CHAPTER II

PUBLIC TENDER PROCEDURES
SECTION 4

Launching the procurement procedure

Publication of procurement opportunities
Article 21
1
If the ECB decides to carry out a tender procedure in accordance with the rules laid down in this Chapter, it shall publish a contract notice in the Official Journal and on the ECB's website. Whenever appropriate, the ECB may place advertisements in other relevant media. Announcements on the ECB's website and other media shall not precede publication of the notice in the Official Journal. In the case of discrepancies between different versions of the notice, the version published in the Official Journal shall be considered authentic and take precedence over other versions.
2
The ECB may publish a prior information notice indicating the estimated total value of contracts, by category of service or groups of products, and the essential characteristics of works contracts, which it intends to award during a budgetary year.
3
Notwithstanding any other provision of this Decision, any notice published in the Official Journal shall contain at least the information specified in the relevant part of Annex V to Directive 2014/24/EU. Contract notices shall state whether or not the contract will be awarded according to the lowest price.

Call for expression of interest
Article 22
1
The ECB may apply a call for expression of interest if it intends to award several contracts which cover the same or a similar subject matter. Unless specified otherwise in this Article, the procedure shall follow the rules for restricted procedures under Article 11.
2
For the purpose of establishing a list of suitable suppliers, the ECB shall publish a contract notice in the Official Journal specifying as a minimum the subject matter of the contracts to be awarded, the duration, the eligibility and selection criteria and the deadline for receipt of applications to be considered for the establishment of a list of suitable suppliers.
3
The list shall be valid for no more than 4 years from the date on which the contract notice is sent to the Official Journal. A supplier may apply to be included in the list at any time until 3 months before its expiry. The application shall be accompanied by the documentation specified in the contract notice. Suppliers shall submit their application within the time limit specified in the contract notice.
4
Following the receipt of applications, the ECB shall verify the eligibility of candidates and evaluate the applications against the selection criteria set out in the contract notice. The ECB shall include in the list all candidates meeting the eligibility and selection criteria. The ECB shall inform candidates at the earliest possible opportunity whether or not they have been included in the list.
5
Suppliers included in the list shall inform the ECB without undue delay of any changes affecting their eligibility or capacity to perform the contract. Moreover, such suppliers may provide the ECB with updated or additional documentation if they deem it necessary.
6
If the ECB intends to award a contract the estimated value of which is below the thresholds laid down in Article 4(3), it shall invite the required number of suppliers included in the list, if available, to submit a tender, in accordance with the procedure set out in Article 35. The ECB shall invite the suppliers whose tenders best meet the selection criteria set out in the contract notice having regard to the contract to be awarded.
7
If the ECB intends to award a contract the estimated value of which is equal to or exceeds the thresholds laid down in Article 4(3), it shall publish a simplified contract notice in the Official Journal describing the scope of this specific contract. Interested suppliers not yet included in the list may submit an application to be included in the list within the time limit specified in the simplified contract notice, which shall be not less than 15 days from the date on which the simplified contract notice is sent for publication. Following evaluation of the applications received, the ECB shall invite at least five suitable suppliers included in the list to submit a tender provided that a sufficient number of suppliers are available. The ECB shall select the suppliers whose tenders best meet the selection criteria set out in the contract notice having regard to the contract to be awarded. Article 11(4) and (5) shall apply accordingly.
8
In the cases described in paragraphs 6 and 7, the ECB may request the suppliers included in the list to provide updated information and documentation relevant to the fulfilment of the eligibility and selection criteria.

Time limits for receipt of applications and tenders
Article 23
1
When fixing the time limits for the receipt of applications and tenders, the ECB shall take account in particular of the complexity of the contract and the time required for drawing up tenders, without prejudice to the minimum time limits set by this Article.
2
In the case of open procedures, the minimum time limit for the receipt of tenders shall be 35 days from the date on which the contract notice was sent to the Official Journal.
3
In the case of restricted procedures, negotiated procedures, competitive dialogues, innovation partnerships and design contests:
a
the minimum time limit for receipt of applications shall be 30 days from the date on which the contract notice was sent to the Official Journal; and
b
the minimum time limit for the receipt of tenders shall be 30 days from the date on which the invitation to tender was sent to the tenderers.
4
When a prior information notice has been published in the Official Journal containing the information set out in Article 48(2) of Directive 2014/24/EU, which was sent between 35 days and 12 months before the contract notice, the minimum time limit for the receipt of tenders may, as a general rule, be shortened to 15 days for open and 10 days for restricted procedures.
5
The time limits for the receipt of applications and tenders may be shortened by 5 days when fully electronic procurement is used, unless paragraph 4 applies.
6
In the case of open procedures, restricted procedures and negotiated procedures, the ECB may apply an accelerated procedure, where duly substantiated urgency renders impracticable the time limits laid down in this Article. In this case the following minimum time limits shall apply:
a
for open procedures a time limit for the receipt of tenders which is not less than 15 days from the date on which the contract notice was sent; and
b
for restricted procedures and negotiated procedures a time limit for the receipt of applications which shall be not less than 15 days from the date on which the contract notice was sent, and a time limit for the receipt of tenders which shall be not less than 10 days from the date on which the invitation to tender was sent to the tenderers.
7
Prior to the expiry date, the ECB may extend the time limits set out in the contract notice or procurement documents if it significantly modifies the procurement documents or in other duly justified cases, subject to the principle of equal treatment.

Invitation to tender
Article 24
1 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
2
An invitation to tender shall contain at least:
a
a reference to the contract notice;
b
full information, where applicable, on the electronic availability of, and access to, the procurement documents;
c
the formal tender requirements, in particular the time limit for the receipt of the tenders, the address to which the tenders must be sent, the language or languages in which the tenders must be drawn up, the format in which the tender must be submitted and the period during which a tender must remain valid;
d
options concerning additional products, services and works, as well as the number of possible renewals and extensions to the contract, if any;
e
the list of documents to be submitted by the tenderers; and
f
the relative weighting of criteria for the award of the contract or, where appropriate, the descending order of importance for such criteria, if they are not specified in the contract notice.
3
The invitation to tender shall also include:
a
a copy of the specifications defining the ECB's requirements or, in the case of a competitive dialogue or innovation partnership, a copy of the request for a proposal defining the ECB's needs;
b
a copy of the draft contract, of the ECB's general terms and conditions or of the document specifying the key features of the contract; and
c
any other documentation which the ECB considers to be of relevance.

Specifications
Article 25
1
The ECB shall lay down its technical specifications in the procurement documents in line with applicable law and technical standards.
2
Specifications may only prescribe a specific product, source or production process where a sufficiently precise general description of the subject matter of the contract is not possible, and where candidates may offer other, equivalent products.
3
The ECB shall specify the evidence, such as labels, certificates, and conformity assessments, in particular any environmental certificates, that it requests from the candidates to demonstrate compliance with the specifications. Such evidence must be obtainable in a transparent manner. Other evidence shall be accepted where it is technically equivalent.
4
The specifications and the requested evidence shall be necessary and proportionate to meet the objectives of the procurement, and based on objective and non-discriminatory considerations that avoid any unjustified obstacle to competition.
5
The ECB may allow the submission of variants that deviate from the specifications. If so, it shall provide clear information on the permitted scope of variants, on the formal and substantive requirements for variants, and on the methodology by which the merits of main offers and variants will be compared.
Deleted by Decision (EU) 2016/956 of the European Central Bank of 7 June 2016 amending Decision (EU) 2016/245 (ECB/2016/2) laying down the rules on procurement (ECB/2016/17).