EC: PPPS ARE GOOD FOR RAILWAYS!

Financial experts from the European Commission and the rail sector think that public-private partnerships (PPPs) in rail infrastructure projects represent a good solution to complement insufficient budgetary funding and comitted to undertake a number of initiatives aimed at promoting successful PPPs.

Confronted with limited availability of public resources, some rail infrastructure managers of CER, mainly from Central and Eastern European EU Member States, are currently preparing business cases for PPP’s in rail infrastructure - for example in Poland, Romania, and the Czech Republic. In fact, the leading European rail organisations CER and EIM confirmed that PPPs provide innovative financial engineering opportunities, which could mobilise financing for key rail infrastructure projects. In order to reach this goal, building transparent and adequate partnerships with private contractors is of the utmost importance for rail companies. ”To be successful, public- private partnerships require a rewiring between the State and the market, shifting the paradigm from public service to service to the public,“ noted Paul Guitink, CER Adviser for Central and Eastern Europe.