But he remains circumspect about whether it will play a part in the new Dunedin hospital project as a leading health academic warned against the "creeping privatisation" of the system.
Dr Reti’s comments came after it was revealed that Health New Zealand Te Whatu Ora (HNZ) provided advice to the government that "a range of options for different financing and commercial arrangements may be needed" in order to bring projects under budget.
"The government has previously said it’s open to exploring alternative funding and financing mechanisms, that includes things like public-private partnerships and sale and leaseback — they’re options we’ve been exploring," Dr Reti said.
"The most obvious advantage of these would be the freeing up of capital which the Crown can then deploy elsewhere, but there are advantages and disadvantages, so that’s why exploration of the mechanisms is important."
A spokeswoman for Dr Reti said his comments were "in relation to health infrastructure generally, not Dunedin specifically".
Last week, Dr Reti and Infrastructure Minister Chris Bishop announced it would be dumping the new Dunedin hospital project in favour of either a scaled-back option or retro-fitting the existing hospital, after reports of budget blowouts. The ministers have set the budget for the new project at $1.88 billion.
HNZ chief infrastructure and investment officer Jeremy Holman said yesterday it was "working urgently to develop options that can be achieved within the budget and deliver modern, fit-for-purpose health facilities that will enhance clinical safety and enable new models of care".
"This work will be completed over the coming weeks.
"We will consult with critical stakeholders, including clinical leaders, to ensure we understand the benefits and risks before a final decision is made. As soon as a decision is reached, we will update the people of Dunedin and the wider Southern region."
Public-private partnerships were a mechanism of how the public sector could work with the private sector, he said.
"There are many different options which may be suited for different types of projects.
There is a question about public-private partnerships and their place in the health sector and those conversations are progressing.
Recently, the Otago Daily Times was leaked documents which showed Australian construction giant CPB’s initial pricing to HNZ at the end of July was significantly over budget.
New costings from the company were due on September 16.
Former Labour Cabinet minister Pete Hodgson, who previously oversaw the construction of the new Dunedin hospital, said he would not be surprised if the conversations were being had in regards to the new Dunedin hospital.
"It’s quite a complicated topic.
"Private sector involvement has been a permanent feature of the New Zealand health system, but never a feature of the core public health system.
"That means private sector involvement in the pathology building or the carpark building is a smart idea, but private sector involvement in the inpatient building would cost more, because the public sector’s cost of capital is always going to be cheaper."
University of Otago public health Prof Peter Crampton said public-private partnerships covered quite a "wide range of funding, building and ownership options".
"In the short term, while public-private partnerships may make capital available for infrastructure projects, they inevitably involve private companies taking profit out of the publicly-funded system and, in the long term, this of course imposes extra costs.
"They may also represent a form of creeping privatisation — something that we should guard against if we believe that the public health system is a national treasure that should remain fully under public ownership and control."
