Source: https://www.lawyer-moldova.com/2013/06/law-on-procurement-of-goods-works-and.html
Timestamp: 2019-11-22 23:19:46
Document Index: 81154142

Matched Legal Cases: ['Art. 28', 'Art.15', 'Art.8', 'Art.40', 'ART 1', 'art 2']

Law On Procurement of Goods, Works and Services for Public Needs - Lawyer Moldova
Law On Procurement of Goods, Works and Services for Public Needs
posted by Lawyer Moldova on 06:46 No Comments
No.1166-XIII of 30.04.97
The definitions used in the present Law:
The National Agency for Government procurement is a
subdivision performing the state regulation and inter-branch coordination in the field of procurement for the state needs; the working procurement group is a working group within a public administration body or a business entity performing procurement procedures with the public funds;
government procurement is goods, works and services procured with the public funds for the needs of the state by any means not prohibited by law;
public funds are the funds of the state budget, of the local budgets and the foreign loans granted to the Republic of Moldova;
goods are things and articles of any type and any description including raw materials in solid, liquid or gas forms and electricity;
works are any works relating to construction, reconstruction, demolition, repairs of buildings and production facilities;
services are any other objects of the procurement, other than goods and
tendering is a competition held by the National Agency for the Government procurement aimed at selecting the best tenders to perform the government procurement;
tender is a proposal by the supplier (contractor) to conclude a contract on the procurement of goods, work and services
preferential margin is a concession expressed as a percentage applicable in the evaluation of tenders for works performed by internal contractors or of the domestically produced goods aimed at encouraging the national producers' and suppliers' participation in tendering ;
tenderer is any supplier (contractor) admitted (invited) to the procurement procedures;
acceptance of a tender is a consent to conclude a contract on the terms set out in a tender;
procurement contract is an agreement between the working procurement group and the successful tenderer concluded on the basis of the results of procurement procedures and in conformity with the present Law under which the supplier (contractor) undertakes to transmit to the procurement working group the goods (work, services), and the procurement working group undertakes to accept them and to pay a certain price.
security for a tender is a guarantee for the implementation of the commitment undertaken by the tenderer to the National Agency for Government procurement that can be in the form of the bank guarantees, security, "stand¬by" letters of credit, cheques which are the primary responsibility of a bank, cash deposits, bills of exchange and promissory notes;
security for the execution of a contract is the guarantee of the implementation of the commitments under the procurement contract given by the tenderer to the working group, which envisages the forms of security specified in the previous paragraph;
currency of a tender is the legal monetary unit of the Republic of Moldova or of another state applicable in the procurement process.
Article 2. Procurement Legislation
The procurement legislation consists of the present Law and other legal acts on procurement.
(1) This law covers all procurements carried out in the Republic of Moldova with the public funds for the state needs.
(2) In case international treaties or agreements to which the Republic Moldova is one of the parties, provide for other standards than those laid down by the present Law, the standards of an international treaty or an agreement shall be applicable.
Article 4. Subjects and objects of procurement
(1) Subjects of procurement shall be natural persons and legal entities of the Republic of Moldova and other states regardless of the ownership form and legal organizational form (hereinafter referred to as "suppliers (contractors")
that perform their activity in the prescribed manner. Rights and interests of the subjects of procurement shall be protected by the present law and other statutory acts relating to the procurement.
(2) Objects of procurement shall be goods possessing certain consumer attributes as well as works and services that are necessary to satisfy the state needs.
Article 5. Government regulation of procurement
(1) To enforce the present Law, to exercise the government regulation and inter-branch co-ordination in the field of the procurement the National Agency for the government procurement within the Ministry of economy and reforms
(hereinafter referred to as "The Procurement Agency") having the status of a legal entity shall be established.
(2) The Procurement Agency's activity shall be guided by the Constitution of the Republic of Moldova, present Law and other statutory acts.
(3) The Procurement Agency shall hold tenders and alternative methods of procurement for the state needs.
(4) To perform the tasks entrusted to it , the Procurement Agency shall:
a) work out statutory acts on procurement;
b) render the working groups .methodological assistance in the procurement issues, work out and publish mandatory for use forms of tender documents and other kind of documentation;
c) issue The Government Procurement Bulletin where invitations to tender, and notices relating to the procurement and its advertisement thereof as well as the information on the procurement procedures are published.
d) approve the results of the pre-qualification selection (hereinafter "pre-selection") made by the procurement working groups ;
e) approve the tender documents worked out by the procurement working groups and furnish them to the suppliers (contractors);
1) invite tenders of suppliers (contractors), open them and transmit to the appropriate procurement working groups for consideration, evaluation and comparison.
g) consider and adopt reports on procurement procedures and acceptance of tenders submitted by the procurement working groups;
h) approve procurement contracts made by the procurement working groups with suppliers (contractors)
i) consider complaints of suppliers (contractors) and make decisions on
j) interact with the international institutions and relevant organizations of other countries on the issues which relate to the operation of the government procurement system;
k) co-ordinate the activities related to the utilization of the foreign technical assistance in government procurement.
(5) The procurement working group (hereinafter referred to as "the working group") shall prepare invitations to participation in the pre- selection, carry out this selection, work out tender documents, consider, evaluate and compare tenders of suppliers (contractors), make reports on procurement procedures, conclude procurement contracts with suppliers (contractors) and manage work relating to contracts. All the documents worked out by working groups and the pre-selection results shall be subject to the approval by the Procurement Agency.
BASIC REQUIREMENTS TO PROCUREMENT PROCEDURES
Article 6. Qualification data on suppliers (contractors)
(1) To obtain qualification data on suppliers (contractors) the provisions
of this article shall be applied at any stage of the procurement procedures taking into account the supplier's (contractor's) right to protection of intellectual property and commercial secret.
(2) For the participation in the procurement procedures the supplier (contractor) shall present documents confirming:
a) His managerial competence; expertise, positive reputation, experienced professional staff, financial and technical and other capacities available to him for the qualitative execution of the procurement contract;
b) competence of the conclusion of the procurement contract;
c) solvency (certificates confirming that the supplier (contractor) is not winding up , or bankrupt, or his property is not seized , or commercial activities are not suspended);
d) regular payment of taxes, contributions and other mandatory payments in accordance with the legislation of the supplier' (contractor's) country;
e) non-imposition for the past 5 years in respect of the supplier' (contractor's) employees of the disciplinary, administrative and criminal penalties in connection with their professional activities or by reason of. the submission of the untrue information aimed at concluding a procurement contract.
(3) Requirements provided in the present article shall be stated in the documents for the pre-qualification selection (hereinafter referred to as "pre-qualification documents) if available, and in the tender documents or in other documents relating to the invitation of tenders and shall be equitably applicable to all suppliers (contractors). The working group does not establish any other criteria, requirements or procedures in respect of the qualification of the suppliers (contractors) other than those provided in the present Article.
(4) The working group will evaluate the qualification data of suppliers (contractors) in conformity with the criteria and procedures stated in the pre-qualification documents, if existent, in the tender documents or other documents connected with the invitation of tenders.
(5) The working group :
(a) may disqualify the tenderer at any stage if established that the information presented by him for the qualification, in its merits, was false or incomplete.
(b) does not disqualify a tenderer on the grounds that the information presented by him for the qualification is to a negligible extent inaccurate or incomplete. The tenderer may be disqualified in case he does not in good time provide the additional information required by the working group.
Article 7. Pre-selection procedures
The pre-qualification procedures are subject to the provisions of Article 6 of the present Law.
(1) The working group may initiate the pre-qualification procedures in order to identify the qualified suppliers (contractors) before presenting their tenders. The provisions of Article 6 are applicable to these procedures.
(2) If the working groups initiates the pre-qualification procedures it shall present a set of pre-qualification documents to each the supplier (contractor) who in conformity with the pre-qualification invitation, requires and pays for it in case it's a paid service. This payment reflects only the costs for their publication of the documents and its delivery to the suppliers (contractors).
(3) The pre-qualification documents shall include the following
a) instructions on the preparation and presentation of the pre-
qualification applications;
b) a brief description of the basic conditions of the procurement contract that will be concluded following the procurement procedures;
c) the list of the documents that the suppliers (contractors)are to submit to confirm their qualification data;
d) the information on the manner, place and time limit for the
presentation of pre-qualification applications (specifying the time limit - the
date and the hour;
e) any other requirements dealing with the preparation and presentation of the pre-qualification applications and implementation of the pre-qualification procedures that are established by the working group in conformity with the present Law and statutory acts on procurement;
f) in respect of the tendering procedures - the information specified in with Art. 28 (1), paras. (a)-(e), (h) of the present Law, if known , the information specified in para []') of the same article;
g) in respect of the service procurement procedures - the information set out in Article 42 paras, (a) and (c) of the present Law, if known, the information set out in paras, (b), (f), (o) and (r) of the same article.
(4) The working group shall respond to any enquiry of the supplier
(contractor) in reference to the pre-qualification documents, received ten days
before the expiry of the time limit for the presentation of the applications for pre-qualification selection. The response of the working group must be presented within reasonable time limit so that the supplier (contractor) could in good time submit his application. The response to any inquiry that might be of interest to other suppliers (contractors) shall be furnished to all suppliers (contractors) whom the working group delivered the pre-qualification documents without disclosing the source of the enquiry.
(5) The pre-qualification selection criteria shall be set out in the pre-qualification documents, and these are the only criteria to be applied in the evaluation of the qualification data of the suppliers' (contractors') who submitted applications for the pre-selection.
(6) After the Procurement Agency approves the results of the pre-selection the working group shall immediately notify each supplier (contractor) who submitted an application for the pre selection of its results, and shall on request present a list of the suppliers (contractors) who passed the selection to any representative of the public. These are only suppliers (contractors) who shall participate in subsequent procurement procedures.
(7) The working group shall on request notify the suppliers (contractors)
who have not passed the pre-selection of the reasons for such decision, however
it is not obligated to motivate its decision.
Article 8. Participation of suppliers (contractors)
(1) Suppliers (contractors) are admitted to the participation m the procurement procedures regardless of the citizenship excepting the cases where the Procurement Agency in the interest of the state and in accordance with the effective legislation takes a decision on restricting tenderers to domestic suppliers (contractors). The reasons for taking such a decision are set out in the report on procurement procedures.
(2) The Procurement Agency when inviting suppliers (contractors) to participate in the procurement procedures, shall announce the manner of participation in them which cannot be altered afterwards.
Article 9. The manner of communication
(1) Documents, decisions, notifications and other communications sent by the Procurement Agency or the working group to the supplier (contractor) or b the suppliers (contractors) to the Procurement Agency or the working group shall
be presented m the manner which ensures that the content of the communication is registered.
(2) The above communications may be transmitted by communication means that do not ensure registration of the communication's contents provided that immediately afterwards the addressee is given confirmation of the communication
in the form which ensures such registration.
Article 10. equirements concerning confirmation of documents
The working group is entitled to require that the tenderer confirms the documents submitted by him to certify his qualification data;
however this requirement is not to go beyond the requirements established for the documents of this category.
Article 11. Report cm the procurement procedures
(1) The report on the procurement procedures shall be made by the working group and submitted to the Procurement Agency within 30 after conclusion of the contract. The report contains the following information :
a) brief description of goods, works and services in respect of which the Agency required tenders:
b) names of and contact information about tenderers as well as names of and contact information of a supplier (contractor) with whom the procurement contract has been concluded, and the price of this contract;
c) tenderers' qualification data;
d) tender's price and the its assessment base as well as brief description of other basic conditions for each tender and procurement contract;
e) brief description of the evaluation procedure and tender comparison based on application of the preferential margin;
f) if all tenders are rejected - the relevant decision setting out the reasons;
g) if there are procurement procedures that use procurement method other than the open procedure - the justification for choosing this method;
h) if there are procurement procedures other than the open procedure procedures, and if by reason of these procedures no procurement contract is concluded - the relevant decision setting out the grounds therefor;
i) in case the tender is rejected in accordance with the provisions
of Art.15 - reasons for rejection;
j) in case of procuring services - the description of the reasons justifying the choice of the selection procedure;
k) in case of the procurement procedures by means of direct invitation tenders for services - the description of the reasons to apply this method;
1) in case the Procurement Agency in accordance with part (1) of Art.8 restricted tHe participation of suppliers (contractors) in the procurement procedures - the description of reasons justifying the restriction;
m) brief description of requests for the explanation of pre-qualiflcation documents or tender documents , responds to them as well as brief description of any modifications made in these documents.
(2) The information specified in paras a) and b) of part (1) shall be provided on request of any person after the acceptance of the tender or after the procurement procedures that have not resulted in the conclusion of a procurement contract are complete.
(3) Information specified m paras c) - h) and m) of part (1) shall be provided on request to the supplier (contractor) who submitted tenders or applied for the pre selection, after the acceptance of the tender or after the procurement procedures that have not resulted in the conclusion of a procurement contract are complete. Except for the cases where it is required by the court, the working group is not entitled to disclose the information from paras c) -e), where release of such information is contrary to the effective legislation or public interest, prejudice the legitimate commercial interests of the parties or prejudice fair competition.
Article 12. Rejection of all tenders
(1) In case in the tender documents or other documents relating to the invitation of tenders there is a provision for the of rejecting all tenders, the working group may reject all tenders at any time before their acceptance, provided that that the Procurement Agency's approval is available. Such measure is justifiable if there is no effective competition, or tenders do not meet the requirements of the tender documents.
(2) The notice of rejection of all tenders shall be immediately sent to all tenderers. The working group on request shall give any tenderer the reason for taking such decision.
Article 13. Procurement contract award
(1) If procurement methods that envisage tendering procedures are applied, the winner shall be notified and a procurement contract shall be awarded in accordance with Art.40.
(2) If other procurement methods are applied, tenderers shall be notified of the conditions of a procurement contract's conclusion when asked for requests for proposals.
Article 14. Contract conclusion notice
(1) The Procurement Agency shall publish a procurement contract conclusion notice within 30 days after it is concluded. This notice shall contain at least the name of the supplier (contractor) to whom the contract is awarded, the subject of the contract and its price or estimated value.
(2) Part (1) shall not be applicable to the contracts the price of which is less than 2500 minimum wages , and to the contracts concluded following the special restricted tender.
Article 15. Rejection of a tender by reason of bribery
(1) The Procurement Agency shall reject a tender if it is established that the supplier (contractor) who made it gave directly or indirectly(agreed to give) to any (present or former) official or employee of the working group or the Procurement Agency a reward of any kind, made an employment proposal or proposed rendering any other service in return for doing an action, taking a decision or applying any procurement procedure in his favor.
(2) The fact that the tender is rejected as well as the reasons therefor shall be stated in the report on the procurement procedure and forthwith made known to this supplier (contractor).
(3) The Procurement Agency shall inform the appropriate authorities of
each such case.
Article 16. Characteristics of goods, works and services
(1) The characteristics of the procured goods, works and services required by the working group shall be precise and full description of the subject of procurement.
(2) The characteristics must meet the requirements of the working group in respect of the quality, efficiency, testing, safety, sizes, symbols, terminology, packaging, transportation, marking, labeling, production processes and methods of the subject of procurement, as well as the procedures relating to the determination whether it meets the tender document requirements.
(3) In describing technical characteristics, plans, drawings, sketches,
descriptions required by the working group:
a) a physical description of the procured goods, works and services is given based on the relevant and objective technical and qualitative characteristics;
b) a characteristics of the subject of procurement is given in terms of the functional qualities of the procured goods and efficiency in the implementation of works and services if such characteristics are more needed, or if the physical description is not possible;
c) standard characteristics, • requirements, symbols and terminology, or international standards and internationally recognized national standards adopted by the Department for standards, metrology and technical supervision shall be used in the description of the procured goods, works and
(4) No indication of a specific trade mark or a firm, patent, sketch or a type of a good, work, services, their origin source, specific producer or a supplier shall be given in the technical characteristics . In the cases where,sufficiently precise method for stating the requirements and the indication is not required, the characteristics shall include the words "or an equivalent".
(1) Pre-qualification, tender and other documents related to the
invitation of tenders shall be made in the state language.
(2) Documents listed in part (1) may be also made in Russian and English in the case where:
a) the nature of the procured goods, work and services require attraction
of foreign agents, resources, technologies, rendering of examination services , or the attraction of foreign competitors is required;
b) the preliminary price of the procured goods, works and services exceeds:
for goods - 25 thous. minimal wages for works - 50 thous. minimal wages; for services - 12 500 minimal wages.
(3) Tenders shall be drawn up in the language of the tender documents. Any supplier (contractor) is entitled to refer to the tender documents and state his requirements in the language of his tender.
Article 18. Procurement methods
(1) In procurement there shall be used:
b) two-stage procedure;
c) restricted procedure ;
d) special restricted procedure ;
e) request for price proposals;
f) procurement from a single source.
(2) Open procedure is the most preferable method in the procurement of
goods and works.
Article 19. Open procedure
In the open procedure tenders and applications for the pre-selection are invited from all suppliers (contractors) wishing to participate in tendering.
(2) The Procurement Agency shall in advance publish the information on the conditions of the participation in the open procedure for the potential tenderers so that they could prepare their applications and tenders for the pre¬selection.
Article 20. Two-stage procedure
(1) Two-stage tender shall be held in the case where:
a) due to impossibility to provide detailed characteristics of goods and works, or with respect to services - to define their characteristics and to take an optimal procurement decision, the Procurement Agency has to have additional negotiations with tenderers;
b) the contract is made for the purpose of research, experiment, study or development except for the cases where the contract provides for the production of goods in the quantities sufficient to ensure their commercial profitability and refund of expenses for the purposes mentioned above.
(2) At the first stage of the two-stage tendering procedure in tender documents suppliers (contractors) are tendered to submit applications without specifying their prices; technical, qualitative and other characteristics of goods, works and services are required as well as tenders relating to the terms of the contract; and, where appropriate, the information on the suppliers' (contractors') professional and technical expertise as well as qualification data.
(3) The Procurement Agency is authorized at the first stage of the two-stage tendering procedure to hold negotiations with any supplier (contractor) whose application has not been rejected.
(4) At the second stage of the two-stage tenders the tenderers who
participated in the first stage and whose applications has not been rejected shall submit final tenders with specifying the price. The Procurement Agency may exclude or alter any provision originally specified in the tender documents, or add new characteristics or criteria in accordance with this law. Information on any kind of exclusions, additions or alterations in the tender documents shall be provided to the
tenderers along with the invitation to submit final tenders. A tenderer who does not wish to submit a final tender may quit the tendering procedure without losing the right to withdraw the security for his tender. Final tenders are evaluated and compared to determine the winner.
Article 21. Restricted procedure
(1) The Procurement Agency may make procurement by means of the limited
participation tender in case:
a) goods, works and services due to their complexity or special nature are only available to a limited number of suppliers (contractors);
b) the estimate cost of the procurement contract is under 12 500 minimal wages. In this case expenses associated with the consideration and evaluation of a big number of tenders may exceed the value of goods, works and services procured.
(2) For restricted procedure the Procurement Agency shall invite tenders of the suppliers (contractors) selected in advance, who also meet its requirements and have goods, works or services for procurement, ensuring the sufficient number of tenderers for effective competition.
(3) The Procurement Agency shall notify of the restricted procedure in its publication.
Article 22. The special restricted procedure
(1) In case the subject of procurement is armament or goods, works, services associated with the country's defense or national security, or requiring secrecy or confidentiality, the Procurement Agency may hold special restricted procedure .
(2) In holding such tenders the procurement Agency shall observe the provision of Article 21 on condition that secrecy and confidentiality of the information relating to the defense and national security are ensured.
Article 23. Request for price proposals
(1) The Procurement Agency may through the request for price proposals procure available goods and services that are produced or provided not according to the specifications , and for which the sales market has already been established provided that the estimated cost of the procurement contract is under 2 500 minimum wages or under other amount set by the regulatory
procurement acts.
(2) The number of suppliers (contractors) to submit price proposals shall be determined as appropriate but not less than three. In case where it is established that only two known suppliers (contractors) possess the qualification data for the provision of the required goods, works and services, requests for price proposals shall be sent to these suppliers (contractors). In case where only one supplier (contractor) may supply necessary goods, works or services, the request for a price proposal shall be sent to this supplier (contractor) in accordance with Article 24. Each supplier (contractor) of whom a price proposal is requested shall be informed whether the price should include transportation, insurance, customs and tax expenses in addition to the expenses associated with the production of goods, works and services.
(3) The Procurement Agency may also established other requirements in addition to the price which are taken into account in the evaluation of price tenders. In such cases the requests for price proposals shall specify each such requirement and its relative value.
(4) Each supplier (contractor) may submit only one price proposal having no right to change it. No negotiations on this tender are held between the Procurement Agency and the tenderer.
(5) The lowest price tender that meets all the requirements shall win.
Article 24. Procurement from a single source.
The Procurement Agency shall -make procurement from a single source in cases where:
a) due to the particular circumstances an urgent need for goods, works or services arouse ;
b) necessary goods, works or services are only available from one supplier (contractor), or one supplier (contractor) has exclusive rights in their respect, and no variants are acceptable ;
c) the working group when purchasing goods, equipment, technologies or services from a supplier (contractor) decides to make additional procurements from this supplier (contractor) provided that their value does not exceed 30 per cent of the original procurement value;
d) a contract with this supplier (contractor) is concluded for the purpose of making research, experiments, studies or developments, except for the cases where this contract provides for the production of goods in quantities sufficient to ensure their commercial profitability or refund of expenses for the above purposes;
e) after having procurement procedures the Agency in response to the request obtained only one tender, and it is not deemed advisable to hold new tendering procedures.
Article 25. Prohibition to split up or extend procurement
(1) The procurement contract shall be concluded for the whole amount of the state resources allocated for the procurement of a specific kind of goods, works , services for a year.
(2) The Procurement Agency , the working group are not entitled to split up the procurement by making separate contracts with the aim of application of a procurement method other than the one that would be applied in accordance with this law if the procurement were not split up.
(3) The Procurement Agency , the working group are not entitled to increase the amount of goods, works, services defined in the concluded contracts in order to avoid making a new procurement.
TITLE V TENDERING PROCEDURE PARTI PART 1
INVITING APPLICATIONS AND TENDERS FOR A PRE-SELECTION
Article 26. Internal tender
The Procurement Agency is entitled to hold internal tender in cases where:
a) tenderers are limited to exclusively domestic suppliers (contractors) as envisaged in part (1) of Article 8;
b) due to low value of the procured goods, works and services that do not exceed amounts specified in para b) of part 2 of Article 17, it is expected that only domestic suppliers (contractors) will be interested in submitting tenders .
Article 27. Inviting applications and tenders for a pre-selection
(1) The Procurement" Agency shall invite applications and tenders for a pre-selection by publishing an invitation to tenders or invitation to a pre¬selection in the state language in the Agency's publication.
(2) In cases stipulated in part (2) of Article 17 these invitations are also made in Russian and English in the internationally circulating mass media.
Article 28. Inviting to tenders and pre-selection
(1) An invitation to tender shall contain the following information:
a) the name and location of the Procurement Agency;
b) the character, quantity and place of delivery of the supplied goods; the character and place where works are to be performed; the type of services and the place where they are rendered;
c) time limit for delivery of goods, completion of works and the schedule for rendering services;
d) the criteria and procedures for the evaluation of the qualification data of suppliers (contractors);
e) no subsequent modifications can be made in the provision envisaging that suppliers (contractors) participate in the procurement procedure regardless of their citizenship, or that tenderers' participation is limited in accordance with part (1) of Article 8;
f) the manner and place for collecting tender documents;
g) the amount of the fee (if chargeable) for tender documents;
h) the currency and the manner of payment for the tender documents;
i) the language (or languages) of the tender documents;
j) the place and time limit for the submission of tenders.
(2) An invitation to the pre-selection shall contain the following
a) the manner and place for collecting pre-qualification data;
b) the amount of the fee (if chargeable) for pre-qualification data;
c) the currency and the manner of payment for the pre-qualification data;
d) the language (or languages) of the pre-qualification data;
e) the place and time limit for the submission of applications for pre- selection.
Article 29. Requirements for submission of tender documents
The Procurement Agency shall provided the tender documents to suppliers (contractors) in accordance with the provisions set out in the invitation to tenders. In case a pre-selection procedure is held, the Agency provides a set of the tender documents to each supplier (contractor) who passed such selection and paid a fee (if chargeable) for these documents. The fee that the Agency is authorized to charge for the tender documents may only comprise publishing and delivery costs.
Article 30. Tender documents
Tender documents shall contain the following information:
a) the tender submission rules;
b) the criteria and procedures for the evaluation of the tenderers' qualification data and confirmation of these data;
c) the requirements regarding documents or other information which is to be submitted by the tenderers in order to confirm their qualification data;
d) the requested technical and qualitative characteristics of the procured goods, works , services, related services; time limits for the delivery of goods, performance of works and rendering of services;
e) the criteria for determining the successful tender with taking into
account the preferential margin and their relative value ;
f) the terms of the procurement contract and the form of the contract to be concluded by the parties;
g) in case variants of goods, works, services, as well as of terms of the contract or of other requirements are acceptable - an appropriate application specifying the manner of the evaluation and comparison of variants;
h) in case suppliers (contractors ) are allowed to submit tenders for only part of the procured goods, works, services - the description of the part (or parts) for which tenders can be made;
i) the manner of the price calculation and expression with specifying whether the price in addition to the cost of goods, works , services and other components should also include, for example, the transportation, insurance,
customs and other costs;
j) the currency (or currencies) in which the tender price is calculated and expressed;
k) the language (languages) of tenders; 1) the Procurement Agency's requirements to the issuer, form, size and Other basic terms of the security for a tender which is to be provided by the tenderer, and requirements to the security for implementation of the contract by a supplier (contractor) with whom a procurement contract is made;
m) the information on the possibility of changing or withdrawing a tender by a supplier (contractor) before the deadline for the submission of tenders without losing the right to withdraw the security for a tender;
n) the manner, place, deadline (date and time) for the submission of tenders;
o) the methods of the supplier's (contractor's) requesting clarification of tender documents, and the information on the intention of the Agency to hold at this stage a suppliers' (contractors') meeting;
p) the validity period of a tender;
q) the place, date and time for opening of tenders;
r) the procedures to be applied when opening of tenders;
s) the currency to be used for assessment and comparison of tenders, or exchange rate to convert the tender's price into this currency, or a notice informing that the exchange rate published by a certain financial institution and in effect on a certain date is applicable;
t) the reference to this Law, other regulatory procurement acts provided that non-reference to these shall not give rise to appeal or responsibility on behalf of the Agency;
u) the first name, last name, position, contact data of one or several officials or Agency's employees authorised to keep in touch with suppliers (contractors);
v) the notice of the right to appeal against an act, decision of the Agency or its procedure of procurement;
w) the information on the right of the working group to reject all tenders in accordance with Article 12;
x) the formalities required after the acceptance of tenders for the procurement contract, including where appropriate the confirmation by a superior body and anticipated date of receipt of such confirmation
y) other requirements established by the Agency in accordance with this law and other regulatory procurement acts.
Article 31. Clarification of and modifications in the tender documents
(1) A supplier (contractor) may request the Procurement Agency to provide clarification of the tender documents. The Agency is obligated to respond to such request in case it was received before the deadline for submission of tenders, and to do it within time limits allowing the supplier (contractor) to submit his tender in good time. The Agency shall provide this clarification without specifying the source of the request to all suppliers (contractors) to whom the tender documents have been supplied.
(2) Prior to the expiry of the time limit laid down for submission of tenders the procurement Agency has the right on its initiative or in response to the request for the clarification on behalf of the supplier (contractor) to make modifications in the tender documents. All suppliers (contractors) to whom tender documents have been supplied by the Agency shall be immediately informed of such modifications that are binding upon them.
(3) In the case where a suppliers' (contractors') meeting is held, the Procurement Agency shall draw up the minutes containing requests for clarification of the tender documents that have been made during this meeting as well as responds to these requests without specifying the source of request. The minutes shall be immediately made available to all suppliers (contractors) to whom the Agency forwarded the tender documents so that they could take account of their provisions in preparation of their tenders. These minutes shall be an integral part of the tender documents, and the provisions that the Agency considers modifications or additions to tender documents must be marked accordingly.
Article 32. Conditions for submitting tenders
(1) The Procurement Agency shall establish the place and the deadline (data and time) for submission of tenders , taking into account the commencement of their submission upon expiry of 45 days of the issue of tender documents. This time limit shall not be less than 10 days.
(2) In case the Procurement Agency provides clarification or makes amendments to the tender documents or holds a suppliers' (contractors') meeting the time limit for submission of tenders, where appropriate, shall be extended in order to give suppliers (contractors) time necessary to take account of this clarification, modification or provision in the minutes of the meeting.
(3) The Procurement Agency has the right at its discretion to extend this time limit before the submission deadline expires.
(4) A notice of the extension of the above time limit shall be forthwith forwarded to each supplier (contractor) to whom tender documents have been supplied by the Procurement Agency.
(5) A tender shall be submitted signed and in writing in a sealed envelope. Provision is also made for the possibility of submitting a tender by fax in respect of specific standardised goods in accordance with the regulations designed by the Procurement Agency. At the supplier's (contractor's) request the Agency shall issue a certificate specifying the date and time of receipt of a tender.
(6) A tender received by the Procurement Agency upon the expiry of the deadline for submission of tenders shall not be opened and shall be returned to the supplier (contractor) who submitted it.
Article 33. Validity of a tender.
Modification in and withdrawal of a tender
(1) Tenders shall remain in force within the time limit stated in tender documents.
(2) Prior to expiry of validity of tenders the Procurement Agency may propose the tenderer extending this time limit for a certain period of time. The tenderer is entitled:
a) to reject this proposal without losing the right to withdraw the security of his tender;
b) to agree to this proposal, in this instance the tenderer shall extend the validity of the security for his tender or provides a new security for the tender for the extended period of its validity. The tenderer who has not extended the validity of the security for his tender or has not provided a new security for the tender, shall be considered as the one who has rejected the proposal on extension of a tender's validity.
(3) Unless otherwise provided in the tender documents, the tenderer has the right to make an amendment or to withdraw his tender prior to the deadline for submission of tenders without losing the right to withdraw the security for his tender. Such amendment or notice of withdrawal of a tender shall be valid if it is received by the Procurement Agency prior to the expiry of the said period.
Article 34. Security for a tender
(1) In purchasing goods and works the Procurement Agency shall require of suppliers (contractors) submitting tenders to provide security for tenders at the time of their submission.
(2) Tender documents may- envisage requirements of the Procurement
Agency concerning the acceptability of the issuer of the security for a tender or of the confirming party if available, as well as concerning the forms and conditions of the security for a tender. The Agency shall not reject a tender on the ground that the security has been provided by a foreign issuer (unless it comes into conflict with the effective legislation on condition that this security for a tender and this issuer meet all other requirements of tender
(3) A supplier (contractor) prior to submission of a tender may request the Procurement Agency to confirm the admissibility of the issuer of the security or of the confirming party. The Agency shall immediately respond to this request. However, such confirmation does not prevent the Agency from rejecting the security for a tender on the ground that this issuer or the confirming party has gone bankrupt and confidence in them has been lost.
(4) The Procurement Agency shall list in the tender documents requirements in" respect of the issuer, form, size and other basic conditions of the security for a tender, and in respect of the supplier (contractor) who provides the security for a tender for the cases where:
a) a tender is rejected or changed upon the expiry of the time limit
envisaged for submission of tenders;
b) a procurement contract fails to be signed with the best tenderer;
c) a tenderer does not accept a correction of an arithmetical mistake made in accordance with Part (1) of Article 38;
d) security for execution of the contract following the acceptance of a tender is not provided, or any other requirement specified in the tender documents are not fulfilled prior to the signing of the contract.
(5) In purchasing goods and works estimated at less than 2 500 minimum wages the Procurement Agency has the right not to require of suppliers (contractors) to provide the security for a tender. In case this requirement is made, the Agency shall observe the provisions of this Article.
(6) The amount of the security for a tender shall not exceed 3 per cent of the estimated value of the procurement contract.
(7) The Procurement Agency shall not be entitled to claim the amount of the security for a tender and shall immediately return the document on the security for a tender after one of the following instances occurs:
a) expiry of a tender's security validity;
b) conclusion of procurement contract and provision of the security for
execution of the respective contract in case such provision is required by
c) termination by the Agency of tendering procedures without awarding a procurement contract;
d) withdrawal of a tender prior -to the deadline for submission of tenders if tender documents do not provided -for the inadmissibility of such withdrawal.
Article 35. Security for execution of a contract
(1) In purchasing goods and works the Procurement Agency shall require that a tenderer provides when awarded a contract a security for its execution.
(2) The Procurement Agency shall lay down in the tender documents the requirements concerning the issuer, and the form, size and other principal requirements concerning the security for execution of a contract.
(3) Prior to the provision of the security for execution of a contract a tenderer shall have the right to make an inquiry to the Procurement Agency for the confirmation of admissibility of the issuer of the offered security for execution of a contract or of the confirming party. The Agency shall immediately respond to such inquiry.
(4) In purchasing goods and works estimated at less than 2 500 minimum wages the Procurement Agency shall have the right not to require of suppliers (contractors) to provide a security for execution of a contract. In case this requirement is made, the Agency shall observe the provisions of this Article.
(5) The amount of the security for execution of a contract shall not exceed 15 per cent of the estimated value of a procurement contract.
Article 36. Tender Commission
In purchasing goods, works and services the Procurement Agency shall set up a tender commission that is responsible for opening-up of tenders and subsequent transfer thereof to the respective working groups for consideration, evaluation and comparison.
Article 37. Opening-up of tenders
(1) Tenders shall be opened up at the time the deadline for submission of tenders as specified in tender documents expires or at the time the extended time limit expires at a place and in accordance with the procedures established by the tender documents. At opening-up of tenders all tenderers or their representatives shall be present.
(2) The name and contact data on each tenderer the tender of which is being opened up as well as its price shall be announced to all those present upon opening-up, and , on request, to the tenderers who were not present or not presented at the opening-up, and shall be immediately recorded in the report on the procurement procedure.
Article 38. Consideration, evaluation and comparison of tenders
(1) To facilitate consideration, evaluation and comparison of offers the working group is entitled to request the tenderer to provide clarification of his tender. No changes in a tender are permitted (inclusive of the change in the price) following which a tender, that originally did not satisfy the requirements , would satisfy them. Purely arithmetic errors discovered in a tender during its consideration shall be corrected by the working group which immediately informs the tenderer thereof.
(2) The working group is also entitled to consider a tender as satisfying the requirements in the case where there is a negligible departure from the provisions of tender documents or mistakes or errors that can be corrected without affecting its merit. Such departures shall be to the extent possible expressed quantitatively and taken into account in the evaluation and comparison of tenders.
(3) The working group shall not accept a tender in case :
a) a tenderer does not meet the qualification requirements;
b) a tenderer does not agree with the correction of the arithmetic mistake;
c) a tender does not satisfy the requirements of the tender documents;
d) a fact of bribery has been established.
(4) The working group shall evaluate and compare tenders received to
determine the best tender by using procedures and criteria laid down in the tender documents. No criterion unless specified in tender documents shall be used. Results of the consideration, evaluation and comparison of tenders shall
be submitted to the Procurement Agency for approval.
(5) The successful tender shall be:
a) a tender offering the lowest price taking into account the preferential margin;
b) provided that specified in the tender documents - a tender offering the
lowest estimated value determined on the basis of the following criteria for which a relative value and, where possible, a value equivalent shall be established:
- a price of a tender taking into account a preferential margin;
- expenses for exploitation, technical service and repair, terms for
delivery of goods, completion of works and provision of services; functional characteristics of goods and services; terms of payments and security concerning goods, works and services;
- privileges connected with the country's defense and national security.
(6) In evaluation and comparison of tenders the working group is entitled to apply, if approved by the Procurement Agency, the preferential margin in favor of the tenders for works performed by domestic contractors , or for domestically produced goods. This margin shall not exceed 10 per cent of the price of a tender and be shown in the report on the procurement procedures.*
(7) In case the price of a tender is expressed in two or more currencies to facilitate evaluation and comparison of offers their prices shall be converted in a single currency in accordance with the exchange rate specified in tender documents.
(8) In case a tenderer does not fulfil the requirement of the working group to reconfirm the qualification data when awarded a procurement contract, his offer shall be rejected and another successful tender shall be chosen out of
those remaining. The working group shall be entitled to reject, if approved by the Procurement Agency, all other tenders.
(9) No information concerning consideration, evaluation and comparison of tenders shall be disclosed to tenderers and other persons unless they officially took part in these procedures and determination of the best tender.
Article 39. Prohibition to negotiate with tenderers
No negotiations with respect to a submitted tender shall be held between the Procurement Agency, working group on the one hand, and a tenderer on the other hand.
Article 40. Acceptance of a tender and conclusion of a procurement contract
(1) Within 3 days of the date on which the Procurement Agency approves the accepted tender, a notice in writing shall be forwarded to a tenderer who submitted it informing him that his tender has been accepted.
(2) Tender documents may require of the tenderer whose tender has been accepted to sign a procurement contract within 20 days of the date on which it is presented for signing by the tenderer. The contract shall be considered concluded at the time it is signed by the parties.
(3) If the tender documents provide that a procurement contract is to be approved by a superior body, the contract shall not come into force prior to this approval. A tentative date of such approval shall be indicated in the tender documents. Failure to be approved at this date shall not result in the extension of a tender's validity or validity of a security for a tender, which might be necessary if there is no other agreement in writing between the Procurement Agency, working group and a tenderer.
(4) Except' for the cases referred to in parts (2) and (3) a procurement contract shall, come into force at the time of dispatch to a tenderer of a contract award notice, provided that the notice is dispatched within the tender's validity period.
(5) In case where a tenderer who received a contract award notice in writing within the time limit fixed in tender documents failed to sign a contract or to submit a required security for execution of the respective contract, the working group shall be entitled to reject this tender and to chose another successful tender instead out of the valid tenders. In so doing, the working group is entitled to reject all other tenders provided that it is approved by the Procurement Agency.
(6) Within 10 days of the date a procurement contract has been concluded, other tenderers who participated in tendering shall be informed about it, the name , as well as the contact information about the supplier (contractor) whom the contract has been awarded and the value of the contract being made known to them.
SERVICE PROCUREMENT PECULIARITIES
Article 41. Inviting tenders
(1) In all the cases where there is a doubt as to whether the subject of procurement is a good or a service, the procurement shall be treated as procurement of goods.
(2) The Procurement Agency shall invite tenders for services or pre¬selection by giving a relevant notice in its official publication as well as internationally circulating mass media. The notice shall specify the name, location of the Agency, brief description of services to be procured , methods for obtaining documents relating to requests for proposals or pre-qualification documents as well the amount charged for that, if any.
(3) The Procurement Agency shall not apply provisions of part (2) in the case where:
a) services to be procured are available from a limited number of suppliers (contractors) provided that tenders of all these suppliers (contractors) are invited;
b) expenses needed for consideration and assessment of a big number of tenders are incommensurate with the value of services procured provided that tenders of a sufficient number of suppliers (contractors) are invited to ensure effective competition;
c) direct invitation is the only method to ensure confidentiality or public interest so requires on the condition laid down in paragraph b).
(4) In purchasing consulting services there is a possibility of inviting qualified consultants in accordance with the list adopted by the Procurement Agency.
(5) The Procurement Agency shall supply documents relating to the request for proposals or pre-qualification documents to suppliers (contractors) in accordance with the procedures and requirements referred to in the notice, or in the cases provided for in part (3) directly to suppliers (contractors). A fee that may be charged by the Procurement Agency for the documents relating to requests for proposals or pre-qualification documents shall only include costs associated with their printing and delivery thereof. In holding pre-selection procedures the Agency shall supply documents relating to the request for proposals or pre-qualification documents to each supplier (contractor) who has passed the selection and paid a corresponding fee.
Article 42. Documents relating to requests for proposals
Documents relating to requests for proposals shall include the following information:
a) name and location of the Procurement Agency ;
b) the method, place and time limit for submission of tenders;
c) whether the working group reserves the right to reject , provided that
it is approved by the Agency, all tenders - a relevant application;
d) the requirements relating to documents or other information to be submitted by suppliers (contractors) in order to confirm their qualification data;
e) the description of services procured, as a general rule, in the form of reference data which includes the place and time limits for provision of services;
f) whether the Agency invites tenders relating to the variants in satisfying the demand;
g) whether suppliers (contractors) are permitted to submit tenders for only part of services to be procured in respect of which tenders may be submitted;
h) the currency (currencies) in which the price of a tender must be calculated and expressed except for the cases where the price is not taken into consideration;
i) the method based on which the price of a tender must be calculated and expressed, including an indication of whether the price must in addition to the cost of services also include such components as expenses on transportation, accommodation, insurance, utilization of equipment, taxes and duties except for the cases where the price is not taken into account;
j) procedure for determination of the successful tender;
k) criteria applied in determination of the best tender, their relative value and application methods;
1) currency used in the evaluation and comparison of tenders as well as the exchange rate applied in conversion of a tender's price into this currency, or a notification indicating that an exchange rate published by a specific financial institution on a specific date will be applicable;
m) if alternative characteristics of services, terms of a contract or other requirements are permissible,- a relevant notification laying down the evaluation and comparison methods as regards alternative tenders;
n) the first name, last name, position and contact information of one or several officials or employees of the Agency authorized to directly maintain relations with suppliers (contractors);
o) the methods whereby suppliers (contractors) may ask for clarification of requests for proposals in accordance with Article 31, and a notification on the Agency's intention to hold a tenderers' meeting at this stage;
p) the terms of a procurement contract or a form of a contract to be signed by the parties;
q) references to this law, other statutory acts on the procurement procedure provided that the absence of such reference does not give grounds for appeal or for arising of responsibility on behalf of the Agency;
r) a notice of the right, referred to in this law, of appeal or a requirement to reconsider the Agency's act or decision concerning the
procurement procedure;
s) requirements concerning conclusion of a procurement contract including an approval thereof , if appropriate, by a superior body, and a supposed time limit for obtaining such approval;
t) in the case of provision of consulting services which may incur a conflict of interest - a notice stating that suppliers (contractors) to whom a contract on provision of consulting services is awarded must refrain from the participation in procurement of goods and services associated with the above services or which are the result thereof;
u) other requirements concerning preparation and submission of tenders and other procurement aspects approved by the Agency in accordance with this law and other statutory acts.
Article 43. The criteria for the selection procedure for service tenders
(1) Upon making a decision to award service contracts by other than the
negotiated procedure, the Procurement Agency shall establish a certain level of
requirements in relation to qualitative and technical characteristics in
accordance with non-price criteria laid down in the request for proposals and
shall evaluate each tender on the basis of these criteria and applying the
procedure described in the requests for proposals. The best tender shall be :
a) that offering the lowest price;
b) that with the most advantageous aggregate estimated value taking into
account non-price criteria and prices.
(2) Upon making a decision to apply a consecutive negotiation procedure to
award a contract, the Procurement Agency shall apply the following procedures:
a) establishment of the level of requirements in accordance with part (1);
b) inviting to negotiations on the price of a tender of a tenderer who got the best evaluation in accordance with part (1);
c) informing this tenderer of the termination of negotiations in the case where it is impossible to come to an agreement with him on the mutually acceptable price of a tender;
d) inviting to negotiations on the price of-a-tender of a tenderer who got the second best evaluation. In case of a failure to conclude a contract with that tenderer - inviting to negotiations other tenderers on the basis of the evaluations obtained by them until the contract is concluded or all remaining tenders are rejected.
Article 45. Confidentiality
(1) The Procurement Agency, the working group shall consider tenders confidentially without permitting their contents to be disclosed to competing tenderers.
(2) Negotiations held in accordance with Article 44 are of the confidential nature . Neither party shall have the right to disclose to a third party, without obtaining consent of the other party concerned, any information under negotiation.
TITLE VII APPEAL
Article 46. Right of appeal
(1) Any supplier (contractor) who believes that he has incurred or might incur losses as a result of the procurement procedure, may appeal against the Procurement Agency actions or decision.
(2) No subject of appeal may be:
a) choice of procedures for selection of tenders for service procurement;
b) restriction of participation in the procurement procedures as envisaged in part (1) of Article 8;
c) decision on rejection of all tenders;
d) absence of references to this law, other regulatory acts on procurement procedures, and absence of the notice of the right of appeal.
Article 47. Administrative appeal
(1) A supplier (contractor) is entitled to make a justified claim in respect of the Agency's action, decision or procedure applied by it.
(2) The Procurement Agency shall not consider the claim if it is made upon expiry of 20 days after the supplier (contractor) who filed a claim has learnt the circumstances that served as the ground for the claim, or should have learnt them.
(3) If the claim cannot be settled by means of agreement between the parties, the head of the Procurement Agency shall within 3 0 days from the date on which the claim is brought shall make a justified decision containing measures aimed at improving the situation that are to be taken if the claim has been wholly or partly confirmed.
(4) If the Procurement Agency does not make a decision within the period laid down in part (3), or the supplier (contractor) is not satisfied with the decision made, he is entitled to take legal action in accordance with Article 50. After initiating proceedings the Agency loses the right to consider the given claim.
(5) If the supplier (contractor) does not take legal action, the Procurement Agency's decision shall be final.
(6) The Procurement Agency shall be responsible for recovery of losses, incurred by the supplier (contractor) as a result of the Procurement Agency's illegitimate action, decision or procedure applied by it, other than profit not realized or missed opportunity to realize profit.
Article 48. Some procedures concerning appeal procedures
(1) The Procurement Agency shall immediately after receiving a notice inform all suppliers (contractors) participating in the procurement procedure of its content.
(2) A supplier (contractor) or a public institution whose interests are prejudiced or may be prejudiced have the right to participate in these procedures. A supplier (contractor) who failed to participate in the appeal procedure may not subsequently file a similar claim.
(3) The Procurement Agency's decision within 5 days of the date on which it is made shall be dispatched to the supplier (contractor) who made a claim, or to any other supplier (contractor) , or a public institution which participated in the appeal procedure. The claim and the decision shall forthwith be presented for familiarization to all parties concerned unless release of such information is contrary to law, public interest, or prejudice the legitimate commercial interests of the parties concerned, or prejudice fair competition.
Article 49. Suspending the procurement procedures
(1) Filing a claim within the established time limit shall suspend the procurement procedures for 7 days provided that the claim is substantial and contains justification for the following:
a) without such suspension the supplier (contractor) incurs losses;
b) there is a possibility of satisfying this claim;
c) suspension does not prejudice parties participating in the procurement procedure.
(2) In case a procurement contract is concluded, timely filing of a claim
shall suspend execution of the. procurement contract for 7 days provided that the claim meets the requirements of part (1).
(3) The Procurement Agency may extend the time limit for suspension laid down in parts (1) and (2) with the intention of ensuring right of the supplier (contractor) who made a claim or took legal action unless total suspension
period exceeds 3 0 days.
(4) The decision of the Procurement Agency made in accordance with this article with indication of the grounds shall include a report on procurement procedures.
(5) No suspension shall be applied if in the Procurement Agency's opinion urgent public interest requires continuation thereof. A decision containing justification for such interest , also including a report on procurement procedures shall be final to the exclusion of the cases where an appeal to court lies from it..
Article 50. Appealing to court
The Procurement Agency's decision with respect to the administrative claim may be the subject of appeal to court in conformity with the effective legislation.
Article 51. Responsibility for non-observance of this law
The Procurement Agency, working groups , subjects of procurement that permitted non-observance of the requirements of this law shall be brought to property, administrative or criminal responsibility according to the law.
This law comes into effect on the date of its publication.
The Government shall within 3 months :
submit to the Parliament proposals on bringing the effective legislation into line with this law;
ensure revision and annulment by all ministries and departments of their regulatory acts that are contrary to this law; approve the composition of the National Agency for public procurement and Provision thereon.
The National agency for public procurement shall develop and adopt The Provision on the Procurement Working Group.
Before regulatory acts are brought into line with this law, they shall be applicable in so far as they are not contrary thereto.
Contracts on delivery of goods, works and services concluded before this law comes into effect shall be valid until the expiry of their validity period.
Chairman of Parliament Dumitru Motspan
30 April 1997 No.1166-XIII