"The Australian view of Spanish companies is very positive."

The 2018 Australian Leaders Program featured four experts in the infrastructure and transport sector. As part of its proactive communications strategy, the Council Foundation regularly publishes interviews with its participants.

Nick Hudson is the Director of Policy and Economics at Infrastructure Partnerships Australia (IPA). IPA is an independent public policy think tank with a strong presence in the infrastructure sector in Australia.

- What are Australia's current transport infrastructure challenges? Which sectors do you think should be prioritized for development?
We have many challenges in Australia right now. We've had a lack of investment for some time, coupled with a growing population. Funding and fund management policies are one of the biggest challenges. Another challenge is reform, to make infrastructure services more efficient, more innovative, and of higher quality for the users of that infrastructure. However, reforms in Australia seem to have slowed down considerably.

Another challenge is the industry's capacity, because there's so much construction going on. It's a challenge for companies to meet that demand.

- In what aspects can Spanish companies in the sector offer competitive solutions to the needs of their country?
I think it's more or less on the point I mentioned earlier regarding industry capacity. There are other issues we need to resolve, but in that respect, regarding industry capacity, Spanish companies can contribute a great deal. Being innovative and thinking globally is practically a cultural thing. Spanish companies are ambitious in that sense, and they have excellent skills. The way they think about infrastructure is impressive. I think that's why they've been so successful in Australia, thanks to their technical expertise and innovation.

- Australia and Spain are very different, starting with their size. Despite this, do you think each country could learn something from the other in terms of transportation?
Yes, I think one of the interesting things about this program is seeing both how the infrastructure works and how the government and public policies operate. It's very different from Australia. I think the way it's structured in terms of politics and the regulatory system... I dare say the Spanish market will change over the next decade with the privatization of some public companies and how these are regulated. I think Australia will gain more experience in project finance and infrastructure investment.

- ANZIP is a comprehensive registry and monitoring system for infrastructure projects in Australia and New Zealand. Is there any data indicating its usefulness to date?
We haven't started analyzing that aspect yet. What we do have are the usage statistics... the number of visits has been steadily growing month after month. We have several thousand people visiting the website each month, which is quite good. Although the figures are still preliminary, I believe that traffic will continue to grow, as will the number of subscribers to the updates, which is increasing daily. These subscribers want to receive reports, summaries, analyses... it's a free service, and an example of how we can work to expand the sector and encourage foreign companies to come here. That's why I'm very proud of it.

- What is the opinion in Australia of Spanish companies that build transport infrastructure, such as roads or railways?
I think that, apart from a few isolated problems, the overall opinion is very positive. I can't think of any other country with a greater representation of its companies in the infrastructure sector. The board of trustees of the organization I belong to includes three or four Spanish companies. I believe there's confidence in their work. I think they're fully accepted in this sector in Australia.It's a good platform, and the reputation is good enough to continue building more.

They've been in the country for a long time; companies like Acciona have been investing here for ten years, gradually building their reputation and expanding into different sectors: energy, water, and so on.

- Personally, what is your participation in this Program giving you?
It's really enriching my learning. It's giving me an impressive insight into the Spanish culture of continuous innovation. Innovation and creativity have become more of a cultural thing in Spain than in Australia. There aren't many successful Australian companies, particularly state-owned companies, like railway operators, for example, that aren't thinking about these same things.

Seeing how public companies are able to carry out ambitious international projects is very interesting. The way they develop infrastructure, as well as the government's role in all of this, is also very interesting.

The objectives of state-owned companies are aligned with the objectives of the Ministry, whereas in Australia we have a system where the government simply sets the rules of the game, policies, and regulations, but then the companies don't have a clear vision of the objectives pursued by these policies.

As I get to know more Spaniards, I see that they are quite similar to Australians, and I like that Spaniards are very focused on their country but are still pro-globalization.

- What has been your favorite part of the program?The visit to the Port of Barcelona was a very interesting experience, as was the tour of the high-speed rail control infrastructure. I would also highlight the meeting at the Ministry of Public Works and the Elcano Royal Institute. I wish Australia had something similar; the wealth of data is very impressive, as is the level of sophistication.

What I value most about the program was being able to learn about the processes they followed to develop all of this and the challenges they faced. I really enjoyed meeting the public transport operators and understanding the institutional frameworks in which they work.

Check out the summary of activities for the Leaders Program 2018