The research highlighted that the transition from one government administration to another or a change in policy or law or regulation may create similar challenges to those described in this section 3.1.
Where any major change is required on a project, particularly where it involves subsequent personnel change, it is important that the transition is ‘led from the top’ of the Procuring Authority, in order to demonstrate the highest level commitment to the strategy and ongoing commitment to the project.
Changes to the contract management team should be considered where there is a substantial change in government or policy that affects the project. Carefully managed knowledge handover based on robust information management systems play an important role in circumstances involving personnel change, as detailed in Section 3.4 (Information Management) and Chapter 2 (Contract management team set-up and training).
The Procuring Authority can mitigate the risk of a change in government administration affecting the project by setting up a dedicated project team that has some independence.
Where a Project Company’s ability to meet its contractual requirements materially changes as a result of a change in policy, law or regulation, it will typically expect to be compensated. This can be implemented through various mechanisms in a PPP contract such as a change in law claim or an economic rebalancing, which can be managed by deploying specialised legal or other expertise. These types of claims are detailed in Section 3.5 (Claims). The changes may have broader implications and a contractual amendment may be required, which is detailed in Chapter 4 (Renegotiation).
Example – Dedicated project team
The Procuring Authority on the Queen Alia International Airport Expansion project in Jordan set up a dedicated project team. The Project management Unit raised project concerns with regulatory and permitting agencies, helping to facilitate its resolution. It also provided stability under multiple Transport Ministers.
For more information, see the Queen Alia International Airport Expansion case study.
