Public Procurement Network

The objective of the network is to strengthen the application and the enforcement of the procurement rules though mutual exchange of experience and benchmarking, and to create a reliable and effective informal co-operation on problem - solving in cross-border cases related to public procurement. The Commission supports the activities within the Public Procurement Network.

1. Background

During the period from 1998 - 2002 a Pilot Project on Public Procurement was carried out between a broad range of EU Member States and EEA countries. The overall objective of the project was to contribute to the achievement of a genuine EU-wide procurement market through more efficient application and enforcement of the rules. The project was set up to deal with 5 important subjects:

  • Pre-contract problem solutions,
  • Analysis of the formal complaint systems,
  • Application and interpretation of the regulations,
  • Monitoring of specific sectors and
  • Collection of economic data.

The Netherlands, Germany, UK, Spain, Italy and Denmark formed the Steering Group for the project. Nine more countries (Norway, Switzerland, Luxembourg, Liechtenstein, Austria, Ireland, Finland, Sweden and Portugal) joined the project and, together with the Steering Group, formed a Wider Group. The Commission followed the project as an observer.

The project was concluded during the summer of 2002 and recently the results of the project were presented to Commissioner Bolkestein. The set of final reports on the project consists of:

During the final meeting the Steering Group for the project outlined the way forward for the future co-operation. The Steering Group recommended the creation of a more permanent informal network between the national procurement authorities. The network was to be open to all Member States and to other European countries, including the accessing countries.

On this background the permanent Public Procurement Network was established at a meeting, which took place in Copenhagen on January 31, 2003. At the meeting 27 countries and the Commission were represented.

The Public Procurement Network is managed by the Member States and will meet annually. The chairmanship of the network is rotating between the participating countries on a voluntary basis. The former chairman assists the upcoming chairman in preparation of the meetings etc.

2. Cross-border co-operation on problem-solving The focus of the networking between national authorities is the creation of an environment of mutual trust with the aim of providing solutions to cross-border public procurement problems and related issues.

One of the main aims of the Public Procurement Network is to simplify and facilitate the recourse to an alternative complaint procedure to find rapid informal problem solutions without involving the legal apparatus. Court procedures are normally to be avoided, as they often are cumbersome, time-consuming and expensive. The alternative problem-solving procedure consists of an intense co-operation between contact points in the countries, participating in the Public Procurement Network.

The main idea of the co-operation within the network is to achieve pre-contract problem solving as it offers the parties involved more options of reactions and remedies. It is a particular valuable tool in cross-border cases. The network has, in a number of cross-border cases, demonstrated that the network leads to positive results.

Future cross-border cases will be handled through proper interaction between SOLVIT and the Public Procurement Network. SOLVIT- the Internal Market Problem Solving Network is a network of "Co-ordination Centres" dealing with informal problem resolution. SOLVIT was introduced by the Commission in 2002.

3. Benchmarking and exchange of experienceAnother important aspect of the co-operation within the Pubic Procurement Network is the creation of a learning circle and a benchmarking field. The Public Procurement Network is basis for exchange of views and experiences on the interpretation of the public procurement rules in order to obtain a common understanding and application of the regulatory framework. The importance of networking is further stressed by the more flexible regime of the future directives.

4. Exchange of views on the implementation of the future directivesThe future directives allow for greater flexibility than is the case today. Thus, the Member States will be able to implement the directives "á la carte". Therefore one of the tasks of the Public Procurement Network is to create a learning circle between the countries participating in the network in order to obtain an overview, to take inspiration from each other and to facilitate informal problem solving in cross-border cases in case of infringements.

5. Problem-solving in concrete casesA concrete cross-border public procurement case would typically be a situation, where a supplier faces a problem with a procurement procedure in another Member State concerning a violation of the public procurement rules that can be ascribed to the contracting authority concerned.

How to File a ComplaintWhen a problem arises in a concrete procurement case – be it a presumed breach of the rules or the fact that a contract has not been procured at all – an enterprise should as quickly as possible contact the contact point of the Public Procurement Network in his / her own country.

The complaining supplier should submit some background information and a short description of the presumed breach of the public procurement rules. On this background, the authority contacted starts a preliminary investigation in order to make sure that the problem in question concerns a violation of the public procurement rules that can be ascribed to the contracting authority concerned. Having examined the problem as far as possible as it is presented by the supplier, the contact point of the supplier's country approaches the contact point of the contracting authority's country requesting co-operation and initiation of a problem-solving process.

The problems that may be considered in this connection are barriers to participating on equal terms in competition for public contracts as a result of violations of the public procurement rules by contracting authorities. The objective is to open the national public procurement markets to competition from other Member States.

Enterprises that wish to make use of this service and request assistance in a specific case, must therefore be aware that the result the enterprise may expect to achieve will not exceed the possibility of participating on equal terms in the public procurement procedure in question.

Whether the company stands a chance of winning the contract subsequently, will depend on whether its tender meets the procurement conditions and is sufficiently competitive - as is the case in any public procurement procedure.

Data to SubmitIn order to process the case, the following information will be needed by the authority contacted:

  1. Name of the company
  2. Address of the company
  3. Tel./fax numbers
  4. Contact person
  5. Names and addresses of other involved companies – if any.
  6. Does the company wish to remain anonymous?
  7. Has a procurement procedure been initiated?
  8. If the answer to question no. 7 is "yes":
  • Date of publication of the tender
  • Status in the procedure – has a contract been awarded?
  • The estimated value of the contract
  1. If the answer to question no. 7 is "no":
  • What types of goods/services does the contract concern?
  • The estimated value of the contract
  1. Background information on the contracting authority
  2. Description of the presumed breach of the Public Procurement rules.

How your complaint is processedIf a complaint is to have any effect it must come quickly! When a national authority has received a complaint it checks whether there is a violation of the public procurement rules and contacts the authority in the country where the tender takes place. The authority in the country where the tender takes place is obliged to react quickly and effectively.

Thereafter the tender may either be reissued or the wording may be changed so that the complaining company can place an offer in free competition with other companies.

If the notice to the authority in the country where the tender takes placed does not have effect, the authority of the complaining country can suggest that the enterprise submit the case to the Commission. The Commission may then intervene so that the tender can be changed or reissued.

For the complaint to make a real difference for the complainer it is vital that the timing is precise, the deadline should not have been passed.

You can find more information about the co-operation within the Public Procurement Network and a list of contact points on the website:

Public Procurement Network