage that is figuratively called the “valley of death”, since due to lack of financial resources and ineffective management, 70-80% of projects cease to exist. Large companies, as a rule, do not participate in investing in a venture enterprise during this period of its development; The main investors are individuals, the so-called angels or business angels, who invest personal capital in the implementation of risky projects.

The third stage is the early growth stage, when the product begins to be manufactured and marketed. There is a certain profitability, but the capital gain is not significant. At this stage, the venture begins to be of interest to large corporations, banks, and other institutional investors. For venture financing, venture capital firms are created in the form of funds, trusts, limited partnerships, etc. Venture funds are usually formed by selling a successfully operating venture enterprise and creating a fund for a certain period with a certain direction and volume of investment. When creating a fund in the form of a partnership, the organizing firm acts as the main partner; it contributes a small portion of the capital by raising money from other investors, but is fully responsible for managing the fund. Once the target amount is raised, the venture capital firm closes the subscription for the fund and proceeds to invest it. Having placed one fund, the firm usually moves on to arrange subscriptions for the next fund. The firm may manage several funds at different stages of development, which helps spread and minimize risk.

At the final stage of development of a venture enterprise, venture investors withdraw from the capital of the companies they finance. The most common methods of such an exit are: repurchase of shares by the remaining owners of the financed company, issue of shares through an initial public offering, or takeover of the company by another company. In the United States, successful venture investments usually result in a listing of shares on NASDAQ (the largest stock exchange for trading shares of young innovative companies).

With the development of new technologies and widespread distribution of manufactured products, venture enterprises can achieve a high level of production profitability. With an average rate of return on government securities of 6%, venture investors invest their funds expecting an annual return of 20-25%.

Thus, based on the nature of venture entrepreneurship, venture capital is risky and is rewarded due to the high profitability of the production in which it is invested. Venture capital has a number of other features. These include, in particular, investors' focus on capital gains rather than dividends on invested capital. Since a venture enterprise begins to place its shares on the stock market three to seven years after investment, venture capital has a long waiting period for market realization and the magnitude of its growth is revealed only when the enterprise enters the stock market. Accordingly, the founder's profit, which is the main form of income for venture capital, is realized by investors after the shares of the venture enterprise begin to be quoted on the stock market.

Venture capital is characterized by the distribution of risk between investors and project initiators. In order to minimize risk, venture investors distribute their funds between several projects, while at the same time one project can be financed by a number of investors. Venture investors, as a rule, strive to directly participate in the management of an enterprise and make strategic decisions, since they are directly interested in the effective use of invested funds. Investors control the financial condition of the company and actively contribute to the development of its activities, using their business contacts and experience in the field of management and finance.

The attractiveness of investing capital in venture enterprises is due to the following circumstances:

• acquisition of a stake in a company with likely high profitability;
• ensuring significant capital growth (from 15 to 80% per annum);
• availability of tax benefits.

The volume of venture financing in industrialized countries is growing dynamically. Venture capital is acquiring a decisive role in economic development. This is due to the fact that it was thanks to venture enterprises that it was possible to implement a significant number of developments in the latest areas of industry, to ensure rapid re-equipment and restructuring of production on a modern scientific and technical basis.

The largest volume of venture investments in the world comes from the United States (about $22 billion), followed by Western Europe and the Asia-Pacific region by a significant margin. In Russia, venture capital is in its infancy: there are currently 20 venture funds operating here, managing funds amounting to about $2 billion.

Main forms credit financing These include investment loans from banks and targeted bond loans.

Investment loans from banks act as one of the most effective forms of external financing of investment projects in cases where companies cannot ensure their implementation at the expense of their own funds and the issue of securities. The attractiveness of this form is explained primarily by:

Investment loans are, as a rule, medium- and long-term. The period for attracting an investment loan is comparable to the period for implementing the investment project. In this case, an investment loan may provide for a grace period, i.e. period of deferment of repayment of the principal debt. This condition makes it easier to service the loan, but increases its cost, since interest payments are calculated on the outstanding amount of the debt.

In Russian practice, investment loans are issued, as a rule, in the form of a term loan with a repayment period ranging from three to five years based on the preparation of an appropriate loan agreement (agreement). In some cases, the bank opens a credit line to the borrower for this period.

To receive an investment loan, the following conditions must be met:

• Preparation of a business plan for an investment project for the creditor bank. The business plan of an investment project serves as a tool for making decisions on lending to the project based on the effectiveness of the project and the possibility of repaying the loan;
• property security for loan repayment. In addition to the business plan of the investment project, appropriate security must be provided in the form of property collateral, guarantees and sureties of third parties, etc. The market value of the property collateral, assessed at the borrower’s expense by independent appraisers, must exceed the loan amount, since in case of failure to comply with the terms of the loan agreement by the borrower, the liquidation value of the collateral may be lower than the market value, which will lead to losses for the creditor bank;
• providing the creditor bank with comprehensive information confirming the stable financial condition and investment creditworthiness of the borrower;
• fulfillment of guarantee obligations - restrictions imposed on the borrower by the lender. In order to minimize the risk of the loan provided, the lender establishes in the loan agreement a number of different restrictive conditions that ensure the preservation of the current financial position of the company (capital expenditure restrictions, restrictions on the payment of dividends and resale of shares, restrictions on obtaining another long-term loan from a new lender, waiver of collateral property to another creditor, a ban on transactions to lease property, etc.);
• ensuring the lender's control over the targeted spending of loan funds intended to finance a specific investment project, for example, opening a special account from which funds are transferred only to pay for the capital and current costs provided for in the business plan of the investment project.

One of the types of term loans used to finance investment projects is loan secured by real estate (mortgage loan).

To finance investment projects the following can be used:

• standard mortgage loans (debt repayment and interest payments are made in equal installments);
• mortgage loans that provide for uneven interest payments (for example, at the initial stage, payments increase at a certain constant rate, and then are paid in constant amounts);
• variable mortgage loans (during the grace period, only interest is paid and the principal amount does not increase);
• mortgage loans with a collateral account (when a loan is issued, a special account is opened into which the borrower deposits a certain amount as a guarantee of payment of contributions at the first stage of the project).

The mortgage lending system provides a mechanism for savings and long-term lending at a low interest rate with installment payments over long periods.

In world practice, various types of mortgage lending systems are used, in particular:

• a system that includes elements of a mortgage and issuing loans secured by a new construction project with the gradual provision of loan amounts;
• a system based on taking out a mortgage on existing real estate and obtaining a loan against it for new construction;
• a system that provides mixed financing, in which, along with a bank loan, additional sources of financing are used (housing certificates, funds from citizens, enterprises, municipalities, etc.);
• a system that involves concluding a contract for the purchase and sale of existing real estate with a deferred transfer of rights to it for the period of new construction.

An important component of mortgage lending is the assessment of the property offered as collateral. In case of insolvency of the borrower, repayment of the debt will occur at the expense of the value of the collateral, therefore the accuracy of the assessment of collateral in mortgage lending is of particular importance. The valuation of real estate is determined by a number of factors, the main of which are: supply and demand for real estate, the usefulness of the object, its geographical location, income from the use of the object.

In the case of long-term and close cooperation between the creditor bank and the borrower to finance an investment project, the bank may open an investment line of credit to the borrower. Investment line of credit represents a legal formalization of the lender’s obligation to the borrower to provide loans (tranches) over a certain period as the borrower’s need arises to finance individual capital costs for the project within the agreed limit. Opening an investment line of credit has a number of advantages for both the borrower and the lender. The benefits for the borrower include a reduction in overhead costs and time loss associated with negotiating and concluding each individual loan agreement, as well as savings on interest servicing for loan amounts exceeding the current financing needs of the investment project. For the lending bank, in addition to reducing the costs associated with the execution and servicing of loan agreements, the tasks of refinancing (searching for sources) of loan funds are simplified and the risks of loan non-repayment are reduced, since the amounts of individual tranches are less than the loan amount for a one-time provision. At the same time, the lending bank assumes the risks associated with changes in conditions on the loan capital market, since regardless of the nature of these changes, it is obliged to fulfill its obligations to the borrower and provide him with a loan in full accordance with the credit line agreement.

There are framework (target) and revolving investment credit lines. A framework credit line involves the borrower paying for a number of separate capital costs within one loan contract, implemented over a certain period. A revolving credit line is a series of short- and medium-term credit contracts extended within a specified period; however, the interest rate is typically higher than the rate on a traditional term loan.

Based on the relationship between the start of payments for tranches and the duration of the credit line agreement, the following are distinguished:

• investment credit lines for which the repayment period and interest servicing of tranches at different times relate to one point in time (for example, the term of completion of the credit line);
• investment credit lines for which the repayment period and interest servicing of each individual tranche is less than the term of the credit line agreement. In this case, there may be a time lag between the receipt of sufficient project revenues and the servicing of the first tranches. Therefore, when developing a financial scheme for debt servicing, the borrower should provide for sources of payments not related to the project, or increase the amounts of subsequent tranches by the amount of the required payments.

The interest rate on investment loans usually takes into account the risk of the investment project. It can be calculated by increasing the interest rate base (indexed, for example, by a change in the Central Bank refinancing rate) by the risk premium for the project in question.

Targeted bond loans represent the issue by the enterprise initiator of the project of corporate bonds, the proceeds from the placement of which are intended to finance a specific investment project.

The issue and placement of corporate bonds makes it possible to raise funds to finance investment projects on more favorable terms compared to a bank loan:

• the collateral required by banks is not required;
• the issuing enterprise has the opportunity to attract a significant amount of funds on a long-term basis at a lower cost of borrowing, while it receives direct access to the resources of small investors;
• repayment of the principal debt on bonds, in contrast to a traditional bank loan, occurs, as a rule, at the end of the loan period, which makes it possible to service the debt at the expense of income generated by the project;
• the bond issue prospectus contains only a general description of the investment project, which eliminates the need to provide creditors with a detailed business plan of the investment project;
• the issuing enterprise is not obliged to provide each of the potential buyers of bonds with internal financial information other than that contained in the prospectus, as well as a report on the progress of the investment project;
• in case of possible complications associated with the implementation of the investment project, the issuing enterprise may repurchase its own bonds, and the repurchase price may be less than the amounts received during the initial placement of bonds;
• due to the fragmentation of bondholders, the likelihood of interference by creditors in the internal activities of the enterprise is minimized;
• the issuing enterprise gets the opportunity to quickly manage debt, regulate risks associated with the issue and circulation of bonds, optimize debt in accordance with changing conditions of the internal and external environment by offering new conditions and using various combinations of debt securities.

At the same time, raising funds by issuing a targeted bond issue imposes a number of requirements on the issuing company. First of all, the issuing company must have a stable financial condition, a sound and rational internal business plan for the investment project, and bear the costs associated with the issue and placement of bonds. As a rule, to go through the complex procedure of issuing bonds, companies resort to the services of professional participants in the securities market - investment companies and banks, whose costs for services reach 1-4% of the issue face value for large volumes of bond issue. In addition, when issuing bonds, which, like shares, are equity securities, issuers pay a fee for state registration of this issue.

The advantages of bonds appear only in the case of significant amounts of borrowing, which only fairly large companies can afford. This is explained not only by significant issue costs and the fact that, with small issue volumes, bonds are not liquid enough. Meanwhile, the high liquidity of corporate bonds is one of the most attractive characteristics for investors. The functioning of the secondary market makes it possible to determine the objective parameters of bond issues that the issuer focuses on when developing the terms of a bond loan, and to identify the objective values ​​of interest rates for attracting and placing monetary resources for issuers with different levels of credit risk.

Developing the terms of a targeted bond loan involves establishing the following basic parameters:

• the volume of borrowing, which is determined by the issuer’s needs in raising funds for the implementation of an investment project, the market’s ability to satisfy these needs at a price that provides the required return for the investor, as well as legal requirements. According to Russian legislation, the nominal value of all bonds must not exceed the amount of the company's authorized capital or the amount of security provided by third parties for the purpose of issuing bonds;
• the borrowing period, which depends on the period of implementation of the investment project, the characteristics of market conditions and legislative restrictions. In the Russian Federation, the maturity of corporate bonds cannot be less than one year;
• the par value of the bond, determined by liquidity requirements and the amount of costs for servicing the bond loan;
• date and price of repayment of the bond loan. The repayment date of the bond loan is determined by the borrowing period, as well as in some cases by additional conditions. The redemption price depends on the type of bond (for coupon securities the redemption price is the par value, discount bonds are redeemed at a discount from the par value), as well as current and future conditions in the securities market;
• form of bond issue (documentary, non-documentary, registered, bearer). When choosing this parameter, the issuer is guided by the amount of costs associated with the circulation of a particular type of bond;
• form of income payment (fixed coupon bonds, floating coupon bonds, discount bonds or zero coupon bonds). The choice of this parameter depends on the characteristics of the financed investment project, as well as market trends. Thus, in conditions of rising interest rates on the financial market during the bond circulation period, the preferred form for the issuer is bonds with a fixed coupon;
• the frequency and size of coupon payments, the establishment of which is based on balancing opposing factors: on the one hand, the amount of expenses for servicing bond debt, on the other hand, the return required by investors. In this case, the degree of creditworthiness of the issuer, which determines the level of credit risk, is of particular importance. The amount of the risk premium depends on the credit rating assigned to the issuer by international or national rating agencies, as well as the credit rating of the country;
• country and currency of borrowing. In relation to the national market, bonds can be internal, which are issued by residents and are usually denominated in national currency, and external, which are placed on foreign markets. External bonds are divided into foreign bonds placed abroad, usually in the currency of the country of placement, and Eurobonds placed outside both the borrower country and the country in whose currency they are denominated;
• additional conditions for issuing bonds, the purpose of which is to minimize the cost of servicing the loan, compensation for risks and other parameters that may reduce the investment attractiveness of bonds. Bonds that provide additional benefits for investors include, in particular: bonds with the right of early call; bonds convertible into shares; secured bonds, the performance of obligations under which is secured by collateral, a special fund or guarantees. In Russia, the placement of bonds without collateral is allowed no earlier than the third year of the company’s existence and subject to proper approval by this time of the company’s two annual balance sheets. Exchange-traded bonds placed at open trading on a stock exchange also do not have collateral.

Leasing(from English lease- lease) is a complex of property relations that arise when the leased object (movable and immovable property) is transferred for temporary use on the basis of its acquisition and long-term lease. Leasing is a type of investment activity in which the lessor (lessor), under a financial lease (leasing) agreement, undertakes to acquire ownership of property from a specific seller and provide it to the lessee (lessee) for a fee for temporary use.

Features of leasing operations compared to traditional rent are as follows:

• the object of the transaction is chosen by the lessee, and not by the lessor, who purchases the equipment at his own expense;
• The leasing period is usually less than the period of physical wear and tear of the equipment;
• at the end of the contract, the lessee can continue the lease at a preferential rate or purchase the leased property at its residual value;
• The role of the lessor is usually a credit and financial institution - a leasing company, a bank.

Leasing has features of both production investment and credit. Its dual nature lies in the fact that, on the one hand, it is a kind of capital investment, since it involves investing in tangible property in order to generate income, and on the other hand, it retains the features of a loan (provided on the basis of payment, urgency, repayment).

Acting as a type of loan for fixed capital, leasing at the same time differs from traditional lending. Leasing is usually considered as a form of lending for the acquisition (use) of movable and immovable property, an alternative to a bank loan. The advantages of leasing over lending are as follows:

• the lessee company can obtain property on lease for the implementation of an investment project without first accumulating a certain amount of its own funds and attracting other external sources;
• leasing may be the only method of financing investment projects implemented by companies that do not yet have a credit history and sufficient assets to secure collateral, as well as companies in difficult financial situations;
• registration of leasing does not require such guarantees as obtaining a bank loan, since the leasing transaction is secured by the leased property;
• the use of leasing increases the commercial efficiency of the investment project, in particular, due to tax benefits and the use of accelerated depreciation, as well as reducing the cost of some work associated with the acquisition of property (for example, participation in the pre-sale preparation of equipment, quality control, installation of equipment, consulting, coordinating and information services, etc.);
• leasing payments are characterized by significant flexibility; they are usually set taking into account the real capabilities and characteristics of a particular lessee;
• If a bank loan for the purchase of equipment is usually issued in the amount of 60-80% of its cost, then leasing provides full financing of capital costs, and does not require the immediate start of leasing payments.

Due to its advantages, leasing has become widespread in the economies of various countries. Thus, the share of leasing in the total volume of investment financing sources is: in the USA about 30%, in Germany - 15.7%, in France, Great Britain, Japan - about 9%, in Russia - 7.1%.

Basic elements of leasing operations: subject of leasing, subjects of leasing, leasing term, services provided under leasing, leasing payments.

Subject leasing can be movable and immovable property with the exception of land plots and other natural objects.

Subjects leasing, depending on its type, may have two or more parties. A classic leasing transaction involves the manufacturer (supplier) of the leased property, the lessor (leasing firms, companies and banks) and the lessee (the enterprise that needs the leased property). However, if large-scale projects are implemented, the number of participants may increase.

Leasing entities can be divided into direct and indirect participants.

Direct participants include:

• leasing firms, companies and banks acting as lessors;
• manufacturing (industrial and agricultural), trade and transport enterprises and the population (lessees);
• suppliers of the transaction objects are manufacturing (industrial) and trading companies.

Indirect participants are:

• commercial and investment banks lending to the lessor and acting as guarantors of transactions;
• insurance companies;
• brokerage and other intermediary firms.

Leasing companies, based on the nature of their activities, are divided into specialized and universal. Specialized firms, as a rule, deal with one type of product (passenger cars, containers) or with goods of one group of standard types (construction equipment, equipment for textile enterprises). Typically, these companies have their own fleet of machines or a supply of equipment, carry out maintenance themselves and ensure that it is maintained in normal operating condition. Universal leasing companies lease a wide variety of types of machinery and equipment. They provide the tenant with the right to choose the supplier of the equipment he needs, place an order and accept the object of the transaction. Maintenance and repair of the leased item is carried out either by the supplier or by the lessee himself. The lessor, therefore, actually performs the function of a structure that organizes the financing of the transaction.

Leasing companies are mostly subsidiaries or branches of industrial and trading companies, banks and insurance companies. Most often, leasing companies are created with the active financial participation of banks. The introduction of banks into the leasing services market is due to the fact that leasing is a capital-intensive type of business, and banks are the main holders of monetary resources. In addition, leasing services, by their economic nature, are closely related to bank lending and are a kind of alternative to the latter. Competition in the financial market forces banks to expand leasing operations, which gives grounds to classify banks as the first category of entities carrying out leasing operations. At the same time, banks also control independent leasing companies, providing them with loans. By lending to leasing companies, they indirectly finance lessees in the form of trade credit.

The second category of companies carrying out leasing operations includes industrial and construction companies that use their own products for leasing. The third category of companies carrying out leasing transactions includes various intermediary and trading companies.

The complex of leasing relations in Russian conditions, as a rule, involves:

• purchase and sale agreement between the leasing company and the manufacturer (supplier) for the purchase of equipment, where the manufacturer (supplier) acts as the seller and the leasing company as the buyer;
• a leasing agreement between a leasing company and a lessee, under which the leasing company transfers to the lessee for temporary use equipment purchased from the seller specifically for this purpose. If the leasing agreement involves the sale of property after the expiration of the contract, then the relationship for temporary use turns into a sale and purchase relationship between the lessor and the lessee, but only after the expiration of the contract or upon early purchase of the equipment;
• loan agreement. The presence of a loan agreement is typical for leasing companies owned by a bank or part of a banking group or financial corporation.

Leasing term (period)— this is the validity period of the leasing agreement. When determining it, they take into account the service life of the property, the depreciation period, the cycles of the appearance of a more productive or cheaper analogue of the transaction object, inflation rates, and market conditions.

The services provided under leasing include: technical (transportation, installation, adjustment and repair of equipment), advisory and other services.

Amounts and frequency of leasing payments payments determined by the leasing agreement. Usually they include one or more components, calculated at the rates established by the contract from the corresponding base (the base when calculating the individual components of the lease payment is either the initial, or balance sheet, or residual, or the cost of the leased property not reimbursed at the time of payment). The amounts of payments or the procedure for calculating them by steps of the billing period may change.

1) the amount of leasing payments is calculated for the years covered by the leasing agreement;

2) the total amount of leasing payments is calculated for the entire term of the leasing agreement as the sum of payments by year;

3) the amount of leasing contributions is calculated in accordance with the frequency of contributions chosen by the parties, as well as the calculation methods and method of payment agreed upon by them.

Total amount of lease payments ( LP) by year is determined by the formula

LP=AO+PK+KV+DU+VAT,

(9.33)

Where JSC— the amount of depreciation due to the lessor in the current year; PC— payment for credit resources used by the lessor to purchase property; HF— lessor’s commission; DU— payment to the lessor for additional services provided for in the leasing agreement; VAT— value added tax paid by the lessee on the services of the lessor.

The calculation algorithm is based on the fact that as the debt on the loan received by the lessor for the purchase of property decreases, the amount of payment for the loans used decreases. If the lessor's commission rate is set as a percentage of the residual value of the property, then the amount of the commission will also decrease.

The methodology provides for the possibility of choosing the method of payment of lease payments:

• the fixed total amount method, which involves accruing the total amount of payments in equal installments throughout the entire lease term;
• the advance method, which involves paying the lessor an advance upon concluding a leasing agreement;
• the minimum payment method, according to which the total amount of leasing payments includes the amount of depreciation of the leased property, payment for borrowed funds used by the lessor, commissions and fees for additional services of the lessor.

The terms of the leasing agreement may provide for accelerated depreciation of the leased property. The increasing coefficient to the depreciation rate is established by agreement of the parties in the range from 1 to 3. The increased depreciation rate allows you to reduce taxable profit during the period of its application. After the leased property is repurchased, it is again subject to the usual depreciation procedure.

Expenses for insurance of leased property are borne by the lessor or the lessee, depending on the terms of the agreement. By agreement of the parties, the lessor can assume not only the costs of purchasing leased equipment, but also other costs (additional services) associated with this acquisition, selection of a manufacturer, delivery, payment of customs duties, participation in installation and commissioning, personnel training, etc. p. Otherwise, these costs are borne by the lessee, charged to the cost of fixed assets and depreciated simultaneously with the equipment. Similarly, the lessor, if necessary, can pay for a set of low-value and wearable items supplied with the equipment.

The cost of additional services, by agreement of the parties, may be included in leasing payments. This allows the lessee to enjoy income tax benefits. At the same time, the need to pay value added tax on leasing payments (which is then reimbursed when paying VAT for services sold) increases the lessee’s need for working capital, and the need to pay VAT on purchased equipment (which is then reimbursed when the equipment is put into operation) has a similar effect on the lessor's working capital.

In the most general form, the essence of the leasing transaction is as follows. A lessee who does not have available financial resources approaches a leasing company with a business proposal to conclude a leasing transaction, according to which the lessee selects a seller who has the required property, and the lessor acquires ownership of it and transfers it to the lessee for temporary possession and use for a fee specified in the contract . At the end of the lease agreement, depending on its terms, the lessee can: buy the object of the transaction, but at the residual value; conclude a new agreement; return the object of the transaction to the leasing company.

The organization of leasing operations varies significantly depending on the type of leasing, the entities involved, and the specifics of national legislation. In Russia, it is regulated by Federal Law No. 164-FZ “On Financial Lease (Leasing)” dated October 29, 1998.

Let's consider the most common way to carry out leasing transactions (Fig. 9.4).

Rice. 9.4. Technology of the leasing transaction (1-8 - see in the text)

1. Signing a leasing agreement. In order to obtain the necessary equipment, the lessee submits a rental application to the leasing company, which indicates the type of property, its characteristics and period of use, the supplier (manufacturer). The application also contains data characterizing the production and financial activities of the lessee. After analyzing the information provided, the leasing company makes a decision, brings it to the attention of the lessee, attaching the general conditions of the leasing contract, and at the same time informs the equipment supplier about the leasing company’s intention to purchase the equipment. The lessee, having familiarized himself with the general terms of the leasing agreement, sends the lessor a letter with confirmation of the obligation and a signed copy of the general terms of the agreement, attaching to it an order form for the equipment. This document is drawn up by the supplier company and endorsed by the lessee.

2. Purchase of goods. Having received a copy of the agreement and an order form (an equipment purchase and sale agreement concluded between the supplier and the leasing company, or a delivery order can be used), the lessor signs the order and sends it to the equipment supplier. The owner of the leased property, who retains ownership rights, is the lessor, the recipient of the transaction is the lessee, who does not act as the owner.

3. Delivery of goods. The equipment supplier ships it to the lessee in accordance with the terms of the contract and the lessee's prior warning of the upcoming delivery.

4. Acceptance of goods. Responsibilities for acceptance of equipment rest with the lessee. The supplier, as a rule, carries out installation and commissioning of the transaction object. Upon completion of the work, an acceptance protocol is drawn up, indicating the actual delivery of the equipment, its installation and commissioning without claims to the supplier. The acceptance protocol is signed by all participants in the leasing operation.

5. Bank lending for a leasing operation(if necessary). Typically, a leasing company receives a loan from a bank that took an active part in its creation.

6. Payment for delivery. After signing the acceptance protocol, the lessor pays the cost of the transaction object to the supplier.

7. Payment of lease payments. Payments to the lessor are the basis for the repayment of the received commodity loan. They involve repayment of the cost of the leased property, payment of interest, as well as some other expenses.

8. Repayment of the loan with payment of interest on it. This stage is necessary in the case of attracting a bank loan to finance a leasing transaction.

There are two types of leasing: operational (operational) and financial. The distinction between operational and financial leasing is based on such a criterion as the recoupment of property. In this regard, operational leasing is leasing with incomplete payback, and financial leasing is leasing with full payback.

Operating leasing occurs when property is leased for a period significantly shorter than the depreciation period (usually from two to five years). The object of such leasing is usually equipment with a high rate of obsolescence, equipment required for a short period of time (seasonal work or one-time use); New, untested equipment or equipment requiring special maintenance. With operational leasing, the lessor's expenses associated with the acquisition and maintenance of leased items are not covered by rental payments during one leasing contract. The risk of loss from damage or loss of property lies primarily with the lessor.

Financial leasing provides for the payment during the contract period of leasing payments covering the full cost of depreciation of equipment or most of it, additional costs and profit of the lessor. Financial leasing requires large capital expenditures and is carried out in cooperation with banks.

Depending on the specifics of the organization of relations between the lessee and the lessor, direct, indirect and return leasing are distinguished. Direct leasing occurs when the manufacturer or owner of the property himself acts as a lessor, and indirect leasing occurs when leasing is carried out through intermediaries. The essence of leaseback is that a company sells part of its own property to a leasing company and then leases it. Thus, the enterprise, without resorting to a loan, receives additional funds from the sale of its property, the operation of which does not cease. Leaseback is an effective way to improve the financial condition of a company.

According to the methods of provision, fixed-term and renewable leasing are distinguished. At term leasing the contract is concluded for a certain period, and when renewable(rollover) - the leasing agreement is renewed after the expiration of the first contract term.

Depending on the rental object, there are leasing of movable And real estate. The most common form is leasing of movable property.

Based on the scope of service, they are distinguished: pure leasing, in which the maintenance of the transferred property is undertaken by the lessee; full service leasing when full servicing of the transaction object is entrusted to the lessor; leasing with a partial set of services, in which the lessor is assigned only certain functions for servicing the leased asset.

Depending on the location of leasing operations, the following are distinguished: internal leasing when all parties to the transaction represent the same country, and external leasing, when one of the parties or all parties belong to different countries, and also if one of the parties is a joint venture. External leasing can be export and import. In export leasing, the foreign country is the lessee, and in import leasing, the lessor is the foreign country.

When choosing leasing as a method of financing an investment project, it is advisable for a potential lessee enterprise to consider alternative options for financing the investment project, involving the acquisition of the same property at its own expense or on credit, taking into account the following circumstances:

• the loan terms included in the calculation must be accessible to the lessee;
• A lessor specializing in leasing certain types of equipment often has the opportunity to purchase equipment at lower prices than a separate enterprise, which will affect the lease payments of the lessee. In this case, the cost of equipment when purchased with your own funds or on credit will be higher than the cost of leasing equipment;
• in a leasing scheme, a number of works (consulting services, searching for a supplier, installation of equipment, etc.) can be performed by the lessor, which leads, as a rule, to a slight increase in the costs of the enterprise, but at the same time a significant reduction in the risk of possible errors and miscalculations, the losses from which are much higher than the additional ones costs;
• Obtaining a loan for the purchase of equipment usually requires the payment of collateral. This means that a comparison of leasing and loan options is permissible only in cases where the enterprise has this opportunity;
• When purchasing property using your own funds or on credit, it is not necessary to insure the equipment. At the same time, leasing agreements, as a rule, provide for insurance of the leased property. This is taken into account in the additional costs of the policyholder and in calculations of his need for working capital (since the terms of insurance and leasing payments may not coincide);
• financing an investment project using leasing may involve various forms of using the lessee’s own funds, including: transfer to the supplier as partial payment for equipment; transfer to the lessor as the first lease payment; contribution to the authorized capital of the lessor company; transfer to the lessor as collateral.

When comparing leasing and alternative options for financing an investment project, it is necessary to take into account not only tax savings and the cost of services, but also bring them to the current value by discounting.

The effectiveness of leasing for the lessee can be determined by calculating net present value, taking into account adjustments for tax benefits and tax payments:

(9.34)

Where I— cost of the leased item; Lt- lease payment in t-th period, E— advance payment; T— value added tax (VAT) rate; r* — discount rate adjusted for VAT rate r* = r (1 — T).

Budget financing investment projects are carried out, as a rule, through financing within the framework of targeted programs and financial support. It provides for the use of budget funds in the following main forms: investments in the authorized capital of existing or newly created enterprises, budget loans (including investment tax credit), provision of guarantees and subsidies.

In Russia, the financing of investment projects within the framework of target programs is associated with the implementation of federal investment programs (Federal Targeted Investment Program, Federal Target Programs), departmental, regional and municipal target investment programs.

Federal target programs are a tool for implementing priority tasks in the field of state, economic, environmental, social and cultural development of the country. They are financed from the federal budget, budgets of the constituent entities of the federation, municipalities and extra-budgetary funds. Priority sectors that require state support for the implementation of investment projects using federal budget funds are determined by the Ministry of Economic Development and Trade and the Ministry of Finance of the Russian Federation in agreement with other federal government bodies. Objects that are mainly of federal importance (construction sites and new construction projects and technical re-equipment for federal government needs) are included in the Federal Targeted Investment Program (FAIP), which determines the volume of public investment by industry and department. The list of objects financed by the Federal Investment Program is formed based on the volume of government capital investments allocated for the implementation of federal target programs, as well as for the solution of certain critical socio-economic issues not included in these programs on the basis of proposals approved by decisions of the President of the Russian Federation or the Government of the Russian Federation. This list is compiled by the Ministry of Economic Development and Trade of the Russian Federation, taking into account proposals from government customers for investment projects, the results of contract tenders and concluded government contracts.

Departmental targeted investment programs provide for the implementation of investment projects that ensure the development of industries and sub-sectors of the economy.

Regional and municipal targeted investment programs are designed to implement priority areas of socio-economic development at the regional and municipal levels, respectively.

Budgetary funds provided for financing investment programs are included in budget expenditures at the appropriate level. The procedure for providing budget investments involves the preparation of a package of documents consisting of a feasibility study of the investment project, design estimates, a plan for the transfer of land and structures, a draft agreement between the relevant executive authority and the investment subject on participation in the latter’s property. Only if the specified documents are available, an investment project can be included in the draft corresponding budget.

The provision of state budgetary investments to legal entities that are not state unitary enterprises entails the simultaneous emergence of state ownership of a share in the authorized (share) capital of such a legal entity and its property. Objects for production and non-production purposes created with the involvement of budget funds in the equivalent part of the authorized (share) capital and property are transferred to the management of the relevant state property management bodies.

Forms of budget financing of investment projects selected on a competitive basis are determined by the nature of the economic problems being solved within a specific period of the country's development. So, in the mid-90s of the twentieth century. State investment policy measures provided for a transition from non-repayable financing to the provision of budget funds on a repayable and paid basis for the implementation of highly effective and quickly payback investment projects.

The conditions and procedure for competitive selection and financing of investment projects from budget funds were determined by the Methodological Recommendations on the procedure for organizing and conducting competitions for the placement of centralized investment resources.

The placement of centralized investment resources was carried out on a competitive basis in order to increase the efficiency of such placement and attract funds from other investors - domestic and foreign. The competitive procedure determined the stages and conditions for organizing and conducting the competition, the corresponding functions of the federal executive authorities, the Commission for Investment Competitions under the Ministry of Economy of the Russian Federation, the rights and obligations of the organizers and participants of the competition, the basic requirements for competition documentation and competitive proposals of participants, the procedure for considering these proposals, as well as registration of competition results.

The main requirements for investment projects were as follows:

• investment projects related primarily to the development of “growth points” of the economy have the right to participate in the competition for state support;
• the payback period for these projects should not exceed, as a rule, two years;
• investment projects are submitted for competition to the Ministry of Economic Development and Trade of the Russian Federation and must have a business plan, as well as conclusions of the state environmental assessment, state departmental and independent assessment;
• for commercial projects, the competition for which is carried out according to proposals from private investors, the share of the investor’s own funds, formed from profits, depreciation and sale of shares, must be at least 20% of the capital investments provided for the implementation of the project.

Investment projects submitted for the competition were classified into categories:

Decisions on the provision of state support were made by the Commission on Investment Competitions under the Ministry of Economic Development and Trade of the Russian Federation and sent to the Ministry of Finance of the Russian Federation for inclusion in the draft federal budget for the next financial year. The amount of state support was set depending on the category of the project and could not exceed 50, 40, 30 and 20% of borrowed funds, respectively.

The investor had the right to choose the following forms of financial support from the state in the implementation of projects selected on a competitive basis:

• budget loan - the provision of federal budget funds on a repayable and paid basis to finance the costs of implementing highly effective investment projects with a repayment period of two years with the payment of interest for the use of the funds provided in the amount established from the current discount rate of the Central Bank of the Russian Federation. The conditions for the provision, use, return and payment for the funds provided were stipulated in agreements concluded by the Ministry of Finance of the Russian Federation with authorized commercial banks;
• securing in state ownership a part of the shares of the created joint-stock companies, which were sold on the securities market after two years from the beginning of profit from the project (taking into account the payback period), and directing the proceeds from the sale of these shares to the federal budget;
• provision of state guarantees to reimburse part of the financial resources invested by the investor in the event of failure of the investment project through no fault of the investor.

Similar forms were used to provide financial support for effective investment projects at the regional and municipal levels. Budget loans and subsidies were provided for the implementation of investment projects by partially financing them, in addition, they could be allocated as partial compensation for the payment of interest on investor bank loans attracted for the implementation of the project.

Starting from 2008, in accordance with changes in budget legislation, budget loans can be issued to private investors in the form of targeted foreign loans. A transition is being made to budget financing of investment projects selected on a competitive basis using funds from the Investment Fund of the Russian Federation.

The Investment Fund of the Russian Federation was created to implement investment projects of national importance and carried out on the terms of public-private partnership. The main areas of state support from this fund are related to the modernization of non-profit infrastructure, fixed assets and technologies related to the strategic priorities of the state, the creation and development of the Russian innovation system, and ensuring institutional reforms. The procedure for forming the Investment Fund of the Russian Federation, the forms, mechanisms and conditions for providing state support at the expense of its funds are determined by the Regulations on the Investment Fund of the Russian Federation. Financial support for projects that have passed a competitive selection involves the use of such forms as: co-financing on contractual terms of an investment project with registration of state ownership rights, directing funds to the authorized capital of legal entities, providing state guarantees (this issue is described in more detail in Chapter 21).

Control over the implementation of these projects will be carried out by a state financial institution - the Bank for Development and Foreign Economic Affairs, formed on the basis of Vnesheconombank of the Russian Federation, the Russian Development Bank and Rosexim Bank. The bank must concentrate budgetary sources of financing investments that arose as a result of the formation of new organizational forms (Investment Fund, Venture Fund, etc.). It will support capital-intensive infrastructure projects with a long payback period, finance investment projects in priority sectors of the economy, provide long-term investment loans, participate in the examination of investment projects, syndicated lending, and provide guarantees to commercial banks for loans.

The conditions and procedure for competitive selection and financing of investment projects using funds from regional budgets are developed by the governing bodies of the constituent entities of the Russian Federation and municipalities.

Under project financing In international practice, we understand the financing of investment projects, characterized by a special way of ensuring return on investments, which is based on the investment qualities of the project itself, the income that the created or restructured enterprise will receive in the future. A specific mechanism for project financing includes an analysis of the technical and economic characteristics of an investment project and an assessment of the risks associated with it, and the return on invested funds is based on the project income remaining after covering all costs.

A feature of this form of financing is also the possibility of combining different types of capital: banking, commercial, state, international. Unlike a traditional credit transaction, risk can be dispersed between the participants in the investment project.

Initially, the largest American and Canadian banks were involved in financing investment projects. Currently, this area of ​​activity has been mastered by banks from all developed countries, with leading positions held by banks in the UK, Germany, the Netherlands, France and Japan. International financial institutions, in particular the World Bank and the EBRD, are actively involved in financing investment projects.

Project financing is characterized by a wide range of creditors, which makes it possible to organize consortia, whose interests are represented, as a rule, by the largest financial institutions - agent banks. Funds from international financial markets, specialized export credit agencies, financial, investment, leasing and insurance companies, long-term loans from the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD), International Finance Corporation (IFC), and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) can be used as sources of financing. ), the world's leading investment banks.

Financing capital-intensive projects involves increased risks. As a rule, the ability of individual banks to lend to such projects is limited, and they rarely take on the risks of financing them. It should also be taken into account that the banking laws of various countries, including Russia, establish certain limits for banks on the total credit risks per borrower. Operating within the framework of a risk management system, banks seek to diversify the risks of their investment portfolios using various organizational schemes, within which risk reduction is achieved by distributing them among banks. Depending on the method of constructing such project financing schemes, parallel and sequential financing are distinguished.

Parallel (joint) financing includes two main forms:

• independent parallel financing, when each bank enters into a loan agreement with the borrower and finances its part of the investment project;
• co-financing when a banking consortium (syndicate) is created. The participation of each bank is limited to a certain amount of credit and consortium (syndicate). The bank manager prepares and signs the loan agreement; subsequently, control over the implementation of the loan agreement (and often the implementation of the investment project), the necessary settlement transactions, is carried out by a special agent bank from the consortium (syndicate), receiving a commission for this.

At consistent financing The scheme involves a large bank - the initiator of the loan agreement and partner banks. A large bank with significant lending potential, a high reputation, and experienced experts in the field of investment design receives a loan application, evaluates the project, develops a loan agreement and provides a loan. However, even a large bank cannot finance a number of large-scale projects without deteriorating its balance sheet. Therefore, after issuing a loan to an enterprise, the originating bank transfers its claims on the debt to another creditor or creditors, receiving a commission, and removes the receivables from its balance sheet. Another way of transfer of claims by the organizing banks involves the placement of a loan among investors - securitization. The organizing bank sells receivables under the issued loan to trust companies, which issue securities against it and, with the help of investment banks, place securities among investors. Funds received from the borrower to repay the debt are credited to the securities redemption fund. When the deadline arrives, investors present the securities for redemption. Often, the organizing bank continues to service the loan transaction, collecting payments received from the borrower.

Based on the share of risk assumed by the lender, the following types of project financing are distinguished in banking practice:

• with full recourse to the borrower. Recourse means a reverse demand for reimbursement of the provided amount of money presented by one person to another. In project financing with full recourse to the borrower, the bank does not assume the risks associated with the project, limiting its participation to the provision of funds against certain guarantees;
• with limited recourse to the borrower. In limited recourse project financing, the lender partially assumes the project risk;
• without recourse to the borrower. With limited recourse project financing, the lender assumes the entire project risk.

In case of project financing with limited recourse or without recourse to the borrower, the bank, by interfering in the progress of the project, indirectly participates in its management. If, when using these schemes, the bank also invests in the capital of the project company, then there is not only control over the implementation of the project, but also direct participation in its management.

The most widespread in world practice is project financing with full recourse to the borrower. This is due to the fact that this form of financing is characterized by the speed of obtaining the funds necessary for the investor, as well as the lower cost of the loan.

Project financing with full recourse to the borrower is used in the following cases:

• providing funds to finance projects of significant socio-economic importance; low-profit and non-profitable projects;
• allocation of funds in the form of an export loan, since many specialized structures for providing export loans have the ability to take risks without additional guarantees from third parties, but provide a loan only on such conditions;
• providing funds for small projects that are sensitive to even small increases in costs not included in the original estimates.

A fairly common form is project financing with limited recourse to the borrower. With this form of financing, all risks associated with the implementation of the project are distributed among the participants in such a way that the latter can take on the risks that depend on them. For example, the borrower bears all risks associated with the operation of the facility; the contractor takes the risk of completing construction, etc.

Project financing without recourse to the borrower is used very rarely in practice. This form is associated with a complex system of commercial obligations, as well as high costs for attracting specialists to examine investment projects, consulting and other services. Since with project financing without recourse to the borrower, the lender has no guarantees and assumes almost all the risks associated with the implementation of the project, the need to compensate for these risks results in a high cost of financing for the borrower. Projects with high profitability are financed without recourse to the borrower. As a rule, these projects provide for the production of competitive products, such as mining and processing of minerals.

Banks involved in financing investment projects attract experienced specialists in the examination of investment projects or create specialized units for organizing, monitoring and analyzing the implementation of projects.

The bank’s work on project implementation in the most general form includes the following stages:

• preliminary selection of projects;
• evaluation of project proposals;
• negotiations;
• acceptance of the project for financing;
• control over project implementation;
• retrospective analysis.

Project proposals are selected based on their compliance with certain criteria. General information about the project is preliminary assessed, including information about the type of investment project, its industry and regional affiliation, the amount of funding requested, the degree of development of the project, the availability and quality of guarantees, etc.

After weeding out projects that do not meet the criteria, the selected projects are examined in more detail. Such specific characteristics of the project as its prospects, project risks, financial condition of the borrower, etc. are studied.

Typically banks do not develop a project. They can assist in preparing a package of documents. However, in cases where banks participate in the capital of a project company or provide financial advice while performing the functions of a consulting company, they can also take on the development of the project.

The key stage of the project is the assessment of its investment qualities based on a comprehensive analysis of the feasibility study, business plan and other project documentation. At this stage, project risks are identified, measures to diversify and reduce them are developed, a financing scheme and conditions are selected, the effectiveness of the investment project is assessed and its implementation is managed. Based on the results of the assessment, a decision is made on the advisability of negotiations.

The subject of negotiations between the bank and the borrower is an agreement on the implementation of an investment project and a loan agreement. The financial terms of the loan agreement, as a rule, involve providing the borrower with a grace period to repay the debt, since with project financing, debt repayment is carried out at the expense of income generated by the project.

The debt repayment scheme may provide for annuity payments, repayment in equal shares of the principal debt with interest on the balance of outstanding debt, lump sum repayment of the principal amount, repayment of debt in the form of a fixed percentage for certain periods of time in the form of a given percentage of net project revenue for a certain period, payment by the borrower only loan interest with conversion of the principal amount into shares at the end of the loan agreement. The last two options (unlike the previous ones) also mean the use of an investment method of financing, which involves the bank participating in profits. The project implementation agreement stipulates the bank's commission associated with its participation in the preparation and implementation of the project.

The need for the bank to control the implementation of the investment project is due to the fact that with project financing, the bank bears significant project risks and, therefore, cannot but interfere in the process of spending allocated funds and in the course of project implementation. The bank’s risk level depends on the adopted project financing scheme, according to which the bank directly or indirectly participates in project management: with full, limited recourse or without recourse to the borrower.

Banks specializing in financing investment projects, upon completion of the project, as a rule, carry out a retrospective analysis, which allows them to summarize the results obtained and determine the effectiveness of the investment project.

For the successful implementation of investment projects in world practice, various combinations of methods of equity and credit financing, guarantees and guarantees are used.

Among the main models of project financing are the following:

• financing for future deliveries of products;
• “build - operate - transfer” (build - operate - transfer - HERE);
• “build - own - operate - transfer” (built - own - operate - transfer - BOOT).

A financing scheme for future deliveries of products is often used when implementing oil, gas and other raw materials projects. It can be classified as a form of financing with limited recourse to the borrower, supported by contracts that provide for unconditional obligations of the buyer such as “take and pay” (take and pay) and “take or pay” (take or pay) with third creditworthy parties. This scheme requires the participation of at least three parties: creditors (banking consortium), a project company (a special company involved in the direct implementation of the investment project), and an intermediary company that is the buyer of the products. An intermediary company may be established by creditors. The mechanism of action of the scheme under consideration is as follows. The banking consortium financing the project provides a loan to the intermediary company, which, in turn, transfers funds to the project company in the form of an advance for the future delivery of a certain quantity of products at a fixed price sufficient to repay the debt. Repayment of loans is linked to the movement of cash flows from the sale of supplied products.

In accordance with the BOT scheme, based on receiving a concession from government agencies, a group of founders creates a special company whose responsibilities include financing and organizing the construction of the facility. After completion of the work, this company receives the right to operate or own the facility. The state can facilitate the implementation of an investment project by concluding a contract for the purchase of an object at a fixed price or an option transaction, or by providing guarantees to the bank lending to the project.

Organizing the financing of an investment project on BOOT terms is somewhat different from the BOT model, since it involves a special company obtaining a license from the state on a franchising basis and combining limited recourse financing with financing of this company under a government guarantee. Under the BOOT scheme, the project company (operating company), acting as a concessionaire, is responsible for the construction, financing, management and maintenance of the investment project for a specified period (20, 30 or more years), after which the project is transferred to the state (or a government-authorized structure ). During the concession period, the project company (operating company) receives income from the operation of the facility, covering the costs of financing the investment project (including the costs of servicing loans), managing and repairing the facility, and making a profit.

When using the BOT and BOOT schemes, project risks are distributed between the participants (a special contractor company, a creditor bank or their group and the state), enshrined in a concession agreement or franchise agreement, and the mutual interest of the project participants in its timely and effective implementation is ensured.

The attractiveness of these schemes for the state is due to a number of circumstances:

• the state, playing an important role in the implementation of the project, does not incur costs, which minimizes the impact on its budget;
• after a certain time, stipulated by the concession period or franchising agreement, the state receives ownership of the operating facility;
• using a competitive selection mechanism and switching funding to the private sector due to its higher efficiency allows one to achieve greater results;
• stimulating the influx of high technologies and foreign investment, achieved through the use of these schemes, makes it possible to solve nationally significant economic and social problems.

The use of the considered project financing schemes in Russia can be carried out on the basis of the implementation of production sharing agreements, according to which investors are granted, on a reimbursable basis and for a certain period of time, exclusive rights to search, exploration, production of mineral raw materials and to conduct related work, and the investor carries out the specified work at its own expense and at its own risk. In this case, the agreement determines the conditions and procedure for the division of produced products between the state and the investor.

Project finance can be an effective and efficient financial instrument for long-term investment projects related to capital-intensive sectors of the economy.

Conclusions

1. Modern domestic developments in the field of methods for assessing the effectiveness of investments are based on principles widely used in world practice. These include: reviewing the project throughout its entire life cycle; comparability of conditions for comparing different projects (project options); assessing the return on investment based on cash flow indicators associated with the project; taking into account the time factor; the principle of positivity and maximum effect; choice of discount rate; taking into account the presence of different project participants and the divergence of their interests; taking into account the most significant consequences of the project; comparison “with a project” and “without a project”; multi-stage assessment; taking into account the impact of inflation; taking into account the impact of uncertainty and risks; accounting for working capital needs.

2. In accordance with the standard methodology, the following types of investment project efficiency are distinguished: efficiency of the project as a whole; effectiveness of participation in the project. The effectiveness of the project as a whole includes the public (socio-economic) effectiveness of the project and the commercial effectiveness of the project. The effectiveness of participation in the project includes: the effectiveness of enterprise participation in the project; efficiency of investing in company shares; regional and national economic efficiency; industry efficiency; budget efficiency.

3. The cash flow of an investment project is formed by cash receipts (inflows) and payments (outflows) during the implementation of the investment project, which depend on the time of the billing period. It includes cash flows from investing, operating and financing activities.

4. The financial feasibility of an investment project is understood as ensuring such a structure of cash flows in which at each step of the calculation there is a sufficient amount of money to implement the project. Assessment of the effectiveness of investment projects is based on a comparison of cash inflows and outflows associated with its implementation, which involves carrying out a discounting procedure - bringing the values ​​of cash flows at different times to their value at a certain point in time using a discount rate. There are the following discount rates: commercial, project participant, social, budget.

5. The criteria for evaluating investment projects determine the measure of the integral effect obtained as a result of the implementation of the investment project, and also characterize the ratio of expected income from investment investments and the costs of their implementation. They are divided into two groups: those based on accounting estimates and those based on discounting. The first group corresponds to simple or simple methods that involve the use of accounting indicators (net income, return on investment, payback period, profitability indices, maximum cash outflow), the second - complex methods or methods based on discounting, where the criterion indicators are: net present value, profitability indices taking into account discounting, internal rate of return, investment payback period taking into account discounting, maximum cash outflow taking into account discounting.

6. The most important condition for an objective assessment of the effectiveness of investment projects is taking into account uncertainty and risk. Uncertainty is understood as the incompleteness and inaccuracy of information about the conditions for the implementation of a project; risk is the possibility of such conditions arising that will lead to negative consequences for all or individual project participants. In order to assess the sustainability and effectiveness of a project under conditions of uncertainty, methods of integrated sustainability assessment, calculation of break-even levels, and variation of parameters are used.

7. The method of financing an investment project is understood as a method of attracting investment resources in order to ensure the financial feasibility of the project. The main methods of financing investment projects are: self-financing, corporatization, as well as other forms of equity financing; credit financing (investment loans from banks, bond issues); leasing; budget financing; mixed financing (based on various combinations of these methods); project financing.

Until January 1, 2004, in accordance with the Federal Law “On Tax on Transactions with Securities” dated December 12, 1991 No. 2023-I, at the time of submitting documents for registration of the issue of issue-grade securities, issuers were required to pay a tax of 0.8% nominal amount of the issue. From January 1, 2004, in connection with changes made to this Law, tax began to be paid in the amount of 0.2% of the nominal amount of the issue, but not more than 100,000 rubles. From January 1, 2005, the law “On the tax on transactions with securities” lost force due to the adoption of amendments to the Tax Code of the Russian Federation.

In accordance with the Tax Code of the Russian Federation, interest in the cost of production is taken into account for tax purposes if their size is significant, i.e. by no more than 20%, does not deviate from the average level of interest charged on debt obligations issued in the same reporting period on comparable terms. If there are no such obligations during the quarter, the maximum amount of interest recognized as an expense is taken equal to the Central Bank refinancing rate increased by 1.1 times.

Methodological recommendations on the procedure for organizing and conducting competitions for the placement of centralized investment resources (approved by the Ministry of Economy of Russia on February 22, 1996, on March 20, 1996 No. ЕЯ-77, by the Ministry of Finance of Russia on March 12, 1996 No. 07-02-19, by the Ministry of Construction of Russia February 26, 1996 No. VB-11-37/7).

This technique is the receipt and direction of borrowed funds in favor of a business object, which will subsequently pay off. Enterprises have the opportunity to carry out work without collateral.

Project financing is also called an investment loan. Its main feature is that financial resources are not issued under a state guarantee, but against the funds that the project itself will create after implementation. Some experts consider this financing risky and low-income. Despite this point of view, project financing has many advantages:

• attracting financial resources in an amount exceeding the assets of the investment seeker;
• possibility of implementing “start-up projects”;
• there are no strict conditions regarding the financial condition of the borrower;
• structuring risks between all project participants;
• high internal rate of return.

The standard method of project financing is actively used in many countries around the world. Russia is no exception. Investment lending has become widespread, as it is characterized by the targeted direction of financial flows and the reduction of monetary risks due to a large number of participants. Unlike other forms of lending, it allows you to assess in more detail the solvency and capabilities of the borrower, his reliability. A thorough analysis helps to predict the outcome of the project with small errors.

Criteria

Depending on the specifics of the project, the structure of investment lending may differ. However, all over the world they adhere to the general principles that are embedded in project financing. Firstly, this method is mainly used to execute new business ideas. Secondly, the source of return on invested funds is the profit received during the implementation of the project, that is, investors count on future income. Thirdly, the share of capital can reach 70% of the total financing. Fourthly, compared to other types of lending, project financing is characterized by stricter control over the borrower’s activities.

Types of project financing

Three types of investment lending are used to implement business projects. The most common and popular is to provide limited recourse financing to the borrower. Its peculiarity is the sharing of risks between all parties involved in the process. Thanks to this, each of them is maximally interested in the successful implementation of the project. The second type is without recourse to the borrower. The lender bears the risk. For investors, this method is promising and popular, as it is more profitable. Tritium type - with full recourse to the borrower. Responsibility for the timely return of borrowed resources in full in accordance with the agreement falls on the borrower. Typically, this method is used when financing projects that are not very profitable.

Disadvantages of project financing

Like any method of financing, investment lending has its weaknesses. If several investors participate, transaction costs increase. To undergo a complex of procedures, a large volume of documents is required. In addition, project financing is characterized by high interest rates on the loan. For the borrower, the main disadvantage is the loss of independence, since in most cases investors reserve the right to purchase securities in the event of successful implementation of the project.