Award of the contract
Contracts are awarded on the basis of award criteria established for the call for tender in one of the following two ways:
- under the automatic procurement procedure, in which case the contract is awarded to the tender which, while being in order and satisfying the conditions laid down, quotes the lowest price;
- under the best-value-for-money procedure (i.e. the most economically advantageous tender).
The criteria should be precise, non-discriminatory and not prejudicial to fair competition.
Award criteria for service contracts
The contract award criteria serve to identify the best value for money. These criteria cover both the technical quality and price of the tender.
The technical criteria allow the quality of technical offers to be assessed. The two main types of technical criteria are: the methodology and the curriculum vitae (CV) of the key experts proposed. The technical criteria may be divided into sub criteria.
The methodology, for example, may be examined in the light of the Terms of Reference, the optimum use of the technical and professional resources available in the beneficiary country,the work schedule, the appropriateness of the resources to the tasks, the support proposed for experts in the field etc.
CVs may be awarded points for such criteria as qualifications, professional experience, geographical experience, language skills, etc.
The tender dossier (see example) must contain full details of the technical evaluation grid, with its criteria and sub-criteria and their weightings.
Award criteria for supply and works contracts
The award criterion applied to tenders is price or, in exceptional cases and after derogation by the relevant services of the European Commission, the best value for money.
The criteria should be precise, non-discriminatory and not prejudicial to fair competition. All criteria specified in the tender dossier must be applied as such and cannot in any case be modified during the procedure.
The technical evaluation will be based on the evaluation grid published in the tender dossier, which must not be modified in any way during the evaluation process. Given the wide variety of supplies and their technical nature, the grid must be individually developed for each tender in a YES/NO format to allow clear assessment whether or not the offer responds to the technical requirements of the tender dossier.
Sources and useful links: