2.18 Representatives from the International Project Finance Association (IPFA) have reported that banks are being asked to get involved earlier in Dialogue meetings. Some financiers expressed concerns over the level of detail being requested from Bidders during the process, the impact on procurement timelines and the level of preparedness/resource on the public sector side. In addition, some financiers felt the early involvement sought by the public sector was quite generic (e.g. asking for descriptions of the credit process and planned closing timetable) rather than being more usefully targeted to project specific issues.
2.19 The interface between Competitive Dialogue, due diligence and preferred bidder debt funding competition is complex. At a very early stage, authorities and their advisers should consider the financing strategy as part of the procurement strategy and develop the documentation/process accordingly.