Public-Private Partnerships: Teaming Up to Find Solutions for Aging Infrastructure Challenges

As utilities are challenged to minimize rate increases while balancing limited budgets with competing projects, chronic underinvestment, deferred maintenance and compliance mandates, one solution to consider is the public-private partnership (PPP) model.

The PPP model can restructure and/or provide capital and resources to help the utility manage its existing system assets or implement projects within or outside its capital improvement plan. Additionally, it allows the transfer of risk from the utility to the private sector, protection of the ratepayer and, most importantly, provides for the optimization of life-cycle costs and alternative management of these costs. PPPs provide a generational payback on the assets.