There has been controversy over the contract between the MWAA and Dulles Transit Partners, which consists of Bechtel and Washington Group International. The $2.7 billion project was originally awarded by VDOT under the Virginia Public-Private Partnership Act, rather than by using conventional competitive bidding based upon a detailed specification. As a result, the contractor is allowed to both design and build the project with no upper cap on its cost. Problems could arise from the arrangement where MWAA is supervising the design and construction but ultimately WMATA must operate the Silver Line. The contract provides for price escalation of $3 million to $6 million a month for delays. VDOT transferred the contract to MWAA when MWAA took over the project in November 2008.