Interviewees are mindful that the wealth of in-depth project knowledge accrued during the procurement process on both sides of the deal can be lost as soon as the contract is signed. At this point, procurement teams are replaced with project management teams who are tasked with converting the contract and specifications into reality. Procuring authorities are struggling to address this issue, given the different skill sets required for transacting and contract management.
Experience with the early PPPs has demonstrated the importance of managing an effective transition from the bidding process to the project delivery phase. Guidelines and processes need to be established to retain intellectual property in spite of the inevitable turnover in personnel. In particular, knowledge of the intent of contractual arrangements must be captured to maintain expectation levels and provide direction when adopting processes and procedures. John Thrippleton, Senior Project Offcer, Corporate Services, SA Courts Administration Authority highlights:
"Rationale for key decisions made during the procurement need to be well documented, as this can save many hours for the contract managers during the later stages of the project. Having this information to hand is invaluable when negotiating issues with the operator."
Equity investors must recognise this potential loss of corporate knowledge as a risk, as Azhar Abidi, Investment Manager, Infrastructure Funds Management explains:
"Over time, you lose corporate knowledge about the intention of the parties at the time of contract execution. This is a risk for equity investors, creating a lack of certainty about the potential breadth of their future obligations."