There’s a lot more than just faster travel times at stake on the completion of Příbram to Písek section of the D4 motorway. The whole future of Public-Private Partnership projects could well lie in the balance, says David Wilhelm (White & Case) in an interview with Hospodářské noviny.
If PPP projects are finally gaining traction in the Czech Republic, they’ve had to endure a great deal of bad press. “In the 90s, we were cutting ties with our communist past, and some legal mechanisms weren’t functioning properly. There wasn’t a suitable institutional environment for PPP projects,” he told HN. Unfortunately, the most famous of PPP projects was the notorious D47 project, which was built so badly, repairs had to be made even before the highway was opened. Wilhelm told HN that PPP got a bad reputation as a result of the D47 fiasco, but that this was unjustified.
“It was poorly prepared and commissioned in a way that did not correspond to best practices – for example, the concessionaire was not selected through a tender process.”
That’s why the D4 highway project to Písek is now under such scrutiny and could prove to be a litmus test for future PPP initiatives. “If we hadn’t successfully selected a concessionaire for the D4 project, it would have had a strongly negative impact on the future of PPP projects in the Czech Republic, particularly because it would have damaged the Czech state’s credibility in the eyes of private investors,” notes Wilhelm. “Participation in the tender process and bid preparation represents a cost of tens of millions of crowns for each participant.”
Vinci Concessions, Vinci Highways and Meridiam are building the new D4 section, which is due for completion in December. Known as the Via Salis consortium, the group will then be responsible for operating the road. The successful progression of the D4 project is already yielding positive results, with investors showing increased interest in upcoming projects, including the D35 highway completion and a railway link to Václav Havel Airport.
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