PACRIM DISPUTE - Confidential Instructions for the Representative of Indocarta Net Present Value (NPV) / MBA Resources

Introduction to Net Present Value (NPV) - What is Net Present Value (NPV) ? How it impacts financial decisions regarding project management?

NPV solution for PACRIM DISPUTE - Confidential Instructions for the Representative of Indocarta case study

At Oak Spring University, we provide corporate level professional Net Present Value (NPV) case study solution. PACRIM DISPUTE - Confidential Instructions for the Representative of Indocarta case study is a Harvard Business School (HBR) case study written by Ericka Gray. The PACRIM DISPUTE - Confidential Instructions for the Representative of Indocarta (referred as “Indocarta Rice” from here on) case study provides evaluation & decision scenario in field of Strategy & Execution. It also touches upon business topics such as - Value proposition, Government, International business, Negotiations.

The net present value (NPV) of an investment proposal is the present value of the proposal’s net cash flows less the proposal’s initial cash outflow. If a project’s NPV is greater than or equal to zero, the project should be accepted.

NPV = Present Value of Future Cash Flows LESS Project’s Initial Investment

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Case Description of PACRIM DISPUTE - Confidential Instructions for the Representative of Indocarta Case Study

Confidential Instructions for the Representative of Indocarta for product #PON374.Three-party, multi-issue international trade negotiation among three culturally different countries over which of two countries will export rice to the third; inculdes coalition and ongoing relationship issues. Fuji, the regional power in the "Pacrim" trading block, is a large island nation that imports significant quantities of rice, but that is constitutionally bound to import rice from only one country at a time. The smaller, historically unfriendly island nations of Indocarta and Hawani both wish to export their rice to Fuji. In a series of one-on-one and tripartite meetings, representatives of the three nations must determine not only whether and how Fuji will import rice, but also whether Indocarta and Hawani will cooperate or compete with each other in such an arrangement. The changing economy and the cultural differences among the three nations play a crucial role in the negotiations. This is a role play case.

Case Authors : Ericka Gray

Topic : Strategy & Execution

Related Areas : Government, International business, Negotiations

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Calculating Net Present Value (NPV) at 6% for PACRIM DISPUTE - Confidential Instructions for the Representative of Indocarta Case Study

Years	Cash Flow	Net Cash Flow	Cumulative     Cash Flow	Discount Rate @ 6 %	Discounted Cash Flows
Year 0	(10008193)	-10008193	-	-
Year 1	3460965	-6547228	3460965	0.9434	3265061
Year 2	3958484	-2588744	7419449	0.89	3523037
Year 3	3937163	1348419	11356612	0.8396	3305718
Year 4	3235746	4584165	14592358	0.7921	2563014
TOTAL			14592358		12656830

The Net Present Value at 6% discount rate is 2648637

In isolation the NPV number doesn't mean much but put in right context then it is one of the best method to evaluate project returns. In this article we will cover -

Different methods of capital budgeting

What is NPV & Formula of NPV,
How it is calculated,
How to use NPV number for project evaluation, and
Scenario Planning given risks and management priorities.

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Capital Budgeting Approaches

Methods of Capital Budgeting

There are four types of capital budgeting techniques that are widely used in the corporate world –

1. Payback Period
2. Profitability Index
3. Net Present Value
4. Internal Rate of Return

Apart from the Payback period method which is an additive method, rest of the methods are based on Discounted Cash Flow technique. Even though cash flow can be calculated based on the nature of the project, for the simplicity of the article we are assuming that all the expected cash flows are realized at the end of the year.

Discounted Cash Flow approaches provide a more objective basis for evaluating and selecting investment projects. They take into consideration both –

1. Timing of the expected cash flows – stockholders of Indocarta Rice have higher preference for cash returns over 4-5 years rather than 10-15 years given the nature of the volatility in the industry.
2. Magnitude of both incoming and outgoing cash flows – Projects can be capital intensive, time intensive, or both. Indocarta Rice shareholders have preference for diversified projects investment rather than prospective high income from a single capital intensive project.

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Formula and Steps to Calculate Net Present Value (NPV) of PACRIM DISPUTE - Confidential Instructions for the Representative of Indocarta

NPV = Net Cash In Flowt1 / (1+r)t1 + Net Cash In Flowt2 / (1+r)t2 + … Net Cash In Flowtn / (1+r)tn
Less Net Cash Out Flowt0 / (1+r)t0

Where t = time period, in this case year 1, year 2 and so on.
r = discount rate or return that could be earned using other safe proposition such as fixed deposit or treasury bond rate. Net Cash In Flow – What the firm will get each year.
Net Cash Out Flow – What the firm needs to invest initially in the project.

Step 1 – Understand the nature of the project and calculate cash flow for each year.
Step 2 – Discount those cash flow based on the discount rate.
Step 3 – Add all the discounted cash flow.
Step 4 – Selection of the project

Why Strategy & Execution Managers need to know Financial Tools such as Net Present Value (NPV)?

In our daily workplace we often come across people and colleagues who are just focused on their core competency and targets they have to deliver. For example marketing managers at Indocarta Rice often design programs whose objective is to drive brand awareness and customer reach. But how that 30 point increase in brand awareness or 10 point increase in customer touch points will result into shareholders’ value is not specified.

To overcome such scenarios managers at Indocarta Rice needs to not only know the financial aspect of project management but also needs to have tools to integrate them into part of the project development and monitoring plan.

Calculating Net Present Value (NPV) at 15%

After working through various assumptions we reached a conclusion that risk is far higher than 6%. In a reasonably stable industry with weak competition - 15% discount rate can be a good benchmark.

Years	Cash Flow	Net Cash Flow	Cumulative     Cash Flow	Discount Rate @ 15 %	Discounted Cash Flows
Year 0	(10008193)	-10008193	-	-
Year 1	3460965	-6547228	3460965	0.8696	3009535
Year 2	3958484	-2588744	7419449	0.7561	2993183
Year 3	3937163	1348419	11356612	0.6575	2588749
Year 4	3235746	4584165	14592358	0.5718	1850048
TOTAL					10441514

The Net NPV after 4 years is 433321

(10441514 - 10008193 )

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Calculating Net Present Value (NPV) at 20%

If the risk component is high in the industry then we should go for a higher hurdle rate / discount rate of 20%.

Years	Cash Flow	Net Cash Flow	Cumulative     Cash Flow	Discount Rate @ 20 %	Discounted Cash Flows
Year 0	(10008193)	-10008193	-	-
Year 1	3460965	-6547228	3460965	0.8333	2884138
Year 2	3958484	-2588744	7419449	0.6944	2748947
Year 3	3937163	1348419	11356612	0.5787	2278451
Year 4	3235746	4584165	14592358	0.4823	1560448
TOTAL					9471984

The Net NPV after 4 years is -536209

At 20% discount rate the NPV is negative (9471984 - 10008193 ) so ideally we can't select the project if macro and micro factors don't allow financial managers of Indocarta Rice to discount cash flow at lower discount rates such as 15%.

Acceptance Criteria of a Project based on NPV

Simplest Approach – If the investment project of Indocarta Rice has a NPV value higher than Zero then finance managers at Indocarta Rice can ACCEPT the project, otherwise they can reject the project. This means that project will deliver higher returns over the period of time than any alternate investment strategy.

In theory if the required rate of return or discount rate is chosen correctly by finance managers at Indocarta Rice, then the stock price of the Indocarta Rice should change by same amount of the NPV. In real world we know that share price also reflects various other factors that can be related to both macro and micro environment.

In the same vein – accepting the project with zero NPV should result in stagnant share price. Finance managers use discount rates as a measure of risk components in the project execution process.

Sensitivity Analysis

Project selection is often a far more complex decision than just choosing it based on the NPV number. Finance managers at Indocarta Rice should conduct a sensitivity analysis to better understand not only the inherent risk of the projects but also how those risks can be either factored in or mitigated during the project execution. Sensitivity analysis helps in –

Understanding of risks involved in the project.

What will be a multi year spillover effect of various taxation regulations.

What can impact the cash flow of the project.

What are the uncertainties surrounding the project Initial Cash Outlay (ICO’s). ICO’s often have several different components such as land, machinery, building, and other equipment.

What are the key aspects of the projects that need to be monitored, refined, and retuned for continuous delivery of projected cash flows.

Some of the assumptions while using the Discounted Cash Flow Methods –

Projects are assumed to be Mutually Exclusive – This is seldom the came in modern day giant organizations where projects are often inter-related and rejecting a project solely based on NPV can result in sunk cost from a related project.

Independent projects have independent cash flows – As explained in the marketing project – though the project may look independent but in reality it is not as the brand awareness project can be closely associated with the spending on sales promotions and product specific advertising.

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Negotiation Strategy of PACRIM DISPUTE - Confidential Instructions for the Representative of Indocarta

References & Further Readings

Ericka Gray (2018), "PACRIM DISPUTE - Confidential Instructions for the Representative of Indocarta Harvard Business Review Case Study. Published by HBR Publications.