Public procurement notice: Voluntary Ex Ante Transparency Notice
Published: 2016-11-09
Buyer: Dartford and Gravesham NHS Trust on behalf of itself and Medway NHS Foundation Trust
Country: UK
Region: SOUTH EAST (ENGLAND)
Contract type: Services
Procedure: Negotiated without a prior call for competition
CPV classification: 85000000 | 85100000: Health services | 85111000: Hospital services | 85111800 | 85111810
Estimated value: 110400000 GBP

Technical requirements: Dartford and Gravesham NHS Trust and Medway NHS Foundation Trust (the ‘Partners’) propose to form a collaborative joint venture with each other to provide integrated pathology services in North Kent. The Partners have agreed to transform the provision of pathology services across North Kent by restructuring the pathology services to generate annual efficiency savings whilst maintaining high quality standards. The agreement will be for an initial term of 5 years with an option to extend for a further 3 years.
Dartford and Gravesham NHS Trust and Medway NHS Foundation Trust (the ‘Partners’) propose to form a joint venture with each other to provide integrated pathology services in North Kent. The Partners have agreed to transform the provision of pathology services across North Kent by restructuring the pathology services to generate annual efficiency savings whilst maintaining high quality standards. The agreement will be for an initial term of 5 years with an option to extend for a further 3 years.
There are 3 justifications for the entry into the joint venture agreement without a prior call for competition, as set out below. 2 of the justifications (numbers 1 and 2 below) are grounds which mean that the proposed agreement is outside the scope of Part 2 of the Public Contracts Regulations 2015. Accordingly, in relation to the grounds numbered 1 and 2 below, it is emphasised that publication of this notice is for the purpose of transparency only and this should not be construed as acceptance by the contracting authorities that the Public Contracts Regulations 2015 and/or EU Directive 2014/24/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council apply to the proposed agreement. The contracting authorities fully reserve their rights with regard to the application or otherwise of the Regulations and/or the Directive.
1. The joint venture is a ‘Teckal’ or in-house structure as permitted by Regulation 12(1) of the Public Contract Regulations 2015, as it will be jointly controlled by each of the Partners via a Consortium Management Board, which will exercise a control over the joint venture which is similar to that which each Partner exercises over its own departments;
2. The joint venture is a ‘Hamburg’ or public to public collaboration as permitted by Regulation 12(7) of the Public Contract Regulations 2015, as the joint venture establishes or implements a co-operation between the participating contracting authorities with the aim of ensuring that public services they have to perform are provided with a view to achieving objectives they have in common; and/or
3. There is no other provider of the entire range of diagnostic services required in the geographical area.
The contracting authorities will observe a 10-day standstill period from the date of publication of this notice, in accordance with Regulation 99(3) of the Public Contracts Regulations 2015, after which they will enter into the proposed joint venture agreement without further notice.


Award value: 110400000