2.24 In the Treasury building deal a committed funder was not in place until after the Treasury and Exchequer Partnership had finalised the project agreement. This had the benefit of limiting the scope for triangular negotiations between departments, preferred bidder and financiers which can arise if the project agreement is not finalised at the time financiers undertake due diligence.
2.25 Ultimately financiers will expect the same level of comfort on due diligence points regardless of when they join the transaction. It is the responsibility of the department, contractor and their advisers to negotiate a contract that is commercially viable and bankable. This will reduce the risk that funders will either not fund the project or insist on significant changes to the project agreement which will then have to be negotiated with a single, preferred bidder.