In the operational period of a TEN-T PPP project, the focus of the public contracting authority is to manage the contract while maintaining operational performance. To achieve this, the public contracting authority and its team of advisers need to consider all items in the following checklist:

□ Has the possibility of engaging the same advisers employed in the procurement phase been considered in terms of their availability, potential engagement, required budget and conflict of interest?

□ Have experienced advisers been consulted with to help the contract management team address sensitive changes to the contract, including refinancing?

□ Has a contract administration manual been developed to help coordinate information on contract terms with contract management procedures, including allocation of responsibilities and timetables?

□ Have guidelines been developed for users to help monitor contract performance in case this is envisaged?

□ In availability-based PPPs, are payments to the PPP company being processed properly and in accordance with the PPP contract?

□ Have all necessary steps been taken to ensure continuing review and monitoring of project risks using, for example, the risk register developed during the detailed preparation phase?

□ In the event of changes to the contract, what steps are envisaged to keep monitoring efforts on operational performance and not just on managing changes to the contract? In particular, what mechanism has been developed to ensure that Value for Money is maintained after the changes if risks are transferred from the PPP company back to the contracting authority?

□ Have criteria and procedures been agreed to monitor the residual value of the asset so that the asset management and maintenance practices support the TEN-T PPP project objectives and maximise Value for Money?

□ Has a communication strategy been developed to deal with the PPP company, transport users and other relevant stakeholders with regular reviews and updates?