Renegotiation of transportation public-private partnerships: The US experience

Public-private partnerships (PPPs) typically rely on long-term contracts between participants. When conditions arise that fall outside the expectations embodied in the contract, one party may seek to renegotiate the contract terms. Globally, the frequency of PPP contract renegotiations has been sufficient to raise questions regarding why these events occur and what their consequences are for the projects and society. The literature highlights four relevant causes behind renegotiation occurrences: unexpected exogenous changes, the complexity of the contractual relationship, winner´s curse and rent seeking behavior.