A review of studies on public-private partnership projects in the construction industry

Public–Private Partnership (PPP) in construction is gaining in popularity. Although papers published in major journals have documented real cases of PPP projects, there appears to be a lack of systematically summarizing what they have already provided. Consequently, this paper reviewed PPP studies published in the six top journals in the construction field. The objectives are to compare and contrast the findings of the studies so as to provide insights for directing further PPP research and improving the existing practices of PPP projects. To achieve the review objectives, studies were first classified as either empirical or non-empirical. Empirical studies were further grouped under three themes: risks, relationships, and financing. Non-empirical studies were grouped under five themes: financing, project success factors, risks, and concession period. Suggestions for further research are risks, financing, contractual agreements, development of PPP models, concession periods, and strategies in choosing the right type of PPP. Copyright © 2009 Elsevier Ltd and IPMA. All rights reserved.