A Definition for Infrastructure - Characteristics and Their Impact on Firms Active in Infrastructure

Infrastructure, relevant for economic growth, so far has lacked a reliable definition. To assess the performance of private investments in infrastructure, this thesis develops a definition relying on characteristics of physical networks and generates a classification of relevant sectors. Based on the taxonomy, a set of firms is created. The empirical analyses show that some of the identified characteristics plus competition and regulation correlate with a firm′s performance.