Getting ready for PFI expiry: what you need to know

There are some 700 Private Finance Initiative (PFI) contracts coming to an end in the next 15 years. Expiry and handback of facilities and assets to the health and care sector is a major event that requires careful planning. If poorly managed, the risks are substantial ranging from operational disruption, lack of service continuity, financial loss to reputational damage.

The Government’s Infrastructure and Projects Authority (IPA) has published practical guidance to support the public sector to prepare for contract expiry. It estimates that it takes seven years on average to prepare for expiry, with over 120 projects in some stage of the seven-year expiry process already.

Our team are already supporting clients on PFI expiry using a range of contract review templates and toolkits to identify the key issues. But the key is planning. You can read our earlier guidance on the eight points for managing a smooth expiry process here.

How we can help?

If you need support in preparing for handback or more widely your PFI project needs a health check, we offer a wide range of services to help you get the best out of your PFI project. These include running awareness workshops, payment mechanism reviews, cost saving and efficiency variations, termination exit plans, refinancing, insurance risk sharing and many other areas such as the operational and relationship issues raised by the White Fraiser report.