Mr Lloyd is a tall, polite, quietly-spoken man.

And until now, few people have known his name. And he likes it like that.

But people are beginning to know the work of his independent infrastructure investment company in regional Australia.

It has invested in hospitals in Melbourne and Newcastle, rail projects in Sydney, light rail on the Gold Coast, wind farms in South Australia, hydro plants in Tasmania and bulk storage at ports in West Melbourne, Geelong, Pelican Point and in New Zealand.

Then there are airports in Darwin and Tennant Creek, solar farms and gas pipelines in Townsville and their most recent acquisition: the fast-growing Sunshine Coast Airport north of Maroochydore.

Mr Lloyd is the chief executive officer of Palisade, a "medium scale", independent infrastructure manager, with headquarters in Sydney and part of Australia's "$2.3 trillion superannuation industry".

"Australia's superannuation industry is the fourth-largest in the world," he said in Maroochydore last week.

"Which means we punch well above our weight in that regard."

Palisade invests about $2.3 billion of "mums' and dads'" superannuation funds in regional infrastructure projects.

"If I can define it, it is 'outside of the state capitals where we have a huge interest," he said.

"And obviously (winning the 99-year lease to operate Sunshine Coast Airport) adds tremendously to it."

Palisade invests superannuation funds from three sources - Queensland's 77 local governments, from Victorian superannuants, and their own infrastructure funds - into Queensland's regional infrastructure projects.

He knows Queenslanders are nervous about asset sales.

"We transfer of the custody of an asset, frequently in a government's hands – to the same people - but managed by different people," he said.

"So here (on the Sunshine Coast) we had mums and dads who were ratepayers and owned the airport," he explained.

"And now we have mums and dads - as superannuants - who own the airport.

"We still have the same ultimate beneficiaries of this."

Palisade will pay out to the Sunshine Coast Council $605 million during the 99-year lease to run an airport that grew 12 per cent to one million visitors last year.

Mr Lloyd says superannuation funds in Australia are growing quickly and firms are interested in regional infrastructure.

"The superannuation industry is doubling every five years," he said.

"So there is a tremendous amount of capital for investment funding."

Greg Laverty, the Sunshine Coast Council's director of economic development and major projects understands few people know of Palisade.

"When Palisade were announced as our preferred partner (to operate the Sunshine Coast Airport), there were probably not a lot of people on the Sunshine Coast, who had heard of Palisade," he said.

Palisade in Queensland

Townsville

Palisade has a 50 per cent equity interest in Townsville's Ross River Solar Farm, which could provide 142 megawatts of solar electricity.

It wholly owns the North Queensland gas pipeline, which brings gas from the Moranbah in the Bowen Basin to industrial users in Townsville.

It provides defence accommodation in Townsville and Ipswich with 30-year contracts with Watpac.

Gracemere, near Rockhampton

It has a 30-year lease to run the Central Queensland Livestock Exchange (CQLX) where it has committed $10 million to upgrade the old saleyards, selling beef and sheep.

Gold Coast

It has a 16.7 per cent equity interest in "both stages" of the Gold Coast's light-rail project.

It has a 28-year lease to operate 2800 car parks at the Gold Coast University Hospital.

Sunshine Coast

The Sunshine Coast council has already invested $50 million of their ratepayers' funding in a solar farm the council believes will generate enough electricity to allow the council to stop buying electricity and save $22 million over 30 years.

Mr Lloyd believes there is room for an additional solar venture on the Sunshine Coast.

"Wouldn't that be wonderful," he said.

In running the airport, Palisade will draw on its experience of doubling passengers at Darwin's airport to two million over the past five years, adding international flights.

It is interested in Education Queensland's public-private partnerships in building schools: "We would be interested in that," Mr Lloyd said quickly.

He is also aware the Sunshine Coast has a long-term interest – in 10 to 20 years - in a multi-billion light rail project and of Brisbane's high-profile Cross River Rail project.

Cross River Rail?

"We'd have a look at it," he said, cautiously.

But he says Palisade is wary about investing in "trophy projects", which will attract international bidders.

"We focus traditionally on what we call mid-market projects," he said.

"And 'mid-market' is a tier below a lot of those trophy assets.

"We don't get involved in massive privatisation projects that will attract tremendous amounts of offshore capital."