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Mining, telecom, power and infrastructure

Capital projects with a position you can see before the overrun

Capital-intensive operations commit money years before they earn it. We build the reporting that shows where the capital has gone, what it still needs, and what it is now worth carrying.

Project controlsCapital expenditureContract reportingRegulatory coordination
The 5th Quadrant approach+

Capital you can still see.

Commitment → work in progress → asset in use

01CWIP ageing02Spend to sanction03Site-level cost

At a glance

Typical blind spot

Capital work in progress ages without anyone asking whether the asset is in fact ready for use.

First workstream

Capital discipline

Useful reporting

Capital work in progress, aged, with readiness assessed.

The economics

Why the numbers are harder here

In mining, telecom, power and infrastructure the decisive commitments are made long before any revenue arrives, and they are hard to reverse. Capital work in progress accumulates for years, and the discipline around when cost is capitalised, when an asset is ready for use and when depreciation begins has a direct effect on reported profit.

Revenue arrives through long-term contracts with their own measurement and billing mechanics, often across joint ventures or consortia where the entity's share of cost and revenue has to be separated from the whole. None of that is difficult in principle; it is just unforgiving of loose records.

The problem

Where visibility breaks down

  • Capital work in progress ages without anyone asking whether the asset is in fact ready for use.
  • The line between capital and revenue expenditure is drawn differently by different people.
  • Cost is captured by supplier rather than by site, package or asset.
  • Joint venture and consortium shares are reconciled annually rather than continuously.
  • Contract revenue is billed on measurement that finance sees only after the fact.

Where we concentrate

How we focus the engagement

Capital discipline

  • Capital work in progress aged, with readiness for use assessed rather than assumed.
  • A documented, consistently applied capitalisation policy.
  • Capital expenditure tracked against sanction and against budget, by package.
  • Asset register reconciled to the ledger and to what is physically on site.
  • Depreciation commencing when the asset is genuinely available for use.

Operations and contracts

  • Cost captured by site, package and asset from commitment onward.
  • Long-term contract revenue recognised on a stated measurement basis.
  • Joint venture and consortium shares reconciled on the monthly cycle.
  • Operating expenditure separated from capital cleanly and visibly.
  • Information prepared for regulatory and sector reporting as part of the close.

Reporting

Reports worth receiving

  • Capital work in progress, aged, with readiness assessed.
  • Capital expenditure against sanction and budget.
  • Site and package-level cost.
  • Contract revenue, billing and unbilled position.
  • Asset register reconciliation.

Common questions

Questions we hear in this sector

Why does capital work in progress ageing matter?

Because an asset that is ready for use but still sitting in capital work in progress is not being depreciated, which overstates profit and understates the asset base. It is also one of the first things an auditor tests, so it is better found internally.

Do you handle sector regulatory filings?

We prepare the underlying financial information and maintain the records such reporting draws on. Filings and certifications reserved for a licensed professional are performed by an independently engaged professional, coordinated through us.

Can you work across joint ventures?

Yes. Reconciling the entity's share continuously rather than annually is usually the change that matters, because a year-old difference in a consortium account is extremely hard to resolve.

Tell us how your business actually runs.

Discuss your requirements