We specifically asked several interviewees (covering Crown representatives, bidders, and advisers) for their views on the overall TG tender/procurement timelines. Our summary of their responses is:
• Overall, interviewees indicated that they were broadly comfortable with the procurement timelines for the TGP;
• One interviewee commented that the TG procurement could have done with a bit longer. They noted that for the P2W project, additional time was added to the RFP phase to reflect some of the learnings from TG and to allow for the Christmas/New Year period. The market was consulted prior to adding additional time on the procurement phase;
• An interviewee representing the PPP market considered the procurement timeframes to be typical for a PPP transaction and if the timeframes were to be longer, it would increase the cost to the private sector. The interviewee noted that the PB phase was longer than expected, which reflected, in their view, the concessions that had to be made in order to meet the AT;
• Some interviewees noted that the PB negotiations may possibly have been done in a shorter time frame, but the actual time taken reflected the number of issues requiring confirmation before Financial Close (for example, resolving consenting risk issues); and
• An interviewee believed that the RFP phase should have been longer to provide more clarity on the geotechnical information and to enable bidders to further develop their designs.