Privatization, governance, and survival: MNE investments in private participation projects in emerging economies

Multinational enterprises (MNEs) investing in infrastructure privatization projects in emerging economies – often known as private participation projects – face both market-based and nonmarket-based competition simultaneously. Integrating transaction cost economics, bargaining model, and the institution-based view, we examine the bargaining process between MNEs and host governments. Leveraging data from 113 emerging economies, we find that the survival of MNE investments is dependent on the bargaining outcomes between MNE and host governments around investment location, governance structure, and host governments’ ownership of the private participation projects.