In capital projects—particularly in mining and metals—companies frequently conflate project delivery strategy with contracting strategy, treating them as interchangeable concepts. This confusion is subtle, widespread, and a major contributor to cost overruns, schedule delays, and post-FID disputes.

Project delivery strategy defines who is responsible for integrating, managing, and making decisions across the project lifecycle. It establishes governance, interfaces, and accountability. Contracting strategy, by contrast, defines how commercial risk is allocated, priced, and paid for between parties. While related, they answer fundamentally different questions. In practice, many organisations collapse both decisions into shorthand labels such as “EPC” or “EPCM”.

The use of proprietary technics associated with CII’s Project Delivery & Contracting Strategy (PDCS) framework helps to clarify the best and fit for purpose strategy to follow.