(a) At agreed intervals (usually five to seven years, unless there is a highly competitive market, in which case a shorter time frame may offer better value for money), the private party can submit (and must submit if so required by government) an offer for the provision of the Reviewable Services for the next interval. The offer must provide a comparison to market prices and detail all relevant factors and inputs into the proposed price on an open-book basis.
(b) If an offer is submitted within a specified period prior to expiration of the previous interval, government will negotiate exclusively with the private party and accept or reject the offer within the specified period.
(c) If the private party is required to submit an offer but fails to do so, or the parties are unable to reach an agreement during the period of exclusive negotiation, either the private party or government may elect to refer the matter for dispute resolution. However, if government elects to utilise the market testing provisions (see below), the parties will not have recourse to the dispute resolution process.
(d) If the parties are unable to agree on the private party's offer within the specified period, government may refer the Reviewable Services for market testing.