Public procurement notice: Voluntary Ex Ante Transparency Notice
Published: 2018-12-05
Buyer: Oslo kommune v/Vann- og avløpsetaten
Country: NO
Contract type: Services
Procedure: Contract award without prior publication
CPV classification: 72500000
Estimated value: 7600000 NOK

Technical requirements: The Agency for Water and Sewage (“VAV”) would like to procure an additional module that gives case managers an improved working day, in the form of electronic interaction with external customers. We must have an overview over which private properties have received an order to have their service pipes improved, and whether this has been done. New pipelines must also be registered with their actual route. Furthermore, the system must ensure that all communication with the customer is automatically stored in 360.
VAV has the right to extend the contract for 2 years, so that the total contract length is 5 years. This option is valid for the first annual maintenance of the procured modules. The option also includes possibilities for VAV to procure one or several of the modules and requirements listed in the option. The value of the option is calculated into the total procurement cost, which is 3 400 000 NOK.
Procurement in accordance with the Utilites Regulations § 9-3, letter b (2) and (3), without a competition, but with an ex-ante voluntary notice before the contract is signed, in accordance with § 17-5.
The Utilities Regulations § 9-3, letter b (2) and (3) state that the Contracting Authority can hold a procurement without a competition if the procurement is for services that only a specific supplier can provide as:
No. 2 and 3 only apply when there are no reasonable alternatives and the lack of competition is not due to the Contracting Authority having adapted the procurement documents for a specific supplier.
The supplier is Gemini VA is Powel AS. The last mentioned currently owns and manufactures the Gemini VA software in Norway. Another supplier would not have access to Powel´s software in order to make the necessary adaptations for the additional module. Because any potential tenderers would not have access, competition is prevented between several actors for the delivery of an additional module. An alternative to procuring without a competition would be to establish a new service pipe database that is independent of Gemini VA. This is not a reasonable alternative in this phase. There are too many work processes in main pipeline registrations for this, which depend on service pipe connections. The management of main pipelines and service pipes in separate systems would be challenging for operations and for the administrating personnel, and it would lead to delayed work processes. Challenges would easily occur when changes are made that affect the other database. A pipeline that has a connection can, for example, get a new manhole, something that means that the pipeline is split so it has 2 new IDs. The connection to any separate service pipe module would then be incorrect and would have to be corrected manually. The user would also have to wait until the data is synchronised before completing the work. In addition, 2 different systems would create interface problems. Another alternative to procuring without a competition would be to replace the entire Gemini VA software only because the additional module in question must be procured. This alternative would lead to disproportionally high costs for VAV and is not seen as a reasonable alternative in this phase. There is, thus, purely objectively, an exclusivity in the procurement. The lack of competition is, therefore, not due to the Contracting Authority having adapted the procurement documents to a specific supplier.
The terms for making a procurement without a competition, in accordance with FFO § 9-3, letter b (2) and (3), are, based on the above, deemed to be fulfilled.
The sub-supplier in question had no direct involvement in this delivery, beyond Powel AS using the sub-supplier´s platform as the platform for their delivery.
Any objections are to be sent to the Agency for Water and Sewage, marked with the procurement´s number and name, to postmottak@vav.oslo.kommune.no with a copy to anderstynning.nystrand@vav.oslo.kommune.no before ten days have expired calculated from the day after this notice was published.


Winner: Powel AS
Award value: 7600000