Ireland primary care centre PPP

Overview:

• A consortium of Balfour Beatty, Prime and Infrared Capital Partners has been awarded the public-private partnership (PPP) concession to develop 14 primary care centres (PCCs) across Ireland, in what is the country's first healthcare PPP.
• An original list of 35 sites for PCCs (community healthcare facilities, typically GP surgeries) was narrowed down to 14 in Dublin, Galway, Kildare, Limerick, Mayo, Roscommon, Sligo, Waterford, Tipperary and Wexford.
• The 25-year contract awarded by Ireland's National Development Finance Agency (NDFA) gives the consortium responsibility to design, build, and finance and maintain the 14 PCCs in partnership with the Health Service Executive (HSE).
• Construction is expected to begin imminently and the first centre is planned to be completed by July next year.
• The senior lenders financing the €140 million project, which is being developed under Ireland's €2.25 billion infrastructure stimulus programme, are the European Investment Bank (EIB), The Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi UFJ and Talanx.
• The project is one of the first in Europe to receive funding through the European Fund for Strategic Investment, a vehicle established by the European Commission and the EIB to invest in projects within the bloc which will increase competitiveness and promote growth.

Ben Naylor - Regional editor