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Feasibility Studies

Feasibility Study Services

A feasibility study should answer a practical investment question before a project becomes expensive to reverse: does the evidence justify proceeding, and if so, under what conditions? EXMC structures feasibility study services around that decision, testing market demand, commercial assumptions, project economics, financial viability and implementation risks before material capital is committed.

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2013Established in Abu Dhabi
CN-1709826Trade licence, Abu Dhabi Registration Authority
Abu Dhabi · Al AinPublished UAE presence
ConfidentialClient identities generalised in published work

What the feasibility service is designed to decide

The study is not an exercise in making a concept appear investable. It is a structured test of the assumptions that sit between an idea and a capital decision.

For a new venture, the decision may be whether to proceed to launch. For an existing business, it may be whether a proposed expansion can earn an acceptable return without assuming unrealistic demand or margins. A developer may need to decide whether a location, scale or operating model is commercially viable. A board may need to determine whether the case is sufficiently robust to approve the next stage, request revisions or stop further expenditure.

The scope should therefore begin with the decision threshold. What has to be true for the project to proceed? Which assumptions are genuinely uncertain? Which variables could change the recommendation? What evidence will the approving party expect to see?

Those questions determine the depth of research, modelling and specialist input required.

When a full feasibility study is warranted

A detailed study is most valuable where the downside of an incorrect assumption is material. Typical triggers include:

  • a new project, venture or business line requiring meaningful capital;
  • expansion into additional capacity, locations or customer segments;
  • a land, lease, site or major procurement commitment;
  • an investor, financing or board approval process;
  • uncertainty over market demand, achievable pricing or customer adoption;
  • material capital expenditure with a long payback period;
  • alternative project configurations that need to be compared; or
  • a project whose original business case needs to be retested against current conditions.

The appropriate depth depends on the decision. An early concept with limited data may first require a pre-feasibility screen. A major capital commitment usually requires an integrated market, operating and financial assessment with explicit scenarios and sensitivities.

The core workstreams

EXMC’s existing feasibility-study scope covers market and demand analysis, financial modelling, risk assessment, and viability and return analysis. A full engagement connects those workstreams rather than treating them as separate chapters.

01

Market demand and customer evidence

The revenue case begins with demand. Analysis may examine the addressable market, customer segments, purchasing behaviour, demand drivers, adoption barriers and the practical size of the opportunity available to the proposed project.

The purpose is to establish a credible bridge between external market evidence and the volumes assumed in the financial model. A large headline market is not enough. The study needs to test what share the project could realistically capture, how quickly it could do so, and which customer or channel assumptions support that view.

02

Competition, positioning and pricing

Competitive analysis should identify the alternatives customers already have and the economics implied by those alternatives. Depending on the sector, this can include competitor capacity, location, product or service mix, pricing, customer proposition, distribution model and likely response to new entry.

Pricing deserves particular scrutiny because it affects both demand and margin. The study should distinguish observed market pricing from management aspirations and test whether the proposed price is consistent with customer behaviour, positioning and the competitive environment.

03

Business model and revenue assumptions

A feasibility model is only as credible as the operating logic behind it. The study should define how the project earns revenue, the unit or capacity assumptions that drive sales, the timing of ramp-up, recurring versus one-off revenue, customer concentration where relevant, and the operational dependencies required to deliver the proposition.

This workstream connects the commercial case to the financial case. If the operating model cannot support the required volume, utilisation or service level, that constraint should flow through to the model.

04

Capital expenditure, operating expenditure and working capital

The cost case should identify the investment required to reach operations and the resources required to sustain them. This may include site, fit-out, equipment, technology, pre-opening expenditure and other project-specific capital items, together with labour, occupancy, utilities, marketing, maintenance, logistics and other operating costs.

Working-capital assumptions also matter. Inventory, receivables, payment terms, deposits and seasonality can create a funding requirement that is not visible in a simple profit-and-loss forecast.

Where specialist quantity surveying, engineering, legal, tax or regulatory estimates are required, those inputs should be clearly attributed to the appropriate specialist rather than implied as part of general feasibility consulting.

05

Financial model and project economics

The financial model translates the market and operating assumptions into cash flow. It should show the timing of investment, revenue, operating cost, working capital, financing assumptions and the point at which the project reaches break-even.

The model should be transparent enough for management to identify the assumptions that matter most. Depending on the mandate, the analysis may consider return measures such as net present value, internal rate of return and payback, but the metric should match the decision rather than being included mechanically.

Most importantly, the market case and financial model must reconcile. If the model requires demand, price, capacity or margin assumptions that the market work does not support, the conclusion should reflect that mismatch.

06

Scenarios, sensitivities and risk

A base case is not a risk assessment. The study should test how the project behaves when important assumptions move.

Base, upside and downside scenarios can combine coherent sets of assumptions, while sensitivity analysis isolates the variables that exert the greatest influence on the outcome. These may include sales volume, price, utilisation, capital cost, operating cost, opening date or financing conditions.

The risk register should then identify the events and dependencies capable of changing the investment case, distinguish mitigable risks from structural ones, and show which issues must be resolved before further commitment.

How an engagement is scoped

The strongest scope is built backwards from the approval decision.

Decision definition.

Establish what is being considered, the approving stakeholders, the timetable and the conditions that would make the project acceptable.

Information review.

Assess the project concept, management forecasts, existing research, technical inputs, site information and financial assumptions already available.

Evidence plan.

Determine which questions require desk research, primary research, management interviews, third-party data or specialist technical input.

Commercial analysis.

Test demand, customers, competition, pricing and the assumptions that drive revenue.

Financial integration.

Build or challenge the project model so market, operating and cost assumptions are linked to cash flow and return outcomes.

Downside testing.

Identify the variables most likely to change the decision and test them through scenarios and sensitivities.

Decision synthesis.

Translate the analysis into a clear recommendation, conditions for proceeding and unresolved issues.

This integrated structure is consistent with established project-appraisal practice. UNIDO’s feasibility guidance, for example, treats market research, technical considerations, financial analysis and investment appraisal as connected components of sound investment analysis.

What the client receives

The exact package should reflect the decision and the evidence required. A typical full feasibility engagement can include:

  • an executive decision memo setting out the conclusion, conditions and principal risks;
  • a market assessment covering demand, customer segments, competition and pricing;
  • a documented assumptions register separating external evidence from management inputs;
  • a financial model linking revenue, capital expenditure, operating expenditure, working capital and cash flow;
  • base, upside and downside scenarios;
  • sensitivity analysis focused on the variables that drive value;
  • a risk register with priority actions and unresolved dependencies; and
  • a recommendation and roadmap for the next decision stage.

The model and evidence trail should remain useful after the final presentation. If assumptions change, management should be able to see which conclusion changes with them.

Pre-feasibility, full feasibility and focused modules

Not every decision requires the same format.

A pre-feasibility study is an early screen. It is appropriate where the project is still being shaped, multiple options remain open or management needs to identify fatal flaws and data gaps before commissioning deeper work.

A full feasibility study is appropriate where the project is sufficiently defined to test market, operating and financial viability as an integrated investment case.

A focused feasibility module may be appropriate where one uncertainty is dominant. For example, management may need deeper market feasibility work to validate demand and pricing, or financial feasibility work to test cash flow, funding requirements and return thresholds.

The choice should be driven by the decision risk, not by a preference for a longer report.

Speak with an adviser

Defined mandates on fixed fees, ongoing counsel on retainer, and customised scopes for complex requirements.

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Financial charts and analysis materials

UAE context and formal requirements

For most UAE projects, the commercial purpose of a feasibility study is to improve the investment decision. In some specific processes, however, a feasibility study is also part of the formal documentation required by an authority or institution.

The UAE Ministry of Economy and Tourism, for example, lists a feasibility study among the documents required to register a private joint stock company. The UAE Capital Market Authority lists a feasibility study and action plan among requirements for relevant financial-activity licensing processes. Requirements vary by legal form, activity, emirate and regulator, so the applicable rules should always be confirmed directly with the responsible authority and specialist advisers.

A feasibility study can support a financing, investment or regulatory submission, but it is not itself an approval, licence, bank acceptance or guarantee of funding.

Turning findings into a decision

The end product should not be a report that leaves the client to interpret the conclusion.

A go recommendation means the tested case meets the agreed decision criteria within the assumptions and risks stated.

A revise recommendation means the opportunity may remain viable, but the project requires changes before commitment. Those changes might concern scale, site, pricing, customer focus, capital cost, operating design, phasing or financing.

A no-go recommendation means the evidence does not support further commitment under the current proposition, or the downside is disproportionate to the expected return.

The recommendation should also identify what evidence could change the conclusion. That creates a practical decision gate instead of a static verdict.

Why EXMC

Evidence EXMC already publishes about its own work, used here only within its documented scope.

Abu Dhabi since 2013
Strategic investment, management and advisory, operating from Abu Dhabi with published presence in Al Ain.
Investment-group mandate
Published representative work combining market research, investment feasibility, financial-risk assessment and strategic investment planning.
Fixed fee or retainer
Defined mandates on fixed fees, ongoing counsel on retainer, customised scopes for complex requirements.

Representative examples published by EXMC. Client identities are generalised to maintain confidentiality. Published work does not by itself establish permission to perform activities that require specific regulatory authorisation.

Related advisory

A feasibility study often connects with more focused workstreams:

Frequently asked questions

What should professional feasibility study services include?

The scope should match the decision, but a full commercial feasibility study commonly integrates market demand, customer and competitor analysis, pricing, the business model, capital and operating costs, working capital, cash flow, break-even, scenarios, sensitivities, material risks and an explicit recommendation. Specialist technical, legal or regulatory work should be separately identified where required.

How should an investor or management team choose the scope?

Start with the approval decision and the uncertainties that could change it. If the concept is still early, a pre-feasibility screen may be sufficient. If material capital is being committed, the scope normally needs a deeper evidence base and an integrated model. If one uncertainty dominates, a focused market or financial feasibility module may be proportionate.

What information is needed before the engagement begins?

Useful inputs include the project concept, location, proposed scale, product or service definition, management forecasts, pricing assumptions, capital plan, operating model, existing market research, technical or site information, financing assumptions and the decision timetable. The initial scoping stage should identify which inputs are reliable and which need independent testing.

How is a feasibility study different from a business plan?

A feasibility study tests whether a proposed project should proceed and under what conditions. A business plan generally explains how a business that is intended to proceed will be organised, operated and grown. Feasibility findings can materially change the project before a detailed business plan is finalised.

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If you are deciding whether to launch, expand or commit significant capital, EXMC can define the feasibility scope around the decision, the evidence that remains uncertain and the outputs your approving stakeholders need.

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