Cian O'Shea

Cian O'Shea

Economics Researcher

Current Projects

Examining the Role of Institutional Resilience in European Public-Private Partnerships

Public-Private Partnerships often face contract failure, renegotiation, and refinancing. This paper comparatively analyses road PPPs in Ireland and Spain, exploring how national institutional frameworks (centralisation, legal flexibility, oversight) influence these disruptions. Using qualitative case studies and quantitative data, findings show that institutional design is key. Ireland’s proactive, centralised model contrasts with Spain’s decentralised, reactive system. The study highlights the role of institutional resilience in governance and offers policy recommendations for more robust PPPs.

The Causal Impact of Exogenous Shocks on Public-Private Partnerships in Low- and Middle-Income Countries

This paper investigates Public-Private Partnership (PPP) adoption and sustainability in low- and middle-income countries, addressing a critical gap in existing public management literature. Utilising the World Bank’s Private Participation in Infrastructure (PPI) database (1990-2023), this paper employs quasi-experimental identification strategies. A Difference-in-Differences (DiD) framework examines the causal impact of externally imposed Structural Adjustment Programs (SAPs) on PPP initiation. Concurrently, an event study design analyzes how major political transitions affect PPP project sustainability. The anticipated findings reveal that PPPs are driven not solely by economic rationale, but significantly by exogenous international pressures and domestic political dynamics, contributing vital evidence to public administration theory on the political economy of infrastructure.

From Crisis to Completion: A Case Study of Contractor Insolvency Risk Management in Ireland’s Schools PPP Bundle 5

This study presents a case analysis of the Irish Public-Private Partnership (PPP) Schools Bundle 5 project, and examines how the 2018 liquidation of the main contractor Carilion provides a useful case study for the management of PPP risks during a contractor failure. Making use of public documents, this paper outlines the events following the 2018 and details how the remaining private partner and the government successfully managed the crisis, and ensured project completion. The paper also provides a comparative analysis with UK hospital projects, also impacted by Carillion, this provides a useful counter-case and highlights how robust risk allocation and proactive public-sector management can lead to improved outcomes in the case of contractor failure.