This book seeks to answer three questions: When are PPPs the best way to provide and finance infrastructure? How should PPP contracts be designed? What is the appropriate governance structure for PPPs? The answers depend on the type of infrastructure facility and on the institutional conditions in the country (or municipality, state, or province) in question. Nevertheless, several guiding principles emerge from the material we have covered in this book. In this final chapter we take stock of the various issues and speculate about the future of public-private partnerships.

Institutions

In this book, we have defined a PPP as an arrangement by which a private firm (the concessionaire, usually a special purpose vehicle or SPV) sinks a substantial upfront investment to build, revamp, or acquire an existing infrastructure facility that provides services to the public. As repayment for the capital, maintenance, and operating costs, the firm receives user fee revenues, government transfers, or a combination of both during the life of a long-term contract. At the end of the concession the facility is returned to the state.