General interest grounds for not making a declaration of ineffectiveness
100.—(1) Where the Court is satisfied that any of the grounds for ineffectiveness applies, the Court must not make a declaration of ineffectiveness if—
(a)the contracting authority or another party to the proceedings raises an issue under this regulation; and
(b)the Court is satisfied that overriding reasons relating to a general interest require that the effects of the contract should be maintained.
(2) For that purpose, economic interests in the effectiveness of the contract may be considered as overriding reasons only if in exceptional circumstances ineffectiveness would lead to disproportionate consequences.
(3) However, economic interests directly linked to the contract cannot constitute overriding reasons relating to a general interest.
(4) For that purpose, economic interests directly linked to the contract include—
(a)the costs resulting from the delay in the execution of the contract;
(b)the costs resulting from the commencement of a new procurement procedure;
(c)the costs resulting from change of the economic operator performing the contract; and
(d)the costs of legal obligations resulting from the ineffectiveness.
(5) For the purposes of paragraph (1)(b), overriding reasons may be taken to require that the effects of the contract should be maintained even if they do not require the Court to refrain from shortening the duration of the contract by an order under regulation 102(3)(a).