DEAL TALKS: Criss Uudam of BaltCap talks about their €13.6 million PPP investment into education infrastructure
Welcome to EstVCA DEAL TALKS where Criss Uudam, the Investment Director of BaltCap Infrastructure Fund talks about their 15-year public-private partnership (PPP) agreement recently signed with Kaunas District Municipality to upgrade education infrastructure in towns of Mastaičiai, Kačerginė and Zapyškis. BaltCap will invest €13.6 million to revitalise two existing schools, a swimming pool, and to construct a new school building and sports facilities.
1. What were the key impact and innovation aspects of the investment?
The life-cycle approach of PPP provides an incentive for private parties to look for innovative solutions already in the design phase to meet performance requirements at a lower cost and with higher efficiency. Therefore using the PPP process helps the local municipality to have the school built in a shorter time and by allocating the construction and building technical maintenance risks to the private party. The current investment increases the energy class of the existing school buildings and sports facilities. A positive impact on the local community is achieved by creating additional capacity for 500 pupils and therefore it allows schoolchildren to avoid daily commuting to faraway schools.
2. Which are areas similar to education that could be addressed via such PPP investments in the Baltics?
The application field of PPPs in Baltics could be from public infrastructure like highways, bridges, urban transportation systems, parking infrastructure to the construction of schools, hospitals, sports facilities and it can be used even in the fields of national defence.
3. What would you say was the greatest challenge in the current PPP investment process?
The main challenge of the PPP investment process was to find the best value-for-money solution within a limited budget, that could at the same time provide saving opportunities for the municipal budget in terms of operating costs.
Key advisors
The public sector was advised by CPMA and Peritus. TGS Baltic provided legal advice to BaltCap.
1. What were the key impact and innovation aspects of the investment?
The life-cycle approach of PPP provides an incentive for private parties to look for innovative solutions already in the design phase to meet performance requirements at a lower cost and with higher efficiency. Therefore using the PPP process helps the local municipality to have the school built in a shorter time and by allocating the construction and building technical maintenance risks to the private party. The current investment increases the energy class of the existing school buildings and sports facilities. A positive impact on the local community is achieved by creating additional capacity for 500 pupils and therefore it allows schoolchildren to avoid daily commuting to faraway schools.
2. Which are areas similar to education that could be addressed via such PPP investments in the Baltics?
The application field of PPPs in Baltics could be from public infrastructure like highways, bridges, urban transportation systems, parking infrastructure to the construction of schools, hospitals, sports facilities and it can be used even in the fields of national defence.
3. What would you say was the greatest challenge in the current PPP investment process?
The main challenge of the PPP investment process was to find the best value-for-money solution within a limited budget, that could at the same time provide saving opportunities for the municipal budget in terms of operating costs.
Key advisors
The public sector was advised by CPMA and Peritus. TGS Baltic provided legal advice to BaltCap.
- Read more on the investment HERE