Procurement & grant regulations / awards

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Published on 2018/02/21

This fact sheet describes the rules and awarding procedures of procurement and grant contracts, as applicable to Expertise France within the scope of its cooperation projects.

In the "Documents" section below, you will find the lists of procurements and grants awarded in 2014 and onward within the scope of EU-funded projects implemented by Expertise France under the EU's indirect management rules.
 

General context

Expertise France, being a public industrial and commercial entity (denoted EPIC in France), is subjected to the French national law stemming from European Directive 2014/24/EU pertaining to public procurement practices, more specifically Order No. 2015-899 issued on 23 July 2015 and its implementation decree No. 2016-360 enacted on 25 March 2016. This Order imposes deploying a set of formalized procedures for any purchase exceeding the European threshold of €209,000 net of tax for goods and services (€5.225 million for construction work)[1] and, as of the first € of expenditure, respecting the following fundamental principles: free access to public sector tendering, fair treatment of all applicants, and transparency.

Expertise France applies these rules for purchases conducted within the scope of executing its cooperation projects, with the exception of specific rules stipulated in contracts or rules imposed by certain funders (Manual for Twinning Projects, World Bank Guidelines, PRAG guide, etc.).

The award of grant contracts by Expertise France within the scope of its cooperation projects is subject to the set of rules defined in Chapter 6 of the PRAG - European Union’s Practical Guide - under the conditions stipulated by its public procurement and grant regulations (new version entered into force le 30th march 2017).
 

Actors in the contract award process

Within Expertise France, the primary actors involved in the procurement and grant process are as follows:

  1. Operating unit of the Operations Division assigned responsibility, within the scope of executing a cooperation project, for awarding a procurement or grant contract as well as for the project’s execution and financial oversight.
  2. Evaluation committee overseeing regulatory compliance, validation of bid documents and calls for tender, selection of contracted parties and the draft procurement and grant contracts prior to their notification. Its members must all be employed by Expertise France.
  3. Contract signatory(ies), duly certified to legally hire Expertise France, namely the corporate officer (Managing Director) or the officer’s agents
  4. Department of Legal Affairs, acting in the capacity of assigned internal controller for procurement and grant contract awards issued within the scope of cooperation projects. Prior to the signature of any contract in excess of €50,000, the procurement and grant contracting process calls for issuing a legal opinion regarding the legality and legal security built into the given draft contract. Beyond a €200,000 contract award, the Legal Affairs Department is to provide preliminary validation by issuing a non-objection opinion covering both the procedure to initiate and all items relative to the tendering process, the selection of short-listed tenderers, as well as the contract award and final draft contract submitted to Expertise France for signature.
  5. CGEFI - General Economic and Financial Controller, acting in the capacity of external controller, issues a preliminary opinion upon conclusion of any procurement contract in excess of €200,000 (net of tax) regarding the legality and financial viability of the applicable draft contract. (The Department of Legal Affairs is responsible for contacting CGEFI to ensure submission of the particular contracts.)
  6. Procurement expert, whose services are requested by the Policy Department on an as-needed basis, for support in implementing contract award procedures (needs definition, analysis of tenderers and bids, write-up of draft contract, negotiation, etc.). The procurement expert provides technical support during the contract award procedures yet under no circumstances is empowered to take the place of the Expertise France Operating Unit, which as the lone supervisor of procedures implemented regarding procurement and grant awards, must validate each step and decision made during these procedures.
     

Procurement and grant contract award procedures

Procurement < €20,000 (net of tax):

  • Direct award[2]
  • No specific formalized protocols imposed upon the contract, yet a trace is required of a legal commitment signed by an authorized party
  • In the context of cooperation projects requiring the establishment of a local team and / or the procurement of a large number of low-value small purchases, a delegation of power may be given to a member of the local team within the limit of 2500 € HT
  • Procurement lying between €20,000 and €50,000 (net of tax):
    • Competitive tender[3] held through a tendering process limited to 3 firms previously deemed capable of satisfying the projected needs (3-quote rule)
    • Award & procedure report

Procurement lying between €50,000 and €200,000 (net of tax):

  • Subject to competitive tender[4] by means of the appropriate notification channels
  • Formalization of a draft contract (according to the EF template) and a complete file of tender documents
  • Restricted Evaluation Committee
  • Award & procedure report
  • Legal Affairs Department’s legal opinion issued prior to contract signature by Expertise France

Procurement > €200,000 (net of tax):

  • Subject to competitive tender[5] via publication of an announcement in the EU’s Official Journal[6], prepared jointly by the Operating Unit and the Legal Affairs Department
  • Formalization of a draft contract along with a complete file of tender documents
  • Legal Affairs Department’s non-objection opinion prior to initiating the tender procedure and, if applicable, validation of the short list of tenderers
  • Evaluation committee at the end of the tender procedure
  • Award & procedure report
  • CGEFI’s opinion prior to contract signature by Expertise France

Grant (no threshold):

  • Call for projects by means of public notice[7] on an appropriate media support (Expertise France website and local or specialized publication support for the particular field)
  • Formalization of a draft contract along with a complete file of tender documents
  • Legal Affairs Department’s non-objection opinion prior to initiating the tender procedure and, if applicable, validation of the short list of tenderers
  • Evaluation committee at the end of the tender procedure
  • Award & procedure report

Important: Any procurement or grant project must be expressly validated beforehand by the Operating Department of the Operations Division assigned oversight for the cooperation project (Paris head office).

[1] The thresholds in effect in September 2016 may be modified going forward.

[2] The contracting authority ensures selection of a relevant proposal, the effective use of public funds and avoidance of systematic reliance on a single economic operator in cases when an array of proposals could satisfy the buyer’s needs.

[3] Except in cases of exemption, as defined for procedures bypassing competitive bid without prior public notice (i.e. mutual agreements), stipulated in Article 30 of Decree No. 2016-360 enacted on 25 March 2016 relative to public procurement contracts containing conventional justification language of mutual agreements (international standard, namely the European Directive applicable to public procurement), e.g. extreme urgency, de jure or de facto monopoly, research/experimentation.

[4] Idem 3

[5] Idem 3

[6] The publication threshold in effect at the EU’s Official Journal for construction contracts is set at €5,225,000.

[7] Except in cases of exemption involving mutual agreement contracts, as defined in Article 6.4.2 of the PRAG guide.