ABSTRACT
It is normal to determine the costs and benefits anticipated over a future period i f no investment is made, and compare these with the costs and benefits arising from the investment. The alternative in which no investment takes place is sometimes known as the 'baseline' or 'do-nothing' case. However, it is unusual for future investment in such cases to be absolutely zero, as there is normally some kind of facility in existence, which requires some expenditure or minimum maintenance. In cases such as this, the 'do-minimum' alternative should be considered as the most realistic baseline case against which alternative investments should be compared. The choice of an appropriate 'do-minimum' case is an extremely difficult decision and has a significant influence on the size of economic return obtained. Considerable attention should therefore be given to its selection.
