Public procurement notice: Voluntary Ex Ante Transparency Notice
Published: 2020-12-16
Buyer: Ervia
Country: IE
Contract type: Services
Procedure: Negotiated without a prior call for competition
CPV classification: 48000000 | 48218000 | 48221000 | 48223000 | 48310000
Award criteria: Lowest price

Technical requirements: Υπηρεσίες τεχνολογίας των πληροφοριών: παροχή συμβουλών, ανάπτυξη λογισμικού, Διαδίκτυο και υποστήριξη
The contracting entity, on behalf of its operating subsidiary companies, Gas Networks Ireland and Irish Water require Microsoft software and associated licences in respect of a range of Microsoft technologies (listed in this notice) that are used for the provision of core infrastructure applications and to underpin IT applications currently hosted by the contracting entity.
The complexity of the contracting entity’s environment and its dependency on the Microsoft technologies requires support which is aligned directly to the software provider. These technologies are only available directly from Microsoft.
The contracting entity is seeking to award two separate contracts each for a 3-year period commencing 1 April 2021 for its subsidiaries Gas Networks Ireland and Irish Water to Microsoft Operations Ireland Ltd (Microsoft) for the continued access to the aforementioned Microsoft technologies.
The contracting entity intends to award the contracts to Microsoft for enterprise software and licencing, consultancy, support and maintenance (including updates) services on the basis of the negotiated procedure without prior publication of a contract notice pursuant to Article 50(c)(iii) of Directive 2014/25/EU for tender reference 20/081, on the basis that Microsoft is the only economic operator capable of providing such services (on the basis of Microsoft exclusivity rights). Microsoft alone has the specific technical knowledge and skills necessary to undertake the services as they own and have developed the relevant software products and applications used by the contracting entity in connection with its operations.
The scope of the contracts shall include the following Microsoft technologies and all associated licensing;
The contracting entity has been using Microsoft products to provide enterprise wide office productivity software since the 1980’s.
The contracting entity has built its business applications and processes around Microsoft products and it would not be technically feasible to migrate to an alternative software provider. The contracting entity’s IT applications and business processes are built upon Microsoft technologies and the complexity of the contracting entity’s environment and its dependency on a large number of Microsoft technologies and products means a support contract of this nature, aligned to the software producer can only be agreed with the software provider directly.
The decision to award these contracts to Microsoft is on grounds that Microsoft products are proprietary and therefore this support service can only be provided by Microsoft who retains the Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) to their products source code. No other option exists due to the proprietary IPR for source code.
The existing services provided by Microsoft need to be continued in order to ensure the continuity of service required by the contracting entity’s major operating subsidiaries in order to fulfil their statutory functions in the management of critical water and gas infrastructure.
Only Microsoft can provide this level of support on their products and it is impractical to change the underlying product as the contracting entity’s infrastructure is substantially built on that platform. It is not expected that any of the contract is intended to be subcontracted to third parties.
Please refer to Statutory Instrument 131 of 2010, European Communities (Award of Contracts by Utility Undertaking) (Review Procedures) Regulations 2010 (and in particular Regulation 7 and 10(2)).


Winner: Microsoft Operations Ireland Ltd