Delegated operation: the works come back, the capability does not
Description
French law is generous to the public owner: the works needed for the service belong to it from the moment they are built, even if the contract says nothing. A good concession contract goes further and guarantees their condition at handback. But neither the law nor the contract returns what makes it possible to use them. The capability to operate is neither inventoried, nor valued, nor required. It leaves with the outgoing operator, and it has to be bought back.
English version, translated by the author, of Cahiers de technopolitique no. 4 (French original: 10.5281/zenodo.23284645). Quotations from English-language sources are given in their original wording. Full text in open access: https://technopolitique.eu/cahiers/n4/en/.
Notes
Version 1.3 of 10 October 2026: the number of uncertainties announced in the last section is corrected (three, not four) following the removal of the drafting note in version 1.2. The argument is unchanged. The previous version remains available, but this one is authoritative.