30.1.1  Inspection at contract expiry

(a)  An independent assessor appointed by government138 must:

(i)  four years prior to the end of the contract term; and

(ii)  at any other time (if requested by government) within the four year period and, in any case, at least one year prior to the end of the contract term,

inspect the project assets to determine what condition they will be in at contract expiry.  The periods for inspection described in paragraphs (i) and (ii) may be changed depending on the relevant life cycle expectations of the assets.  

(b)  Depending on the nature of the project, it may be more appropriate for government (rather than an independent assessor) to survey the condition of the facility, in which case the Project Director / contract administrator will carry out such assessment on government's behalf.

(c)  Following the inspection, the independent assessor must notify government and the private party of:

(i)  the works (if any) the independent assessor considers are required from the date of the review until contract expiry to bring the condition of the project assets to the standard they would have been in had the private party properly performed its obligations under the project agreement and to ensure that, on contract expiry, the project assets comply with the 'handover condition';

(ii)  a reasonable program for the private party to carry out such works; and

(iii)  the expected cost of carrying out the works in accordance with the program.

(d)  In regard to paragraph (c) above, the private party may refer the matter for dispute resolution by an independent expert if it disagrees with the assessment by the independent assessor.  

(e)  In regard to paragraph (c)(i) above, the project agreement will specify the condition the project assets must be in at contract expiry, taking into account the design life requirement after contract expiry.

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138  In some jurisdictions, the independent assessor is appointed jointly by the private party and government.