Project Feasibility Study: Market, Technical and Financial Viability Course

Programme Summary

Project feasibility study is a five-day training course for directors and project sponsors at strategic level, culminating in a feasibility review and go/no-go recommendation for a live or planned project. New plants, facilities and ventures are often approved on optimistic demand, untested technical choices and funding assumptions that no one has challenged. The approach examines market, technical, legal, environmental and financial viability in sequence, then tests the result under risk. Mars Training Centre UK delivers this programme in project feasibility study and viability assessment.

The Business Case

A weak feasibility study rarely fails on paper; it fails later, as cost overruns, idle capacity or a funding gap. Sponsors who can commission the right scope of study, interrogate its assumptions and read its sensitivities stop unviable projects early and present viable ones to lenders and boards with evidence. The same discipline shortens approval, because reviewers receive a study built to answer their questions.

• Capital Exposure: Reduces the sums committed to projects whose demand or technology has not been proven.
• Approval Cycle Time: Shortens investment committee review by supplying studies in a consistent, decision-ready structure.
• Funding Readiness: Improves the terms and speed of financing by giving lenders tested cash flow and risk evidence.

Principles and Evidence Base

• UNIDO Manual for the Preparation of Industrial Feasibility Studies: Structures each study chapter, used from Session 1.
• COMFAR (Computer Model for Feasibility Analysis and Reporting): Models project cash flows and returns in Session 4.
• NPV, IRR and Break-Even Analysis: Test financial feasibility in Session 4.
• Sensitivity Analysis and Monte Carlo Simulation: Quantify risk to viability in Session 5.

Intended Participants

• Leaders who commission feasibility studies from teams or consultants.
• Investment committee members who approve new projects.
• Project sponsors accountable for the business case of new facilities or ventures.
• Heads of business development who screen opportunities before detailed study.
• Senior officials who assess proposals seeking public funding.

The programme serves investment, business development, projects and planning functions in industry, energy, real estate and government investment bodies.

Learning Outcomes

1. Participants will be able to define the scope and terms of reference of a feasibility study.
2. Participants will be able to evaluate market and demand evidence and challenge forecast assumptions.
3. Participants will be able to assess technical, legal and environmental feasibility and identify fatal flaws.
4. Participants will be able to construct financial feasibility measures, including NPV, IRR and break-even volume.
5. Participants will be able to prioritise project risks using sensitivity and scenario analysis.
6. Participants will be able to justify a go/no-go recommendation to an investment committee.

Programme Structure

Day 1: Scoping a Project Feasibility Study

What must a feasibility study answer, and how is its scope set?

• Opportunity, Pre-Feasibility and Full Feasibility Stages
• Structure of the UNIDO Manual for Feasibility Studies
• Terms of Reference for Consultants and Internal Teams
• Project Screening Using PESTEL
• Decision Gates and Study Governance

Day 2: Market and Demand Feasibility

Is there sufficient, reachable demand at a viable price?

• Market Sizing: Top-Down and Bottom-Up Estimates
• Demand Forecasting Methods and Their Limits
• Competitor Pricing Analysis
• Sales Volume Ramp-Up Assumptions
• Marketing Concept and Distribution Channels

Day 3: Technical, Operational, Legal and Environmental Feasibility

Can the project be built and run as planned, and are there any fatal flaws?

• Technology Selection and Capacity Sizing
• Location, Site and Supply Chain Assessment
• Capital and Operating Cost Estimation
• Organisation, Staffing and Implementation Schedule
• Legal, Permitting and Environmental Screening

Day 4: Financial Feasibility and Funding

Does the project generate enough cash to repay funders and reward investors?

• Project Cash Flow Statements and Working Capital
• NPV, IRR and Payback Measures
• Break-Even Volume and Margin of Safety
• Funding Structure: Equity, Debt and Grants
• Modelling Returns in COMFAR

Day 5: Risk Testing and the Go/No-Go Decision

How robust is viability, and what should the investment committee decide?

• Sensitivity Analysis on Price, Volume and Capital Cost
• Scenario and Monte Carlo Simulation
• Applying the Study Scope to a Participant Project
• Investment Committee Review Simulation
• Feasibility Review and Go/No-Go Recommendation

Methodology

The programme relies on case analysis of real feasibility studies from manufacturing, energy and real estate, with structured exercises in which participants scope, challenge and stress test studies for their own projects. Peers act as an investment committee and question each recommendation, so that participants practise the review role they hold at work.

• Suggested activity: Challenging a consultant's demand forecast for an industrial plant.
• Suggested activity: Calculating break-even volume for a hotel development.
• Suggested activity: Presenting a go/no-go recommendation to a simulated investment committee.

Capstone Output

Each participant completes a feasibility review for a planned project. It contains the study scope, a challenge log of market and technical assumptions, a financial summary with NPV, IRR and break-even volume, a sensitivity table and a go/no-go recommendation, ready to submit to an investment committee or board.

Frequently Asked Questions

Does project feasibility study training suit leaders who approve rather than prepare studies?

Yes. It is designed for directors and sponsors who commission and approve studies. It assumes familiarity with financial statements but not specialist modelling skills.

Which models underpin project feasibility study training?

The UNIDO Manual for the Preparation of Industrial Feasibility Studies for structure, COMFAR for modelling, NPV, IRR and break-even analysis for financial tests, and sensitivity and Monte Carlo analysis for risk.

How is the feasibility review from project feasibility study training used at work?

You can submit it to your investment committee or board as the basis for approving, redesigning or stopping a project, and reuse its challenge log on future studies.

How does project feasibility study training differ from an investment appraisal course?

Investment appraisal courses focus on discounting techniques for ranking projects. Feasibility study training examines whether a single project is viable across market, technical, legal, environmental and financial dimensions.