As a general rule, if it costs money to buy but can't be resold for cash, it doesn't qualify as an asset. Assets purchased with investors' money are capital investments. Any cost incurred in the acquisition of an asset is a capital cost. Capital investment is usually thought of as meaning investments related to real estate and/or structures, but in a practical sense, it can include any investment in anything that can be sold for cash. By the same token, assets are usually thought of as physical assets such as land, structures and vehicles, but can also include non-physical assets such as customer lists, contracts, or anything else that can be sold for cash.

In the energy industry, assets can include distribution, production, transmission and service facilities and office space among others. Assets and capital investments does not include investment in salaries, fuel, maintenance, or any commodity that doesn't have cash value on the open market. Utility assets are the cash-value assets owned by a utility. They can include both capital and non-capital investments.

Capital costs can include costs for land, taxes, surveying, construction, inspection, materials, labor, and interest on loans or bonds. Capital costs generally do not include any costs incurred once the facility is functional, although late-discovered expenses must often be added to capital cost well after construction is complete.

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