Business Free course · Certificate included
Project Finance & Financial Modelling
From NPV and capital structure to cash-flow waterfalls, DSCR/LLCR/PLCR, PPPs, financial close and AI-enabled analysis
- Intermediate
- 8 h 33 min
- 20 lessons in 6 modules
- 2 h 47 min of video lectures
- Updated Sep 2026
About this course
A practical course on how large projects are appraised, structured, financed and monitored. You will compare project and corporate finance, set up SPVs and capital structures, evaluate investments with NPV, IRR and payback, budget capex and opex, and allocate risk through contracts and procurement. You will build models to recognised conventions such as the FAST Standard, review and audit them, build CFADS, run cash-flow waterfalls, size and sculpt debt, calculate DSCR, LLCR and PLCR, and test resilience with sensitivities, scenarios and Monte Carlo. Every lesson has a narrated lecture with worked examples and a walkthrough, plus Excel formulas and Python (numpy-financial and pandas) notebooks. It also covers PPPs, due diligence, financial close, reporting after close and governed AI in financial analysis.
Preparing for PCI AI's PFL-AI (Project Finance Leader) credential? This course builds the foundations; see pciai.org for official exam details. Certuvo (certuvo.com) offers exam preparation for PCL-AI, PFL-AI and PML-AI. This course is independent and is not official PCI AI content.
Tools you’ll use
- Microsoft Excel
- Python
- pandas
- NumPy
- numpy-financial
- openpyxl
- Jupyter
- Power BI
- @RISK
- Microsoft 365 Copilot
Skills
- Project finance
- Financial modelling
- Investment appraisal (NPV/IRR)
- Debt sizing and coverage ratios
- Model review and audit
- Risk allocation
- Python for finance
- AI governance
What you’ll be able to do
- Explain project vs corporate finance, SPVs and limited recourse, and when each fits
- Calculate NPV, IRR, payback and WACC correctly in Excel and Python, and build sources and uses
- Allocate risks through EPC, O&M, offtake and procurement to make a project bankable
- Build and review models to FAST-style conventions with timing flags, CFADS, scenarios and checks
- Run a cash-flow waterfall, size and sculpt debt, and calculate DSCR, LLCR and PLCR
- Describe PPP and concession models, due diligence, conditions precedent and financial close
- Use AI for modelling and diligence with risk-tiered review, reconciliation and audit trails
Curriculum
Syllabus
- Modules
- 6
- Lessons
- 20
- Reading time
- 5 h
- Assessment questions
- 25
How project finance differs from corporate finance, how capex, opex and cash flow are budgeted, and how to evaluate investments with NPV, IRR and payback.
- Project finance vs corporate financeVideo lecture, 9′14 min
- Capex, opex, budgeting and cash flowVideo lecture, 8′14 min
- Investment appraisal: NPV, IRR and paybackVideo lecture, 9′Video · 16 min
Design debt and equity structures, allocate risks through contracts, and understand what makes a project bankable, including procurement and contract basics.
- Capital structure, gearing and the cost of capitalVideo lecture, 8′14 min
- Risk allocation and bankabilityVideo lecture, 8′15 min
- Contracts and procurement basicsVideo lecture, 8′13 min
Build transparent, flexible project finance models to recognised conventions, review and audit them, and test them with scenarios and sensitivities.
- Model structure and best practiceVideo lecture, 8′15 min
- Model standards, review and auditVideo lecture, 8′18 min
- Building revenue, costs, tax and cash flowVideo lecture, 9′15 min
- Scenarios, sensitivities and downside casesVideo lecture, 8′13 min
Understand the cash-flow waterfall and reserve accounts, size and sculpt debt using DSCR, calculate LLCR and PLCR, and verify it all in a Python shadow model.
- The cash-flow waterfall and reserve accountsVideo lecture, 8′14 min
- DSCR, debt sizing and sculptingVideo lecture, 9′16 min
- LLCR, PLCR and financial covenantsVideo lecture, 9′14 min
- Lab: project finance calculations in PythonVideo lecture, 8′25 min
Understand PPP and concession structures, the due diligence and conditions precedent that lead to financial close, and cost management and reporting after close.
- PPP and concession structuresVideo lecture, 9′15 min
- Due diligence and financial closeVideo lecture, 8′14 min
- Cost management and financial reporting after closeVideo lecture, 8′14 min
Use AI to accelerate modelling, due diligence and monitoring, while governing it with model review, audit trails and human accountability.
- AI in financial modelling and due diligenceVideo lecture, 9′14 min
- Governing AI in financial analysisVideo lecture, 8′13 min
- Capstone: a project finance deal from idea to operationsVideo lecture, 8′15 min
- Final assessment
Your certificate
Finish with a credential anyone can check
Earn the Project Finance & Financial Modelling badge: The holder has demonstrated applied knowledge of project finance: SPVs and capital structure, investment appraisal, risk allocation and bankability, model structure and CFADS, cash-flow waterfalls, debt sizing and sculpting, DSCR, LLCR and PLCR, PPP and concession structures, financial close and the governed use of AI in financial analysis.
Completed all lessons and scored ≥ 80% on the final assessment.
- A public verification page
- A PDF certificate to download
- An Open Badge you can share
- One click to your LinkedIn profile
Final assessment
- 25questions drawn from a larger pool
- 45 mintime limit
- 80%pass mark
- 3attempts per 24 hours
Start learning today. It’s free.
Every lesson is free to read. A free account saves your progress, unlocks the final assessment and issues your certificate.