At the end of this module you will be able to:

01 Familiarize with the European tender opportunities

02 Being aware of the different tendering procedures  

03 Browse autonomously through the TED and the SEDIA portals

04 Being aware of the European Social Fund as funding opportunity 

1. Structural Funds

→ aimed at growth and employment according to territorial development objectives

2. Centralised Programmes

→ competitiveness and innovation on a European scale

3. Cooperation and technical assistance programmes with Third Countries

→ assistance and support for EU external action

4. European Tenders

→ supply and procurement of goods, services and works from the market

Calls for tenders are procedures applied to generate offers from companies competing for works, supply or service contracts in the framework of public procurement.

Every year numerous contracts are awarded through calls for tenders (public procurement procedures), ranging from supply of office furniture, provision of translation services to maintenance of buildings.

The EU also seeks to ensure that its purchasing power encourages a competitive market economy taking into account people's wellbeing and social needs, as well as environmentally conscious.

Public contracts are awarded by users of public funds and entities operating in specific, non-competitive conditions (for example energy, water, public transport, postal services), for the purchase of services, supplies or civil engineering works.

Usually, all medium and higher value contracts must be awarded through competitive procedures (tenders), although there are exclusions and exceptions, such as:

The standard way of awarding contracts is through competitive tendering. There are different types of public tendering procedures.

In an open procedure anyone may submit a full tender. This procedure is very frequent.

Anyone may ask to participate in a restricted procedure, but only those who are pre-selected may submit tenders.

Other types of procurement procedures:

If your company, organisation or institution is established in the EU, you have the right to compete for a public tender in any EU country. You can:

You may not be allowed to participate in a procedure if you or your company cannot be trusted, for example the tenderer:

Tenders are evaluated by awarding points based on pre-published criteria, with each category worth a certain amount; for example the price offered may be worth 40%, technical characteristics 50% and environmental impact 10%.

The evaluation of tenders may only begin after the deadline for submission has expired.

You should be informed as soon as possible as to whether you have won the contract or not. If you have not been selected, you are entitled to an explanation of why your tender was rejected.

If you feel that you have been discriminated against, or noticed irregularities in the procedure, you can request a review of the procedure or file a complaint.

The time limit set by purchasers should be sufficient to give you reasonable time to prepare offers; the minimum time limit can differ depending on the type of the procurement procedure.

You have at least 30 days from the publication date of the contract notice to submit a tender if a prior information notice wasn't published. If a prior information notice was published, the time limit should be at least 15 days.

You have at least 30 days from the publication of the contract notice to send your request to participate.

The shortlisted candidates then have at least 25 days to submit their tenders, from the date when the invitation to submit the tender was sent if a prior information notice wasn't published. If a prior information notice was published, the time limit should be at least 10 days.

The Tenders Electronic Daily (TED) portal is the online version of the Supplement to the Official Journal of the EU where all higher value European public procurement tenders are published. You can browse, search and sort procurement notices by subject, country, purchaser and more, and if you register on the portal you can save your personalized searches and set up email alerts.

Public tenders published on TED can be browsed on the basis of 4 filters:

The most frequent business opportunities are:   Call for expression of interest • Contracting authority • Contract description • Lots • Type of procedure • Budget • Indicative date of publication of the tender   Contract notice •  Eligibility criteria • Selection and evaluation criteria • References to the Tender Dossier • Deadlines

 

 

The results can be further filtered by:   • Work   • Goods   • Services

 

Public tenders are also published on SEDIA, the European Commission's portal for all Funding & Tenders Opportunities*.

*Click on the image for hyperlink

European Structural and Investment Funds (ESIF) - European Social Fund (ESF)

Another important branch of funding opportunities is the:
•  European Structural and Investment Funds (ESIF). Specific attention is given to European Social Fund (ESF), which supports EU investments in human capital development for better employability opportunities of young and adult people.

In cooperation with the European Commission, Member States agree on one or multiple operational programmes detailing specific priorities and objectives for that given seven-year programming period (2021 – 2027).

Funds are distributed per region based on a specific set of parameters – regional GDP compared to EU average – which results in the so defined “eligibility criteria” of the given region.

There are three cluster of eligibility criteria, users can find the eligibility of their region following this link, under the “Maps” section.

Financial resources from the ESF are aimed at supporting local projects that strengthen employment opportunities for young people and adults, but also education, equal opportunities and social inclusion. These projects are conceived as formal partnership between the European Commission and national/regional authorities, with the additional support and engagement of a large cohort of groups of interest from public, private and thirds sectors.

The nature of ESF-funded projects can be extremely diverse, even more in consideration of the fact the scale and scope of the fund vary depending on the beneficiary region.

For a comprehensive overview on what kind of use each Member State is making of ESF, please consult the following interactive map.

Remember (now you know):

01 Familiarize with the European tender opportunities

02 The different tendering procedures

03 Browse autonomously through the TED and the SEDIA portals

04 The European Social Fund as funding opportunity

Keep going!