Public-private partnerships (henceforth PPPs) have gained importance as vehicles to finance public infrastructure across Europe. However, to the best of our knowledge, no comprehensive macroeconomic assessment of PPPs in the EU has been undertaken since the review by Blanc-Brude et al. (2007).
This paper gives an updated description of the significance of PPPs in the EU both across sectors and countries. In this context we are also interested in the evolution of PPPs in Europe during the recent financial crisis that began with the US subprime mortgage market turmoil in 2007. In the following we will take 2008 and 2009 as basis years when referring to the recent financial crisis. To do so we updated and revised the database of public sector and PPP investment levels introduced in Blanc-Brude et al. (2007). Our paper does not offer a Value for Money assessment of PPPs; it merely presents and interprets the available data without taking a stance on the economic merits of PPPs.
In recent years, PPPs have developed from their traditional base in the transport sector to the areas of public buildings and equipment (schools, hospitals, prisons) and the environment (water/waste treatment, waste management). Also across countries, experience with PPPs has become more diversified. Beyond the UK, some countries have developed and diversified their PPP markets (France, Germany, Spain); others have shown interest and started to develop PPP programmes. Still, many EU Member States only have limited experience with PPPs or none at all.