Category: 2014 Events

On October 27, 2014, the prestigious International Transport Forum (ITF) kicked off its P3 Renegotiation roundtable at Mason’s campus in Arlington, Virginia.  The forum, called Private Partnerships for Transport Infrastructure: Renegotiations, How to Approach Them and Economic Outcomes, was hosted by George Mason University in collaboration with ITF and the World Bank.  Center Director, Professor Jonathan Gifford, led the Center’s team in presenting a paper entitled PPP Renegotiation Experiences in the U.S.

Renegotiation of P3s is a common occurrence and can have a significant impact on value for money on a project.  Since P3s are complex, substantial and costly financial structures, with legal documentation alone often stretching to several hundred pages, the process is challenging at best.  Those who argue against renegotiation of P3s on any grounds and those who believe renegotiations are unavoidable and useful contribute to an ongoing debate on the topic.

The ITF Roundtable sought to review:

• the outcomes and risks most often associated with renegotiation in practice,
• the alternatives available for addressing uncertainty and incompleteness in contracts,
• elements for maximizing the chance that renegotiation will deliver net welfare benefits, and
• economic welfare impacts when termination and bankruptcy is preferred to renegotiation.

Other key presentations at the ITF roundtable include:

• Marian Moszoro, Mr. Gonzalo Araya, Ms. Fernanda Ruiz-Nuñez, and Mr. Jordan Schwartz, University of Berkeley, USA and Kozminski University, Poland; Ministry of Transport and Telecommunications, Chile; World Bank, USA. Paper title: Institutional and Political Determinants of Private Participation in Infrastructure.
•  Jose Luis Guasch, Mr. Daniel Benitez, Ms. Irene Portabales, and Mr. Lincoln Flor; World Bank, USA. Paper title: Lessons learned from the experience in transport contract renegotiations in Latin America.

To see video of Professor Gifford’s presentation, click here.

Center Director, Jonathan Gifford, is providing transportation P3 expertise to the Technical and Scientific Committee supporting the International Road Federation (IRF) and the Indonesia Ministry of Public Works for the 1st IRF Asia Regional Congress & Exhibition, October 27-29, 2014. Under the theme “Building the Trans-Asian Highway,” the event will examine proven and innovative solutions, latest industry technologies and global best practices for replication or modification to meet the region’s specific needs. The event will include a Ministerial Session, as well as Plenary, Executive, Technical and Applied Knowledge Sessions.

On September 17, Professor Jonathan Gifford briefed state government officials from across the United States on the evolution of P3s and state best practices at a meeting of the CSG Transportation Policy Academy.  Topics covered include P3 market conditions in the United States, P3 characteristics and trends, best practices for policy makers, and continuing policy discussions and P3 evaluation. Professor Gifford also advised the group of the resources available through the Center, namely research projects, white papers, graduate education, conferences and forums. Professor Gifford’s presentation is available for download here.

Center Graduate Research Assistant, Nobuhiko Daito, gave a presentation September 8 at the 14^th Annual Public-Private Partnership Conference: Moving Forward-Building Greater Sustainability. The conference included leaders from across the region and was a comprehensive day of learning and networking in the areas of financial management, social media, fundraising and partnerships. Click link below to download Daito’s Powerpoint presentation.

Nobuhiko Daito Powerpoint presentation

Dr. Gifford welcomed national, state, city, county and industry leaders gathered at the Northern Virginia Transportation Commission 50^th Anniversary celebration hosted by the Center at Mason’s Arlington campus, Thursday, Sept. 4 at 6:30 p.m. Following earlier Executive Board and Commission meetings, Gifford welcomed guests such as Congressmen Jim Moran and Frank Wolf, Virginia Secretary of Transportation, the Hon. Aubrey Lane, and U.S. Deputy Secretary of Transportation, Victor Mendez, among many other well-known officials and executives to formally open the celebration.  Exhibits, food and drinks, and presentations on Honoring Transportation Leaders, Celebrating NVTC’s Accomplishments, and Building the Future of Transit were on tap for what turned out to be a remarkable gathering of leaders who shape and advance mobility in the region.  For more information, http://www.thinkoutsidethecar.org/50years.asp

The Center is ARTBA’s strategic partner in presenting New Developments in P3 Research, Overcoming “New Age” Hurdles and Challenges to P3s, and a host of other sessions on critical transportation P3 issues at the 2014 Transportation P3 Conference. Panelists include P3 industry leaders such as Greg Kelly, Global COO, Parsons Brinckerhoff; Corey Boock, Nossaman; Katie Nees. Deputy Executive Director, North Texas Tollway Authority; and Chee Mee Hu, Managing Director, Moody’s Investors Service. Click here for full agenda and conference details.