Although public-private partnerships (PPPs) have been viewed as a framework for describing intersectoral co-operative ventures between government and the private sector, little attention has been paid in previous researches to the characteristics of co-operative behaviour in the partnering organisations, as well as the measurement of partnership performance. This study blends important features of the Transaction Cost Economics (TCE) paradigm with the Interorganisational Relations (IORs) theory to better understand the maintenance of public-private partnerships in Thailand's electric utility industry. Empirical results obtained from the questionnaire survey of public and private management executives from seventy-one organisations indicated several interesting factors relevant to implementation of successful public-private partnerships. These factors include risk allocation, the use of constructive conflict resolution techniques, control of asymmetric relationships, and the existence of contractual safeguards for sovereign risks. This study also offers some insights into the dynamics of the differences between the private and public sectors pertaining to partnership performance. The findings reveal that respondents in government/state-owned enterprises were more likely to perceive partnership performance based on programme performance improvement, better service/product provisions, and more opportunities to expand their business interests. The private firms, on the other hand, were more likely to focus on better investment potential and more opportunities to expand their business interests. Private with part-state ownership organisations identified more opportunities to expand their business interests as the most apparent indicator.
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