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Publication date: 15.01.2024
I am studying in the third year of the State University of Economics and Technology.I specialize in contractual, economic and corporate law, in particular, I provide consultations and write articles.
In general, public procurement is a method by which the customer can purchase certain goods, works or services.
The legislation establishes several ways by which procurement can be organized: open bidding, competitive dialogue, bidding with limited participation, and simplified procurement.
Currently, open tenders are the most common way of organizing purchases, and their characteristic feature is the possibility of participation of all interested parties.
Features of open auctions:
First of all, it is worth clarifying the issue of customers, that is, those who have the right to initiate procurement, namely: state and local self-government bodies, social insurance bodies, enterprises, institutions or organizations, as well as those legal entities that conduct their activities in certain areas of business defined by legislation.
As for the basic conditions for the organization and conduct of open tenders, in addition to the fact that each person interested in participating can submit an offer, it is necessary to observe the terms within which such offers can be accepted (at least 15 days from the date of publication of the announcement of the start of the tender, and in in some cases at least 30 days).
- The tender documentation, which is the conditions of the tender, also needs special attention.
- Development, approval and publication of such documentation is the responsibility of the customer.
- In general, the conditions may relate to the preparation of proposals, qualification criteria, characteristics of the subject of procurement, methods of evaluating proposals and other aspects that will comprehensively regulate the organizational issues of procurement.
- Participants in open tenders have the right to contact the customer for clarification of the tender documentation, and the customer is obliged to provide such clarifications.
- Also, the customer can make changes to the tender documentation and list them in a separate document.
- If changes are made, it is necessary to extend the deadline for accepting offers.
It should be mentioned separately about the provision of the offer, which is one of the rights of the customer and consists in the provision of a certain guarantee by the participant of the fulfillment of the obligation to the customer.
- If security is to be applied, it must be mentioned in the announcement and in the tender documentation.
- Another of the rights granted to the customer is the possibility of ensuring the performance of the contract by the winner of the tender, that is, a kind of guarantee that the winner will fulfill the contract concluded based on the results of the tender.
- The security provided to the customer is subject to return after fulfilling the terms of the contract, and in some cases according to the relevant court decision.
- The customer can cancel the tender if the need for the purchase has already disappeared or if it is impossible to correct the violations of the norms of the current legislation.
- Open bids are automatically canceled by the electronic system if less than two bids have been submitted.
The procedure for conducting open auctions:
1. The first stage is the publication of an announcement and, accordingly, the start of accepting offers from participants. The announcement must be published in a special electronic system and meet all the requirements of the law. The tender documentation should be published together with the announcement. It is at the first stage that changes can be made to the documentation, clarifications can be provided about it.
2. Next, the offers will be disclosed, i.e. information about the prices of the offer and other information of the participant will be disclosed.
3. The next step is to hold an auction, the date of which will be determined automatically by the electronic system. All participants will be granted access and the customer will be able to monitor the progress of the auction in his office.
4. After the auction, the electronic system will automatically review and evaluate the offers from the participants and select the most profitable of them. The customer must review the tender offer for compliance with all requirements within five days. If the customer rejects such an offer, he considers the next one from the list. The result of this stage is a protocol, which must be prepared by the customer and published in the electronic system.
5. If the winner has been determined, the customer publishes a notice of the decision to enter into the contract in the electronic system. The contract with the winner is concluded within the terms clearly specified in the legislation and is attached in the electronic system.
Lawyer's consultation during open auctions:
The services of a lawyer may be needed at any of the stages of open bidding, starting with the preparation of the tender documentation and ending with the conclusion of the contract with the tender winner.
The lawyer will ensure compliance of the above-described procedure with all legal requirements and take into account the wishes of the tender participants, will conduct an analysis of the tender documentation and its legal evaluation. Legal analysis of the situation is a reliable way to increase the efficiency of the tender and achieve the desired result.
