10. Financing costs are a major component of the contract price and the prices of alternative sources of finance can fluctuate over time. The value for money case for PFI depends on it bringing benefits that outweigh the extra costs of private finance. But the way in which financing costs are made up is often not transparent. For example, in the MOD Main Building deal (4th Report, Session 2002-03) the Department could not quantify the extra costs of private finance. It was therefore not clear whether the returns being made were reasonable in relation to the risks being borne. Closer attention to financing costs would have been particularly helpful during the 16 months it took to close the deal. Reducing the length of that period, postponing the choice of finance to the end to get the cheapest form available, and a better informed approach to the financing markets prior to closing the deal all might have helped to secure savings on this project.