Education Investment Fund

The role of the EIF is to build a modern, productive, internationally competitive Australian economy by supporting world leading, strategically focused infrastructure investments.

Find out how we have assisted a University secure two EIF grants

Overview

The Education Investment Fund (EIF) is one of three Nation-building funds established by the Nation-building Funds Act 2008.

The role of the EIF is to build a modern, productive, internationally competitive Australian economy by supporting world leading, strategically focused infrastructure investments. The EIF Regional Priorities Round (in draft mode) is being conducted differently from the previous rounds of the EIF to reflect its particular focus and purpose.

The purposes of this round will be met by concentrating investment in the higher education and vocational education and training (VET) sectors. It is expected that future rounds of the EIF will return to the established process of inviting applications for funding for projects that create or develop higher education, VET and/or research infrastructure, including from research institutions beyond higher education institutions.

Update – 16 April 2014

The Australian reports that governments will not be able to meet Universities infrastructure funding requirements in future. Universities will need to increase their access to capital markets through bank debt, bond issues and real estate deals. The EIF could help by facilitating and “leveraging” real estate transactions.

Universities were the “most promising source of investment- grade real estate”, meeting most institutional investors’ key requirements. They were reliable tenants with sustained cash flow and “the capacity to absorb long- term rental growth”, he said.

Universities were “predominantly located in major capital cities” and required large-scale capital projects which, if circumstances changed, could often be diverted for alternative uses such as medical facilities.

The EIF could help facilitate deals through long-term interest-free loans. This would help to resolve an imbalance between earning expectations of investors, about 8 per cent a year, and universities’ “capacity to pay”, closer to 5 per cent.

For example, if the EIF provided $40m of a $100m capital project, this would effectively ­reduce universities’ repayments to private sector investors from 8 per cent to 4.8 per cent.

This approach was better for the EIF because its allocations would eventually be recouped, allowing the money to be “recycled” into other projects.

Expert Assistance

We have  assisted universities achieve over $60M + in funding in the last two EIF rounds. Call us on 03 9005 6789 or email to see how we can make your major infrastructure project application more competitive. Areas where we can assist include demonstrating:

• How the project will address national higher education and vocational education and training (VET) infrastructure priorities
• The project alignment to the organisation’s priorities and strategic directions.
• The extent to which there will be a positive impact on enhancing capacity
• How project will result in improvements consistent with the level of investment
• Project Determination
• Extent of collaboration
• Extent of co-investment
• Project readiness
• Capacity of the organisation to support, maintain and integrate new infrastructure into ongoing business operations

EIF Regional Priorities Round Recipients

Some of the recipients of the regional priorities round include:

• University of New South Wales ($20 M) – to construct the Joint Health Education Facility (JHEF) – a Multi-Partner Medical and Allied Health Facility at Port Macquarie. The JHEF will be a shared use facility with project partners, the University of Newcastle and TAFE NSW – North Coast Institute
• UniSA’s  ($18 M) – to construct a new learning centre at Mount Gambier and upgraded facilities at Whyalla. Both campuses will also be linked with high-speed fibre optic over the Australian Research and Education Network.
• University of Wollongong ($31 M)  – to construct the Early Start – Changing Children’s Future facility, which is designed to improve early childhood education. It will include specialist teaching and research spaces, a children’s discovery centre and a hub for 38 Early Start Engagement Centres.
• Deakin ($21.5 M) – to construct the Centre for Advanced Design in Engineering Training (CADET) project. The project includes new facilities to host advanced modelling, simulation and prototyping equipment, including virtual reality and digital manufacturing laboratories.
• University of Tasmania ($37 M) –  to construct a new six-storey building for the Academy of Creative Industries and Performing Arts, adjacent to the historic Theatre Royal, which a will also receive a major extension and upgrade.
• University of Southern Queensland ($30 M) – partnership with the University of the Sunshine Coast to optimise the use of the new engineering learning hub at the Sunshine Coast’s Sippy Downs region. The new facility will link to visual facilities at USQ enabling collaboration in producing 3D scenarios in mechanical and civil engineering.
• Southern Cross University ($28 M) – to construct a Science and Engineering Precinct and a new Learning Centre at the Lismore campus. The total cost of the project, including capital works and equipment, will be $38 million. The NSW State Government is also contributing $258,300 to the project.
• Charles Darwin University ($21 M) – to construct a state-of-the-art VET training facility that would house plumbing, electro-technology, instrumentation, refrigeration, oil and gas industry operations, and in the future environmental trades
• University of New England ($29 M) – to construct a new three-storey Agricultural Education Building with specialised and flexible teaching laboratories, sound-proofed and temperature controlled work rooms, a multi-discipline zoology teaching museum and a learning resource centre.
• University of Newcastle ($30M) – to construct a 10,800 sqm technology-enabled precinct that will host a range of University supported activities including business and law programs; digital library services and information commons; collaborative learning and research spaces; facilities for industry, professional and community engagement; and social spaces.
• Sunshine Coast TAFE ($47M) – to construct a new centre for health training. The centre is expected to double the TAFE’s student capacity, with an extra 950 people undertaking studies there in its first three years.

SAF Recipients

EIF Round 3 Recipients