REPUBLIC OF LITHUANIA
LAW ON
PUBLIC PROCUREMENT
13 August 1996 – No I-1491
(As last amended on 21 June 2011 – No XI-1494)
Vilnius
CHAPTER I
GENERAL PROVISIONS
Article 1. Purpose of the Law
1. This Law shall establish the procedure of public procurement, the rights, obligations and responsibility of entities of procurement, the procedure for exercising the control of public procurement and settling disputes.
2. The provisions of the Law have been harmonised with the EU legal acts presented in the Annex to this Law.
Article 2. Definitions
1. Open procedure shall mean a procurement procedure whereby any interested supplier may submit a tender.
2. Common Procurement Vocabulary (hereinafter referred to as “CPV”) shall mean the classification system applicable to public procurement adopted by Regulation (EC) No 2195/2002 and ensuring that it complies with other valid classifications. In the event of varying interpretations of the scope of this Law, owing to possible differences between the CPV and accordingly the Statistical Classification of Economic Activities (EVRK), the national version of the Statistical Classification of Economic Activities in the European Community (NACE Rev.1), or the Provisional Central Product Classification (hereinafter referred to as “CPC”) as indicated in Appendix 1 and Appendix 2 of this Law, the EVRK and CPC classifications shall take precedence.
3. Central purchasing body shall mean a contracting authority referred to in subparagraphs 1, 2 and 3 of paragraph 1 of Article 4 of this Law which:
4. Central portal of public procurement shall mean an information system managed by the Central Procurement Office and intended for:
6. Negotiated procedures shall mean a procurement procedure whereby the contracting authority consults the suppliers of its choice and negotiates the terms of contract with one or more of these.
7. Dynamic purchasing system shall mean a completely electronic process for making commonly used purchases, the characteristics of which, as generally available on the market, meet the requirements of the contracting authority. The use of the dynamic purchasing system shall be limited in duration. The system shall be open throughout its validity to any supplier concerned, provided it satisfies the qualification requirements set forth by the contracting authority and has submitted an indicative tender that complies with the specifications.
8. Electronic auction shall mean a repetitive process involving an electronic device for the presentation of new prices, revised downwards, and/or new values concerning certain elements of tenders. It occurs after an initial full evaluation of the tenders, enabling them to be ranked using automatic evaluation methods. Consequently, certain service contracts and certain works contracts having as their subject-matter intellectual performances, such as the design of works, may not be the object of electronic auctions.
9. Electronic means shall mean using electronic equipment for the processing (including digital compression) and storage of the data transmitted and received by wire, by radio, by optical means or by other electromagnetic means.
11. Candidate shall be any supplier seeking an invitation to take part in a restricted or a negotiated procedure or the competitive dialogue.
12. Statement of confidentiality shall be a statement made in writing by a member or expert of the public procurement commission or any other person whereby he undertakes not to furnish information to third parties, where disclosure of such information would be contrary to the requirements of this Law or public interests or would harm the legitimate interests of the suppliers and/or contracting authority participating in the procurement procedure.
13. Competitive dialogue shall mean a procurement procedure in which any supplier may request to participate and whereby the contracting authority conducts a dialogue with the selected candidates with the view to developing one or more suitable alternatives meeting its requirements, on the basis of which the selected candidates are invited to submit tenders.
14. Pre-qualification selection shall mean a procurement procedure whereby the contracting authority selects, on the basis of the qualification criteria laid down in the contract documents, candidates eligible to be invited to participate in the further procurement procedure.
15. Small value public procurement (hereinafter referred to as small value procurement) shall mean a simplified procurement procedure where there is at least one of the following conditions:
1) the contract value net of VAT is less than LTL 100000 for supplies or services, or less than LTL 500000 for works;
2) the similar supplies, services or works shall be procured by awarding a separate contract (contracts) having the same subject-matter at the same time in the form of separate lots, if the total value of the contracts is up to 10% of the total value of the same type of contracts for simplified procurement of supplies or services and less than LTL 100000 (net of VAT), or up to 1.5% of the value of a contract for simplified procurement of works with the same subject-matter and less than LTL 500000 (net of VAT).
16. Impeccable reputation shall mean individuals other than those listed below:
1) persons convicted of a serious and grave crime, or of a crime against the economy and business practice, the financial system or the civil service and public interest, irrespective of whether the conviction has expired or has been expunged;
3) persons in breach of the requirements of the Law of the Republic of Lithuania on Adjustment of Public and Private Interests in the Public Service;
6) persons who have been imposed a penalty (except for a warning) under the Code of Administrative Offences of the Republic of Lithuania for a violation of the public procurement procedure, and the penalty is still in effect;
7) persons in breach of the norms of the Code of Conduct for Politicians of the Republic of Lithuania;
17. Declaration of impartiality shall mean a written statement given by a member or expert of the Public Procurement Commission or another person declaring his impartiality with respect to the suppliers.
18. Request shall mean the willingness as expressed by the supplier to take part in the procurement procedures.
19. Tender shall mean the totality of the documents submitted by the supplier in writing and the data submitted by electronic means or an orally made offer to supply products, provide services or perform works under the purchasing terms fixed by the contracting authority.
20. Tender security and security for the performance of the public purchase-sale contract shall mean the method of ensuring the fulfilment of an obligation laid down by the Civil Code of the Republic of Lithuania.
21. Contract documents shall mean the documents presented by the contracting authority to the suppliers and the data submitted by electronic means describing the objective of procurement and contract terms and conditions: a contract notice, an invitation to tender, technical specifications, descriptive documents, draft contract, other documents and clarifications (fine-tuning) of these documents.
22. Period of deferment of conclusion of a contract (hereinafter referred to as a “period of deferment”) shall mean a period of 15 days which commences from the dispatch of a notice of the award of the contract from the contracting authority to interested candidates and interested tenderers and during which the contract may not be concluded.
23. Framework agreement shall mean an agreement between one or more contracting authorities and one or more suppliers, the purpose of which is to establish the terms governing contracts to be awarded during a given period, in particular with regard to price and, where appropriate, the quantity envisaged.
24. Design contest shall mean a procurement procedure which enables the contracting authority to acquire, mainly in the fields of territorial planning, architecture and engineering or data processing, a plan or design submitted for the contest and selected by the jury. The tenderers may be awarded prizes or payments.
25. Written or in writing shall mean any expression of information consisting of words or figures which can be read, reproduced and subsequently communicated. This term shall include information which is transmitted and stored by electronic means.
26. Restricted procedure shall mean a procurement procedure in which any supplier may request to participate and whereby only those suppliers invited by the contracting authority may submit a tender.
27. Interested tenderer shall mean any tenderer, with the exception of a tenderer who has been permanently eliminated from the procurement procedure, i.e., he has been notified of rejection of his tender, and whose elimination due to the expiry of the period of limitation cannot be subject to appeal or on the validity of whose elimination a court has passed an effective judgement.
28. Interested candidate shall mean any candidate, with the exception of a candidate whom the contracting authority has notified of rejection of his tender until the dispatch of a notice of the award of the contract to interested tenderers.
29. Supplier (supplier, service provider, contractor) shall mean any economic entity that may be either a natural person, or a private legal person, or a public legal person, other organisations and divisions thereof or any group of such persons, which is able to offer or is offering supplies, services or works.
30. Public procurement of works shall mean public procurement having as its object either the execution, or both execution and design, of works related to one of the activities referred to in Appendix 1 of this Law, or the execution, by whatever means, of work corresponding to the requirements set by the contracting authority. Work shall mean the outcome of building works taken as a whole that is sufficient of itself to fulfil an economic or technical function. The objective of procurement shall be to award a public sales-purchase contract.
31. Public procurement of services shall mean public procurement having as its object A- and B-type services listed in Appendix 2 to this Law, as well as procurement having as its object supplies and the services listed in Appendix 2 of this Law, where the value of such services exceeds that of the supplies, or procurement having as its object the services listed in Appendix 2 of this Law and the works listed in Appendix 1 of this Law, where these works are incidental to the principal object of the services contract. The objective of procurement shall be to award a public sales-purchase contract.
32. Public procurement (hereinafter referred to as “procurement”) shall mean the procurement of supplies, services or works performed by the contracting authority subject to the rules set forth in this Law, the object of which shall be to award a public sales-purchase contract.
33. Public procurement of supplies shall mean public procurement having as its object the purchase, rental, leasing (financial lease) or hire purchase, with or without option to buy, of supplies, also the services of delivery, siting, installation of the supplies purchased and other services necessary for preparing the supplies for use. The objective of procurement shall be to award a public sales-purchase contract.
34. Public sales-purchase contract (hereinafter referred to as a “public contract”) shall mean a contract for pecuniary interest concluded in writing, except in the case specified in paragraph 10 of Article 18 of this Law, where a public contract may be concluded orally, between one or more suppliers and one or more contracting authorities and having as its object the supply of products, the provision of services or the execution of works.
Article 3. Main Principles of Public Procurement and Compliance Therewith
1. The contracting authority shall ensure, in the course of performance of procurement procedures and award of contracts, compliance with the principle of equal treatment, the principle of non-discrimination, the principle of mutual recognition, the principle of proportionality and the principle of transparency.
2. The goal of procurement shall be to award a public contract in compliance with the requirements set in this Law allowing to acquire for the contracting authority (to perform procurement by the authorising contracting authority) or third persons the necessary supplies, services or works making a rational use of the resources allocated for this purpose.
3. Where a contracting authority grants special or exclusive rights to carry out a public service activity to an entity other than such a contracting authority, the act by which that right is granted shall provide that, in respect of the contracts which it awards to third parties for supplies necessary for the provision of public services, the entity concerned must comply with the principle of non-discrimination on the basis of nationality.
4. For the purpose of the award of contracts, the contracting authority shall apply to suppliers from other EU Member States (hereinafter referred to as the “Member States”) conditions as favourable as those which it grants to the suppliers of third countries in implementation of the World Trade Organization’s Agreement on Government Procurement.
Article 4. Contracting Authority
1. A contracting authority shall be:
2) any public or private legal person meeting the conditions set forth in paragraph 2 of this Article;
3) any association of authorities specified in subparagraph 1 and/or of public or private legal persons referred to in subparagraph 2 of this paragraph;
2. A public or private legal person (with the exception of state or local authorities) shall be deemed to be a contracting authority, if all or part of its activities is intended for meeting the needs of general interest, not having an industrial or commercial character, and meets at least one of the following conditions:
1) the activities thereof are financed, by more than 50%, with state or municipal budget resources, or with resources of other state or municipal funds, or with the resources of other public or private legal persons specified in this paragraph;
2) it is subject to control (management) by the state or local authorities, or other public or private legal persons specified in this paragraph;
3. The Government of the Republic of Lithuania or an institution authorised by it shall approve the lists of contracting authorities (including military units and services of the national defence system).
4. The institution which approves the lists specified in paragraph 3 of this Article must ensure that the lists are updated on a regular basis. The institution shall notify the European Commission on a regular basis of any changes in the lists.
5. A contracting authority shall be registered with the Central Portal of Public Procurement in accordance with the procedure laid down by the Central Procurement Office and shall submit the following data accumulated and stored in the Register of Legal Entities: the name, code, also its type code as a contracting authority specified according to the List of Contracting Authorities’ Type Codes approved by the Director of the Central Procurement Office. In the event of a change in the submitted data, the contracting authority shall update the appropriate data not later than within five working days from the appearance of new information.
Article 5. Suppliers
1. If the candidates or participants have the right to provide a certain service, supply goods or perform works under the laws of the Member State in which they are established, they must not be rejected only on the ground that, as required under the laws of the Member State in which the contract of procurement is awarded, they must be natural or legal persons. However, in the case of public supply contracts, public service or public works contracts, legal persons may be requested to indicate in the request to participate or tender the names and professional qualifications of the staff to be responsible for the performance of the contract in question.
2. The request to participate or tender may be submitted by a group of economic entities. Where such a group is willing to submit a request to participate or a tender, the contracting authority may not demand that the group acquire a certain legal form, however, after the contracting authority makes a decision to award a public contract to the selected group, it may be required to acquire a certain legal form if this is necessary for a proper performance of the public contract.
Article 6. Confidentiality
1. Without prejudice to the requirements set forth by laws, in particular those concerning the obligations relating to the publication of awarded contracts and to the information to candidates and tenderers set out in Articles 41, 74, 79 and paragraph 4 of Article 86 of this Law, the contracting authority, the Public Procurement Commission, the members or experts thereof and other persons shall not disclose to third parties information forwarded to it by suppliers which they have designated as confidential. Such information includes, in particular, technical or trade secrets and the confidential aspects of tenders. At the request of the tenderers, the contracting authority must provide them with access to other tenderers’ tenders, with the exception of the information which the tenderers have designated as confidential.
2. The contracting authority referred to in subparagraph 4 of paragraph 1 of this Law may, in providing technical specifications to suppliers, assessing their qualification, performing pre-qualification selection of candidates and concluding contracts, set forth the requirements which would protect the confidential nature of the information provided by it.
Article 7. Planning of Procurement. Commencement and Completion of Procurement
1. The contracting authority, with the exception of diplomatic missions, consular posts of the Republic of Lithuania abroad and missions of the Republic of Lithuania to international organisations, shall draw up and approve the plans of public procurement planned to be carried out during the current budget year and shall publish in the Central Portal of Public Procurement and on its website, if any, on an annual basis not later than by 15 March, and in the event of adjustment of these plans – without delay, a summary of the public procurement to be carried out during that year indicating the name, address of the contracting authority, contact data, the name and code of the subject-matter of the contract, the anticipated amount or volume (if possible), the anticipated date of commencement of procurement, manner of procurement, the duration of validity of the contract to be concluded, also shall publish in advance draft technical specifications of the procurement of large scope and relevance. The summary of public procurement and the draft technical specifications shall be published and the comments and proposals regarding these drafts shall be assessed in accordance with the procedure laid down by the Public Procurement Office.
2. The procurement shall commence upon receipt by the Public Procurement Office of a notice of procurement submitted by the contracting authority, or a prior call for competition submitted by the contracting authority operating in the water, energy, transport or postal services sectors; in negotiated procedure without publication of a contract notice – upon sending invitations to tender to the candidate (candidates); in case of the procurement governed by Chapter IV of this Law – when the contracting authority approaches a supplier (suppliers) requesting to submit a tender (tenders).
3. Procurement (or procurement of a lot) shall be completed:
1) upon conclusion of a contract (framework agreement) or selection of the winner in the design contest;
5) the tender validity period expires and the contract is not concluded due to the reasons that are beyond the suppliers’ control;
4. Having received the consent of the Public Procurement Office, the contracting authority may at any time before the award of the contract terminate the procurement procedure should unforeseen circumstances arise. The consent of the Public Procurement Office shall not required in the event of termination of the procurement procedures governed by Chapter IV of this Law.
Article 8. Public Procurement Office
1. The Public Procurement Office shall be a body operating under the Ministry of Economy which implements the public procurement policy and supervises compliance with this Law and the implementing legislation, is governed by this Law and other laws, legal acts and international commitments of the Republic of Lithuania and its own regulations and is financed from the state budget. The Public Procurement Office shall be a public legal entity having its bank account and a seal with the Lithuanian state emblem and its name inscribed therein. The regulations of the Public Procurement Office shall be subject to approval by the Ministry of Economy. The Director of the Public Procurement Office shall be recruited and dismissed by the Minister of Economy in accordance with the procedure laid down by the Law of the Republic of Lithuania on Civil Service.
2. The Public Procurement Office shall fulfil the following functions:
2) carry out prevention of violations of this Law and related secondary legal acts, control compliance of contracting authorities with the requirements of these legal acts and the terms and conditions of the awarded public contracts in procuring the required supplies, services or works and ensure appropriate planning of procurement, performance of public contracts, also assess the results of performance of the public contracts;
4) provide methodological assistance, draw up the recommendations necessary for implementing the Law on Public Procurement, lay down guidelines;
5) collect, store and analyse information about public procurement, whether intended or in process, as well as about the awarded public contracts and the contract performance results, also establish violations of the public procurement procedure, the character of the violations and the related decisions and penalties. Provide such information, except for confidential information, to state and municipal institutions and agencies and publish it;
7) organise the training of the contracting authorities’ civil servants or employees responsible for procurement and train the said persons;
8) offer consultations to contracting authorities and suppliers or make arrangements for their consulting on issues of procurement;
9) when deciding on the issues of procurement, maintain contacts with the relevant foreign institutions and international organisations;
10) approve the forms of simplified procurement notices and specify the requirements for submitting the notices;
13) prepare and submit to the European Commission, within the time limits and in the form set by the Commission, annual statistics on procurement of supplies, services and works as well as any other information that may be requested;
14) forward the notices of contracting authorities to the Office of Official Publications of the European Union for publication as well as ensure publication of other notices and information submitted by the contracting authorities;
15) present to the European Commission the information specified in Article 97 of this Law about a violation of EU law;
16) present to the European Commission the information specified in paragraph 5 of Article 951 of this Law about decisions taken by court;
3. Rights of the Public Procurement Office:
1) to independently select the contracting authorities subject to inspection, the manner of inspecting, its scope and time;
2) to obtain from the contracting authority the information relating to procurement or performance of a public contract and the documents required for performance of the functions of the Public Procurement Office, also to temporarily, for a period not exceeding 30 days, seize from the contracting authority the original copies of these documents under a statement of the seizure of the documents;
3) where there is a ground for believing that the documents relating to procurement or performance of the contract have been forged, to hand the originals of these documents over to law enforcement institutions;
4) to be provided by the contracting authority, the Public Procurement Commission or its members as well as experts taking part in procurement procedures with clarifications of procurement-related actions and decisions;
5) to present contract documents and tenders submitted by suppliers for additional expert examination;
6) if suspecting violations of this Law and other legal acts relating to implementation thereof or acting in compliance with the principles of fairness and reasonableness, to place the contracting authority under the obligation to suspend procurement procedures until the Public Procurement Office evaluates the documents and decisions of the contracting authority, and in the event of establishing these violations – to place the contracting authority under the obligation to terminate the procurement procedures, amend or annul the unlawful decisions or actions;
7) in the cases specified by this Law, to issue consent for the contracting authority to terminate procurement procedures or amend the terms of the contract;
8) to take an administrative action in the manner prescribed by laws of the Republic of Lithuania against the persons who violate this Law;
9) upon establishment of violations of this Law or possible violations of the Law of the Republic of Lithuania on Competition, possible manifestations of corruption, to forward the material for further investigation to law enforcement institutions or to the Competition Council of the Republic of Lithuania;
Article 9. Calculation of the Value of the Intended Procurement
1. The value of the intended procurement shall be the value of the public contracts intended to be awarded by the contracting authority calculated on the basis of the total amount payable, net of VAT, including any form of option and any renewals of the contract. Where the contracting authority provides for prizes and/or other payments to candidates or tenderers, it must take them into account when calculating the value of the intended procurement. The value of procurement shall be calculated at the beginning of the procurement procedure referred to in paragraph 2 of Article 7 of this Law.
2. The contracting authority may not split up the procurement with the intention of avoiding the application of the procurement procedure set forth in this Law.
3. The choice of method used to calculate the value of procurement may not be made with the intention of avoiding the provisions of this Law on the choice of methods of procurement and carrying out of procurement procedures.
4. The value of the intended procurement of supplies, services or works shall be calculated according to the methods of calculating the value of procurement approved by the Public Procurement Office.
5. In the event that a public supply or service contract is awarded once in the current financial year or within 12 months from the commencement of procurement without the intention to extend it, the value of the procurement shall be the value of the contract intended to award.
6. Where supply or service contracts are regular in nature (i.e., several contracts within 12 months) or are to be renewed within a given period, the value of the intended procurement shall be calculated in one of the following ways:
1) the value of the intended procurement shall be the actual value of the supplies or services contracts of the same type awarded during the preceding financial year or the preceding 12 months adjusted, if possible, to take account of the changes in quantity or value which would occur in the course of the 12 months following the initial contract;
7. Where procurement involves procurement of supplies and services, the value of the intended procurement shall be the aggregate value of the supplies and services irrespective of their share of the contract. The estimated value shall also include the value of siting and installation of the supplies.
8. The value of supplies or services which are not necessary for the performance of a particular works contract may not be added to the value of the works contract when to do so would result in avoiding the application of the law to the procurement of supplies or services of a certain value.
9. Where the intended public contract provides for a possibility of extension of the public contract, the basis for calculating the contract value shall be the largest amounts of the supplies or services to be purchased under the contract, including the amounts to be purchased upon extension of the public contract.
10. In the case of contracts for the rental, leasing (financial lease) or hire purchase of supplies, the contract value shall be calculated as follows:
1) in the case of fixed-term public contracts, if that term is less than or equal to 12 months, the total value of the intended contract or, if the term of the contract is greater than 12 months, the total value of the intended contract, including the estimated residual value (value at which the goods are bought);
11. For the purposes of calculating the value of the intended procurement of services, the contracting authority shall take account of the following:
1) in the case of procurement of insurance services: the premium payable or any other remuneration payable to the insurer;
2) in the case of procurement of banking or other financial services: the fees, commissions and interest and other forms of remuneration payable for the services;
3) in the case of awarding of the services contract to the winner of the design contest: the estimated value of the services to be procured, including all prizes and/or other payments to tenderers;
4) in the case of awarding of the services contract to the winner of the design contest, where the winners or tenderers are awarded prizes or other payments: the total value of such prizes or other payments, including the estimated value of the services contract which may be awarded by negotiated procedure without publication of a contract notice according to paragraph 3 of Article 56 of this Law, except in the cases when the contracting authority indicates in the contract notice that such a public contract will not be awarded.
12. In the case of the intended services contracts which do not indicate a total price (i.e., specifying only pricing rules), the value of procurement shall be calculated on the basis of:
1) in the case of fixed-term contracts, if that term is equal to or less than 48 months, the total value of the intended public contract;
13. When calculating the value of procurement of works, account shall be taken of the estimated value of both the execution of the works and design (where the works are both executed and designed), and the supplies necessary for executing the works and placed at the contractor’s disposal by the contracting authority.
14. Where the works being executed have the same object or similar services are purchased over the financial year or within 12 months from commencement of procurement or services are procured by awarding several public contracts in the form of separate lots, the value of the procurement shall be the total estimated value of all such lots calculated in compliance with the provisions of this Article. The value of procurement so calculated shall apply to all lots. Whether or not the value of procurement is not less than the applicable international threshold, the contracting authority may apply the provisions of the procedure laid down in Chapter IV of this Law to any lots, where the value of any of the lots, net of VAT, is less than LTL 276224 (EUR 80000) for services or similar supplies, or LTL 3452800 (EUR 1000000) for works, provided that the aggregate value of those lots does not exceed 20% of the aggregate value of the lots as a whole.
Version of subparagraph 1 before 21 August 2011:
1) the contracts related to a state secret or an official secret as defined by laws, where supply of products or services or performance of works shall be accompanied by special security measures in accordance with the laws or legal acts adopted by the Government of the Republic of Lithuania or when the protection of the basic interests of state security or the classified information of foreign states, the EU or international organisations that has been transmitted to the Republic of Lithuania so requires. The procedure for awarding contracts of the type shall be set by the Government of Lithuania pursuant to the basic provisions of this and other Laws, the international treaties of the Republic of Lithuania and the underlying and implementing decisions of international organisations, the basic provisions of the EU legal acts which ensure protection of state or official secrets as well as other interests of the state;
Version of subparagraph 1 after 21 August 2011:
1) the contracts which must be subject to special requirements for protection of information as specified by laws of the Republic of Lithuania or legal acts of the Government of the Republic of Lithuania;
2) the contracts awarded pursuant to other procedural rules and under an international agreement concluded in conformity with the principles stipulated by the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union between the Republic of Lithuania and one or more third countries covering supplies, works, services intended for the implementation or exploitation of a joint project of the signatory States, where the contracting authority communicates such a contract to the Commission of the European Communities;
3) the contracts awarded according to procedural rules set by another Member State the application of which has been agreed in the contract concluded by the contracting authority and the authority of the said state and covering supplies, services or works intended for the implementation or exploitation of a joint project by the signatory States;
Version of subparagraph 4 before 21 August 2011:
Version of subparagraph 4 after 21 August 2011:
4) the contracts relating to the stationing of military elements of the Lithuanian Army units in foreign states under an international agreement;
6) procurement or rental of land, existing buildings or other immovable property or acquisition of the title thereto, by whatever financial means; however, financial service contracts concluded at the same time as, before or after the contract of acquisition and rental shall be subject to the requirements this Law. The procedure of procurement or rental of land, existing buildings or other immovable property or acquisition of the title thereto shall be established by the Government of the Republic of Lithuania;
7) the procurement the principal purpose of which is to provide the contracting authorities with a possibility to provide and operate public electronic communications networks or to provide to the public one or more electronic communications services. As used in this subparagraph, the terms ‘public communications network’ and ‘electronic communications service’ and the relating terms ‘network termination point’ and ‘public electronic communications service’ shall have the meaning indicated in the Law of the Republic of Lithuania on Electronic Communications;
Version of subparagraph 8 before 21 August 2011:
8) the contracts awarded pursuant to Article 346 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union. The procedure of such procurement, also the procedures of compensation in purchasing of arms, munitions, explosives or other military supplies shall be laid down by the Government of the Republic of Lithuania.
Version of subparagraph 8 after 21 August 2011:
8) the contracts subject to the Law on Public Procurement in the Fields of Defence and Security and not subject to the Law on Public Procurement in the Fields of Defence and Security pursuant to provisions of Article 3 thereof.
2. In the case of procurement of services, this Law shall not apply to:
2) financial services contracts in connection with money, exchange rate, state debt management, treasury agent, foreign stock management transactions or other policies in connection with transactions in securities or other financial instruments;
6) contracts for the production of radio and television programmes, the services of their development, contracts for broadcasting time of the already developed programme material and radio and television programmes, where the procurement is performed by the broadcaster conforming to the requirements set forth by the contracting authority specified in subparagraphs 1, 2 or 3 of paragraph 1 of Article 4 of this Law. The concept ‘broadcaster’ as used in this Law shall be understood as it has been defined in the Law of the Republic of Lithuania on Provision of Information to the Public. The procedure for such procurement shall be laid down by the Government of the Republic of Lithuania;
7) contracts for research and development services other than those research and development services where the benefits accrue exclusively to the contracting authority for its use in the conduct of its own affairs and which are wholly remunerated by the contracting authority. The procedure for such procurement shall be established by the Government or an institution authorised by it;
8) the public service contracts awarded by the contracting authority to another contracting authority or to an association of contracting authorities on the basis of an exclusive right which they enjoy pursuant to an appropriate legal act which is compatible with the Founding Treaties of the European Union.
3. The requirements of this Law shall not apply to the following contracts awarded by the contracting authorities operating in the water, energy, transport or postal services sectors:
1) contracts awarded for the purposes other than those referred to in paragraph 2 of Article 70 of this Law or for the activities which are carried out in a third country and do not involve the physical use of networks or geographical area of the European Union. This provision shall not apply to any contracting authorities operating in the water, energy, transport or postal services sectors and complying with the requirements set forth in subparagraphs 1, 2 or 3 of paragraph 1 of Article 4 of this Law;
2) the contracts awarded for the purpose of resale or lease of the procurement object to third parties provided the contracting authority has no special or exclusive rights to resell or lease objects of such contracts, and other economic entities are free to resell or lease the procurement object under the same terms and conditions as the contracting authority;
5) the contracts which the contracting authorities engaged in the water management sector award for the purchase of water required for production, distribution or supply of drinking water;
6) the contracts which the contracting authorities engaged in the energy sector award for the purchase of energy or of fuels for the production of energy. The Government of the Republic of Lithuania shall lay down the procedure for such procurement, and the implementation and control of application thereof shall be ensured by an institution authorised by the Government;
7) the contracts awarded by the undertaking providing bus services to the public if the services provided are excluded from the scope of this Law as specified in subparagraph 4 of paragraph 2 of Article 70 of this Law;
8) the contracts awarded by the undertaking engaged in the water, energy, transport or postal services sectors, provided the European Commission publishes a notice in the Official Journal of the European Communities to the effect that the activity of the undertaking is directly effected by competition in the markets and entry of the markets is not precluded by any restrictions as specified in Article 71 of this Law.
5. The requirements of this Law shall not apply to procurement where the contracting authority awards a contract to an entity holding a separate status of a legal person which it controls as its own service or structural division and in which it is the sole member (or exercises the rights and duties of the state or a municipality as the sole member) and where the controlled entity derives at least 90% of the turnover over the past financial year (or within a time period from the establishment of the entity where the entity has carried out its activities for a period shorter than the financial year) from the activities intended to meet the needs of the contracting authority or to perform the functions of the contracting authority. With a view to ensuring control of such procurement, the contracting authority shall, when approving the plans of public procurement planned to be carried out during the current budget year as referred to in paragraph 1 of Article 7 of this Law, provide therein information on the procurement referred to in this paragraph and planned to be carried out and shall, within 30 days after the close of the reporting calendar year, submit to the Public Procurement Office in accordance with the procedure laid down by it reports on all the procurement procedures referred to in this paragraph and carried out during the calendar year.
Article 11. International Threshold Values
1. International threshold values shall be public procurement threshold values established by Directive 2004/17/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 31 March 2004 coordinating the procurement procedures of entities operating in the water, energy, transport and postal services sectors and by Directive 2004/18/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 31 March 2004 on the coordination of procedures for the award of public works contracts, public supply contracts and public service contracts, adjusted by the European Commission and published in the Official Journal of the European Union. The international threshold values shall be exclusive of value-added tax (VAT). The contracting authority shall comply with international threshold values when performing procurement of supplies, services or works.
Version of paragraph 2 after 1 January 2012:
Article 12. Peculiarities of Procurement
1. The peculiarities of the public contracts other than those referred to in paragraphs 2 and 9 of this Article, the value whereof is equal to or greater than international thresholds, shall be specified in Chapter II of this Law.
2. Contracts of the value equal to or greater than international thresholds awarded by the contracting authorities operating in the water, energy, transport or postal services sectors shall be subject to the provisions in Chapter III of this Law as well as the provisions of Chapters I and II of this Law to the extent they are not contrary to the provisions of Chapter III. A contract intended to cover several activities referred to in paragraph 2 of Article 70 of this Law shall be subject to the requirements of this Law applicable to the activity for which it is principally intended.
3. Where the contracting authority subsidises directly more than 50% of the value of works of the entire object referred to in the group of civil engineering structures in Appendix I of this Law, and the value of building work for hospitals, facilities intended for sports, recreation and leisure, school and university buildings and buildings used for administrative purposes, all the works necessary for the object concerned must be procured in compliance with this Law irrespective of whether that contract is awarded by one or more subsidised economic entities or the contracting authority itself awards that contract for or on behalf of those economic entities. The requirement shall apply regardless of the value of the contract.
4. Where the contracting authority subsidises directly more than 50% of the value of an individual contract for the services that are procured in relation to the works contracts referred to in paragraph 3 of this Article, all such services must be procured in compliance with this Law regardless of whether the contract is awarded by one or several subsidised economic entities or the contracting authority itself for the benefit or on behalf of the economic entities. The requirement shall apply regardless of the value of the contract.
5. Where the procurement can also be subject to the provisions of Chapter II and Chapter III of this Law, whereas the subject-matter of the contract cannot be divided, then such procurement shall be subject to the provisions of either Chapter II or Chapter III of this Law, depending on the principal sphere of application of the subject-matter of the contract. The contracting authority must comply with the above requirement irrespective of whether one or several public contracts are awarded. However, the choice of one or several public contracts may not be determined by the intention to avoid the application of the procurement procedure laid down by this Law.
6. Where the procurement can be subject to the provisions of Chapters II and III of this Law, while it is not possible to determine, in an objective manner, which is the principal sphere of application of the subject-matter of the contract, the procurement shall be subject to the provisions of Chapter II of this Law.
7. Where any lot of the procurement is subject to the provisions of Chapter III of this Law, while it is not possible to determine, in an objective manner, the application of the provisions of which Chapter II or III of this Law, the procurement shall be subject to the provisions of Chapter III of this Law.
8. The peculiarities of public contracts the value whereof is below the established international threshold values, as well as the public contracts referred to in paragraph 14 of Article 9 of this Law shall be specified in Chapter IV of this Law.
9. The peculiarities of public contracts for the procurement of B-type services listed in Appendix 2 of this Law shall be specified in Chapter IV of this Law.
10. Where B-type services listed in Appendix 2 of this Law are procured together with A-type services listed in Appendix 2 of this Law, and the value of such services exceeds the value of B-type services, the procurement procedure shall be chosen based on the provisions of paragraphs 1, 2, 4, 5, 6 and 7 of this Article, in other cases – the provisions of paragraphs 8 and 9 of this Article.
Article 13. Reserved Contracts
The contracting authority may, in contract documents, set terms providing for such contracts to be executed exclusively by social enterprises of the disabled or specify that execution of such contracts shall be restricted to the framework of protected job programmes where most of the employees are disabled persons. The contract documents, including a contract notice, must contain a reference to such contracts and the requirement to provide evidence that the supplier’s undertaking complies with the requirements of this Article (a document issued by the competent authority or a statement approved by the supplier shall be presented).
Article 14. Authorising Another Contracting Authority to Award a Public Contract
1. The contracting authority may authorise another contracting authority (hereinafter referred to as the “authorised entity”) to organise and carry out the procurement procedures until the award of the contract. For this purpose, the contracting authority must formulate tasks for the authorised entity and grant all the powers necessary to carry out these tasks. The authorisation shall be executed following the procedure set forth in the Civil Code of the Republic of Lithuania.
2. The responsibility for the tasks assigned by the contracting authority to the authorised entity shall rest with the contracting authority, while the authorised entity shall be responsible for the execution of the tasks. The contracting authority shall be responsible for the conclusion and implementation of the public contract.
Article 15. Centralised Purchasing
1. The contracting authority may also acquire supplies, services or works from or through a central purchasing body.
2. The contracting authority which purchases supplies, services or works from or through a central purchasing body shall be deemed to have complied with the requirements of this Law insofar as the central purchasing body has complied with it.
3. A decision concerning the establishment of central purchasing bodies, their legal form or the granting to the purchasing body of the right to perform the functions of the central purchasing body shall be taken by the Government of the Republic of Lithuania or an institution authorised by it and a municipal council.
Article 151. Performance of Procurement by the Instruments Available of the Central Portal of Public Procurement
The contracting authority, with the exception of diplomatic missions, consular posts of the Republic of Lithuania abroad and missions of the Republic of Lithuania to international organisations, must ensure that the procurement of supplies, services and works conducted by the instruments available to the Central Portal of Public Procurement (when in the case of awarding a contract, a contract notice (in the case of the negotiated procedure without publication of a contract notice – an invitation to tender), other contract documents are submitted and the suppliers’ tenders are accepted by electronic means) constitutes in each calendar year at least 50% of the total value of the public procurement conducted by the contracting authority.
Article 16. Public Procurement Commission
1. For the purpose of organisation and execution of procurement, the contracting authority must (in the case of small value procurement – may) form the Public Procurement Commission (hereinafter referred to as the “Commission”), set its tasks and grant it all the powers required for the performance of these tasks. Where the contracting authority authorises another contracting authority to organise and execute procurement for it, these acts shall be performed by the authorised entity. The Commission shall work according to the rules of procedure approved by the body which has formed the Commission, shall be accountable to it, and shall perform only the tasks and obligations imposed by the body in writing. The body which has formed the Commission shall be held liable for the actions of the Commission.
2. The Commission shall be formed on the instruction (by order) of the contracting authority or an authorised body of at least three natural persons. These persons may also be other than employees of the body forming the Commission. The head of the body which has formed the Commission or the employee or the employee of this body or of a body subordinate to it authorised by him shall be appointed Chairperson of the Commission. When appointing the Chairperson and members of the Commission, regard must be had to their knowledge in the area of economics, technology, and legislation as well as understanding of this Law and other legal acts regulating public procurement. Only persons of good repute may be the Chairperson and members of the Commission. The entity which forms the Commission shall have the right to invite experts for giving consultations on the issue requiring special knowledge or for evaluating the matter. The meetings of and the decisions adopted by the Commission shall be valid if attended by over a half of all the members of the Commission.
3. The Commission shall function on behalf of the body which has formed it within the scope of the powers granted to it. The Commission shall function from the day of adoption of a decision on its formation until completion of all the tasks given by the body which has formed it in writing, or until adoption of a decision on termination of the procurement. The Commission shall adopt decisions at a meeting by a simple majority vote in open individual voting. In the event of a tie, the Chairperson of the Commission shall have a casting vote. The Commission’s decisions shall be recorded in minutes. The minutes shall specify the reasons of the Commission’s decision, give explanations and the separate opinion of each member of the Commission. The minutes shall be signed by all the members present at the Commission’s meeting.
4. Except in the cases prescribed by the legal acts of the Republic of Lithuania, the members of the Commission and the experts invited by the body which has formed the Commission shall be prohibited from providing third parties with any information concerning the content of the tenders submitted by suppliers.
5. Each member and expert of the Commission may take part in the work of the Commission only upon signing a declaration of impartiality and a pledge of confidentiality.
Article 17. Communication and Exchange of Information
1. Communication and information exchange between the contracting authority and suppliers may be by post or by courier, by fax, by electronic means in accordance with provisions of paragraphs 4-6 of this Article, by telephone under the circumstances referred to in paragraph 8, or by a combination of those means, according to the choice of the contracting authority.
2. Communication and information exchange shall be carried out in such a way as to ensure that the integrity of data and the confidentiality of tenders. It is also imperative to ensure that the contracting authority examines the content of tenders (a design contest’s jury – a plan and design) only after the expiration of the time limit for their submission.
3. The means of communication chosen must be generally available and thus not restrict the suppliers’ access to the procurement procedures.
4. The tools to be used for communicating by electronic means. as well as their technical characteristics must be non-discriminatory, generally available and interoperable with the information and communication technology products in general use.
5. The following rules shall be applicable to devices for the electronic transmission and receipt of tenders and to devices for the electronic receipt of requests to participate:
1) information regarding the specifications necessary for the electronic submission of tenders and requests to participate, including encryption, must be available to interested parties. Moreover, the devices for the electronic receipt of tenders and requests to participate must conform to the requirements of paragraph 7 of this Article;
2) electronic tenders must be accompanied by an advanced electronic signature in conformity with the requirements of legal acts;
6. In order to enhance the level of certification service provision for electronic devices, voluntary accreditation schemes for the electronic devices may be introduced and maintained.
7. Devices for the electronic receipt of plans, requests for participation or plans and projects in contests must guarantee, through technical means, and appropriate procedures, that:
1) electronic signatures relating to tenders, requests to participate, applications for assessment of qualification or plans and projects comply with the requirements set forth by the Law of the Republic of Lithuania on Electronic Signature;
2) the exact time and date of the receipt of tenders, requests to participate, applications for assessment of qualification or the submission of plans and projects can be determined precisely;
3) it may be reasonably ensured that, before the time limits laid down, no one can have access to data transmitted under the requirements set forth in this paragraph;
4) if that access prohibition is infringed, it may be reasonably ensured that the infringement of subparagraph 3 of this paragraph is clearly detectable;
6) during the different stages of the procedures access to all data submitted must be possible only through simultaneous action by authorised persons;
7) only co-ordinated and simultaneous action by authorised persons must give access to data transmitted after the prescribed date;
8. Requests for participation in procurement procedures may be filed with the contracting authority in writing or submitted thereto by telephone. Where requests for participation are submitted by telephone, a written confirmation must be sent before expiry of the time limit fixed for their submission.
9. Contracting authorities shall have the right to require that requests for participation in procurement procedures made by fax must be confirmed by post or by electronic means. Any such requirement shall be stated in a contract notice. The contract notice must also state the deadline for sending the confirmation.
Article 18. Public Contract
1. The contracting authority shall offer the public contract to the tenderer whose tender is recognised as the successful tender. The tenderer shall be invited to conclude the public contract by a written notice (with the exception of the cases stipulated by this Law when the public contract is concluded verbally) and be indicated the date by which he is to sign the public contract.
2. If the supplier who has been given a proposal of contract award, refuses the award in writing or fails to present security for the performance of the public contract prescribed by contract documents or if the declaration referred to in subparagraph 5 of paragraph 2 of Article 24 of this Law submitted by the supplier is false, or if the supplier fails to sign the public contract by the date specified by the contracting authority, or refuses to conclude the contract under the conditions laid down in the contract documents, or a group of economic entities fails to establish a legal person as prescribed in paragraph 4 of this Article, he shall be considered to have refused the award of the public contract. In such a case, the contracting authority shall propose to award the public contract to the supplier whose tender in the specified order of tenders is next after that of the successful tenderer who has refused the award of the public contract.
3. When awarding the public contract, the price given in the successful tender, the final negotiations price recorded in the negotiations minutes or the final tender submitted after the negotiations as well as the contract terms and conditions specified in the contract documents and in the tender may not be altered.
4. The contracting authority may require that, if a tender submitted by a group of economic entities is recognised as the successful tender and the contracting authority offers the award of the public contract, such a group of economic entities acquire a certain legal form, where this is necessary in order to duly execute the public contract. The requirement for a legal form must be set in the contract documents. If, when selecting the legal form, the contracting authority requires that the group of economic entities whose tender has been recognised as the successful tender establish a legal person, it shall award the public contract to the legal person established by these economic entities. Having established a legal person, the economic entities must provide a security for the obligations of the legal person established by them, relating to the performance of the public contract. A notice to the effect must also be made in the contract documents.
6. If concluded in writing, the public contract must specify:
3) the price or pricing rules set according to the methodology established by the Government of the Republic of Lithuania or an institution authorised by it;
7. The criteria for setting the time limits as well as the cases of concluding public contracts for a period of over three years shall be established by the Government of the Republic of Lithuania.
8. The terms and conditions of a public contract during the contract period may not be changed, with the exception of the terms of the public contract whose changing would be without prejudice to the principles and goals specified in Article 3 of this Law, and subject to consent of the Public Procurement Office to such changes of the terms and conditions of the public contract. The consent of the Public Procurement Office shall not be required where, in the case of the simplified procurement procedure, the value of the awarded contract is less than LTL 10000 (net of VAT).
9. The public contract must be concluded forthwith, but not earlier than the expiry of the period of deferment. It shall be possible not to apply the period of deferment where:
1) the sole interested tenderer is the one wherewith the public contract is to be concluded, and there are no interested candidates;
2) the public contract is concluded using a dynamic purchasing system or the contracting authority referred to in subparagraphs 1, 2 or 3 of paragraph 1 of Article 4 of this Law concludes the public contract under a framework agreement;
Article 19. Procurement Reports
1. The contracting authority must submit in writing to the Public Procurement Office a report on the procurement procedures regarding any contract awarded according to Chapters II, III or IV of this Law, including the cases where a framework agreement is concluded or a dynamic purchasing system is used. This report shall not be submitted where contracts are awarded under the concluded framework agreement or in the case of a small value procurement. The report shall include:
1) the name, address of the contracting authority, the subject-matter and value of the contract, framework agreement or dynamic purchasing system;
3) when the competitive dialogue procedure is selected – the reasons for choosing this method of procurement;
4) the names of the selected candidates and successful tenderers and the reasons for their selection;
5) the names of the candidates and tenderers whose requests and tenders have been rejected and the reasons for rejection of the requests and tenders;
7) the name of the successful tenderer and the reasons why his tender was selected and, if known, the share of the contract or framework agreement which the successful tenderer intends to subcontract to third parties;
8) if the public contract was not awarded, or the framework agreement was not concluded or the dynamic purchasing system was not established – the reasons therefor;
2. When the procurement is conducted by electronic means, the contracting authority must document the progress of award procedures.
3. A report on procurement procedures shall be filled-in in parts in the Central Portal of Public Procurement in accordance with the procedure and within the time limits laid down by the Public Procurement Office and shall be completed not later than within five working days after finalising the procurement.
4. The contracting authority must submit to the Public Procurement Office in writing a report on all the procurement procedures executed over the calendar year, when the principal contracts are concluded according to framework agreements, and all the small value procurement procedures executed over the calendar year. In this report, the contracting authority must also provide data on all the procurement procedures executed over the calendar year according to requirements of Article 91 of this Law. Reports shall be submitted within 30 days after the end of the reporting financial year.
5. The contracting authority must submit to the Public Procurement Office in writing a report on any executed or terminated public contract (framework agreement), except for a report drawn up in the case of small value procurement or under a framework agreement, not later than within 14 days after execution or termination of the public contract (framework agreement).
6. The report referred to in paragraph 1 of this Article must be submitted also if the public contract concerns B-type services listed in Appendix 2 of this Law.
9. The report on the procurement procedures, the procurement report, the report on the executed or terminated public contract (framework agreement) shall be drawn up and submitted by electronic means using the forms approved by and complying with the requirements set by the Director of the Public Procurement Office. These reports, with the exception of confidential information, shall be published in the Central Portal of Public Procurement and on the website of the contracting authority, if available.
Article 20. Statistical Report
The Public Procurement Office shall, not later than by 31 October of each year, submit to the European Commission the previous year’s statistical reports on the awarded contracts for supplies, services or works drawn up according to the requirements of the European Commission.
Article 21. Storage of Documents
The performed public contracts, requests, tenders, contract documents, the documents relating to examination and evaluation of the requests and tenders, other procurement-related documents submitted in any manner, form and medium shall be stored in the manner prescribed by the Law of the Republic of Lithuania on Documents and Archives, but for not less than four years after the completion of the procurement. At the request of the European Commission, the documents shall be forwarded to it for the purpose of substantiating the adopted decisions or providing information.
Article 211. Control of Public Procurement and Liability of the Heads or Other Authorised Persons of the Contracting Authority
1. Control of public procurement shall be exercised by the Public Procurement Office and authorised state institutions, also the public legal persons authorised by a resolution of the Government of the Republic of Lithuania and administering the financial assistance of the European Union or individual States within the scope of their competence.
2. The Public Procurement Office must without delay notify the head of the contracting authority of imposition of an administrative penalty.
3. The bodies exercising control of public procurement shall have the right to observe all procurement procedures and, in case of necessity, to make video recordings of meetings of the Commission and other procurement procedures.
CHAPTER II
CONTRACTS AWARDED BY STATE OR LOCAL AUTHORITIES, OTHER PUBLIC OR PRIVATE LEGAL PERSONS MEETING THE CONDITIONS OF PARAGRAPH 2 of ARTICLE 4 OF THIS LAW, ASSOCIATIONS OF ONE OR SEVERAL STATE OR LOCAL AUTHORITIES AND (OR) OTHER PUBLIC OR PRIVATE LEGAL PERSONS MEETING THE CONDITIONS OF paragraph 2 of ARTICLE 4 OF THIS LAW
Article 22. Contract Notices
1. The contracting authority must publish a prior notice of any planned procurement, including the procurement for which a framework agreement is to be concluded, in cases where the value of procurement is not less than that specified in subparagraphs 1, 2 and 3 of this paragraph and the contracting authority intends to make use of the possibility to shorten the time limits for submitting tenders indicated in Articles 44, 46, 75 of this Law. This requirement shall not apply in the case of the negotiated procedure without publication of a contract notice. The contracting authority must publish prior notices without delay at the beginning of the financial year of any planned procurement of supplies and services, and, in the case of the planned procurement of works, immediately after making the decision to approve construction of objects. In order to make use of the possibility to shorten the time limits for submitting tenders, prior notice of the intended procurement shall be published:
1) where supplies are concerned, the value of the public supply contract, including the framework agreement, intended to be awarded in the following 12 months, taking into account the provisions of Article 9 of this Law, is equal to or greater than LTL 2589600 (EUR 750000). In this contract notice, the contracting authority shall make a reference to the CPV classification system;
2) where services are concerned, the value of the public service contract, including the framework agreement, intended to be awarded over the following 12 months, where such value, estimated in each of the categories of A-type services listed in Appendix 2 of this Law taking into account the provisions of Article 9 of this Law, is equal to or greater than LTL 2589600 (EUR 750000);
3) where works are concerned, the value of the public works contract, including the framework agreement, intended to be awarded over the following 12 months, where such value, estimated taking into account the type of the works and the provisions of Article 9 of this Law, is equal to or greater than LTL 20610618 (EUR 5923000).
2. In awarding public contracts for supplies, services or works or concluding a framework agreement by the open, restricted, negotiated procedure or by applying the competitive dialogue, also in a design contest or using a dynamic purchasing system, the contracting authority must publish a separate contract notice and, in the case of the contract to be awarded under the dynamic purchasing system, publish a simplified contract notice in the dynamic purchasing system.
3. The contracting authority must publish a notice of:
1) the awarded public contract, framework agreement, the results of the design contest no later than within 48 days after the award of the public contract or the approval of the results of the design contest. In the case of the award of contracts under a framework agreement, the contracting authority shall not be bound to publish such a notice;
2) the awarded public contract based on a dynamic purchasing system must be published not later than within 48 days after the award of each contract or it may group such notices on a quarterly basis and publish them within 48 days after the end of each quarter;
3) the public contract which has not been awarded upon completion of procurement in the cases indicated in subparagraphs 2-6 of paragraph 3 of Article 7 of this Law, not later than within 48 days after adoption of the decision not to award the public contract. This requirement shall not apply in the case of the negotiated procedure without publication of a contract notice.
5. In awarding a contract of an international threshold value not subject, in the opinion of the contracting authority, to mandatory publication in the Official Journal of the European Union, the contracting authority may publish a notice for voluntary ex ante transparency. The form of the notice shall be approved by the European Commission. The notice must specify:
3) justification of the decision of the contracting authority to award the public contract without publication of a contract notice;
6. Certain information contained in a notice on the public contract award or the conclusion of the framework agreement may be withheld from publication where release of such information would impede law enforcement or otherwise be contrary to the public interest, would harm the legitimate commercial interests of suppliers or might prejudice fair competition between them.
7. The information which must be indicated in notices and the standard model notice as well as requirements of the notice shall be determined by Commission Regulation (EC) No 1564/2005 of 7 September 2005 establishing standard forms for the publication of notices in the framework of public procurement procedures pursuant to Directives 2004/17/EC and 2004/18/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council and by Commission Regulation (EC) No 1150/2009 of 10 November 2009 amending Regulation (EC) No 1564/2005 as regards the standard forms for the publication of notices in the framework of public procurement in accordance with Council Directives 89/665/EEC and 92/13/EEC.
Article 23. Preparation and Publication of Notices
1. Notices (prior information notices, contract notices, contract award notices, notices of the results of a design contest, notices for voluntary ex ante transparency) shall be published in the Official Journal of the European Union, as well as in the supplement Informaciniai pranešimai to the official gazette Valstybės žinios and in the Central Portal of Public Procurement. Prior information notices may be published on the website of the contracting authority in the specially assigned section (hereinafter referred to as “buyer profile”). The notice may be published in the “buyer profile” only after sending to the European Commission a notification of the intent to announce the notice in such a form. Date of dispatch of the notice to the Commission of the European Communities must be indicated in the notice published on the “buyer profile”.
Version of paragraph 1 after 1 January 2012:
1. Notices (prior information notices, contract notices, contract award notices, notices of the results of a design contest, notices for voluntary ex ante transparency) shall be published in the Official Journal of the European Union and announced in the Central Portal of Public Procurement. Prior information notices may be published on the website of the contracting authority in the specially assigned section after sending to the European Commission a notification of the intent to announce the notice in such a form. Date of dispatch of the notice to the European Commission must be indicated in the notice published on the “buyer profile”.
2. In addition, the contracting authority may publish a contract notice in a publication other than that specified in paragraph 1 of this Article and on another website.
3. The contracting authority shall submit to the Public Procurement Office all notices to be published in the publications specified in paragraph 1 of this Article and to be announced in the Central Portal of Public Procurement. The Public Procurement Office must, within three working days, dispatch the notices conforming to the requirements of this Law for publication in the publications referred to in paragraph 1 of this Article and announce in the Central Portal of Public Procurement. The date of prior publication of a contract notice or publication of a contract notice shall be deemed to be the date of dispatch of the notice from the Public Procurement Office.
Version of paragraph 3 after 1 January 2012:
3. The contracting authority shall submit to the Public Procurement Office all notices to be published in the publication specified in paragraph 1 of this Article and to be announced in the Central Portal of Public Procurement. The Public Procurement Office must, within three working days, dispatch the notices conforming to the requirements of this Law for publication by the Office of Official Publications of the European Union in the publication referred to in paragraph 1 of this Article and announce them in the Central Portal of Public Procurement. The date of prior publication of a contract notice or publication of a contract notice shall be deemed to be the date of dispatch of the notice from the Public Procurement Office.
4. Notices shall be submitted by electronic means in the manner specified by the Public Procurement Office.
5. The notices may not be published in other publications or in the Internet prior to the date of dispatch thereof to the Office of Official Publications of the European Union. They must indicate the date of the dispatch of a notice to the Office of Official Publications of the European Union. The same notice published in different publications must contain the same information.
7. The Public Procurement Office shall forward the notices of contracting authorities to the Office of Official Publications of the European Union for publication by electronic or other means in accordance with the format established by the European Commission. In case of urgency, notices must be sent by fax or by electronic means.
8. A notice shall be published in an official language of the European Union as chosen by the contracting authority, this version constituting the sole authentic text. The Office of Official Publications of the European Union shall also prepare and publish a summary of the principal elements of every notice in the other official languages of the European Union. The costs of publication of notices by the Commission of the European Communities shall be covered by the European Union. The costs of publication of notices by the State Enterprise Seimas Publishing House “Valstybės žinios” shall be covered by the contracting authority.
Version of paragraph 8 after 1 January 2012:
8. A notice shall be published in an official language of the European Union as chosen by the contracting authority, this version constituting the sole authentic text. The Office of Official Publications of the European Union shall also prepare and publish a summary of the principal elements of every notice in the other official languages of the European Union. The costs of publication of notices by the Commission of the European Communities shall be covered by the European Union.
Article 24. Contract Documents
1. In contract documents, the contracting authority shall give all the information about contract conditions and award procedures with the exception of the cases laid down in this Law.
2. The contract documents must include:
2) supplier qualification requirements, including qualification requirements for the suppliers submitting a joint request to participate or tender;
3) supplier qualification assessment procedure and the minimum number of candidates to be invited to submit their tenders, where the contracting authority has the right to restrict the number of tenderers in cases specified in this Law;
4) a list of documents evidencing supplier qualification and the information on the obligation to submit a declaration of compliance with the minimum qualification requirements set forth in the contract documents in the case indicated in paragraph 8 of Article 32 of this Law;
5) the requirement to submit a declaration in the form established by an institution authorised by the Government of the Republic of Lithuania indicating that the supplier has not given and does not intend to give to members of the Commission, experts, heads of the contracting authority (authorised entity), civil servants (employees) or representatives of other suppliers any money or gifts, has not rendered them any services or another remuneration for the conditions provided or not provided in relation to the actions favourable for the award of contract; the economic entities wherewith the supplier is associated in the ways specified in paragraph 12 of Article 3 of the Law of the Republic of Lithuania on Competition, and confirming that if one or more of the economic entities indicated by it and with which it is associated participate in procurement and submit an independent tender (tenders), the supplier shall act independently of them and they shall be deemed to be competitors; that the supplier does not participate in the prohibited agreements referred to in Article 5 of the Law of the Republic of Lithuania on Competition and the agreements violating the principles referred to in Article 3 of this Law;
6) indication of the products, services or works concerned, amounts, the nature of services incidental to the public supply contract, time limits for delivery of products, rendering of services or performance of works;
9) the terms and conditions of the public contract proposed to the parties by the contracting authority in compliance with requirements of paragraph 6 of Article 18 of this Law, as well as a draft contract (if available);
11) indication of the possibility of tendering for one, for several or for all the lots of supplies, works or services, as well as description of such lots;
12) indication about price calculation and the manner of indication thereof in the tenders. The price must include all relevant taxes;
14) time limit, place and manner for receipt of tenders, including an indication of submission of a tender by electronic means;
15) the ways in which suppliers may request clarification of contract documents and obtain information about a meeting to be held by the contracting authority with the suppliers, also the ways in which the contracting authority may on its own initiative clarify (fine-tune) the contract documents;
16) the date until which the tenderer must maintain its tender or a time frame during which the tenderer must maintain its tender;
19) an indication that the prices quoted in tenders will be in Litas. If the prices are quoted in a foreign currency, they will be converted into Litas at the exchange rate of Litas and the foreign currency determined and announced by the Bank of Lithuania on the last day of the period set for receipt of tenders;
20) names, surnames, addresses, telephone and fax numbers of the civil servants or employees of the contracting authority or (one or several) members of the Commission authorised to keep in direct contact with the suppliers and obtain from them, without any mediators, the notices regarding the procurement procedures;
21) other requirements set by the Public Procurement Office under this Law and other legal acts regulating public procurement;
Version of subparagraph 22 after 1 January 2012:
22) a reference to the prior information notice published in the Official Journal of the European Union, the Central Portal of Public Procurement, other publications and the Internet in case of the publication of a prior information notice;
3. In procuring supplies, services or works, the contracting authority must, in the cases and in accordance with the procedure laid down by the Government of the Republic of Lithuania or an institution authorised by it, specify the requirements for and/or the criteria of energy consumption efficiency and environmental protection.
4. The contracting authority may lay down in contract documents special conditions for the performance of a contract relating to social and environmental requirements, provided that these are compatible with EU law.
5. Contract documents must require the candidate or tenderer to indicate in its tender the subcontractors, subsuppliers or subproviders which it intends to contract, and may require the candidate or tenderer to indicate in its tender the part of procurement for which it intends to contract the subcontractors, subsuppliers or subproviders. The said instruction shall not affect the main supplier’s responsibility for the performance of the public contract to be awarded.
6. The contracting authority may indicate in contract documents the office or offices from which the candidate or tenderer may obtain the relevant information about the requirements relating to taxes, environmental protection, safety at work and employment conditions which are in force in the country or the place of performance of a public contract and which will apply with respect to the works performed or services provided during the performance of the contract. In such a case, the contracting authority shall request the candidates or tenderers to indicate, when drafting a tender, that they have taken into account the safety at work and employment condition requirements in force in the areas where the works will be performed or services will be provided. The provision shall be without prejudice to the application by the contracting authority of the provisions of Article 40 of this Law concerning the examination of the abnormally low tenders.
7. Prior information notices and contract notices shall be a constituent part of contract documents. The contracting authority may choose not to repeat information provided in the notices, including the case where the technical specifications are based on the documents accessible to the suppliers, and present a reference to these documents.
8. The contracting authority shall draft contract documents in compliance with the provisions of this Law. The contract documents must be precise, clear, unambiguous so that the suppliers could submit tenders and the contracting authority could purchase what it needs.
Article 25. Technical Specification
1. Supplies, services or works subject to procurement shall be described in the technical specifications contained in contract documents. Certain definitions of technical specifications shall be given in Appendix 3 of this Law. Whenever possible these technical specifications should be defined so as to take into account accessibility criteria for people with disabilities or design for all users.
2. Technical specifications must ensure competition and be non-discriminatory with respect to suppliers.
3. Without prejudice to mandatory national technical rules, to the extent that they are compatible with EU law, the technical specifications may be formulated by any of the following methods or their combination:
1) by reference to standards, technical approvals or common technical specifications. In the technical specifications, the following order of preference must be applied: the Lithuanian standard transposing a European standard, a European technical approval, common technical specifications, an international standard, other technical reference systems established by the European standardisation bodies or, when these do not exist, to national standards, national technical approvals or national technical specifications relating to the design, calculation and execution of the works and use of the products. Each reference shall be accompanied by the words ‘or equivalent’;
2) in terms of performance or functional requirements of the subject-matter of the contract. Functional requirements may include environmental characteristics. Such parameters must be sufficiently precise to allow suppliers to determine the subject-matter of the contract and to allow contracting authorities to award the contract for the necessary supplies, services or works;
3) in terms of performance or functional requirements of the subject-matter of the contract as mentioned in subparagraph 2 of this paragraph as a means of presuming conformity with such requirements referring to the specifications mentioned in subparagraph 1;
4. Where a contracting authority uses the option of referring to the technical specifications mentioned in subparagraph 1 of paragraph 3 of this Article, it cannot reject a tender on the grounds that the supplies or services or works tendered for do not comply with the technical specifications to which it has referred, once the tenderer proves in his tender to the satisfaction of the contracting authority, by whatever appropriate means, that the solutions which he proposes satisfy in an equivalent manner the requirements defined by the technical specifications.
5. Where a contracting authority prescribes in technical specifications the performance or functional requirements of the object, it may not reject a tender for supplies, services or works which comply with a Lithuanian standard transposing a European standard, with a European technical approval, a common technical specification, an international standard or a technical reference system established by a European standardisation body, if these specifications address the performance or functional requirements which the contracting authority has laid down and where in his tender the tenderer proves to the satisfaction of the contracting authority and by any appropriate means that the supplies, services or works in compliance with the technical specifications meet the performance or functional requirements of the contracting authority.
6. Where a contracting authority lays down environmental characteristics in terms of performance or functional requirements as referred to in subparagraph 2 of paragraph 3 of this Article it may:
1) use the detailed specifications, or, if necessary, parts thereof, as defined by European or (multi-) national eco-labels, or by and any other eco-label, provided that: those specifications are appropriate to define the characteristics of the supplies or services that are the object of the contract; the requirements for the eco-label are drawn up on the basis of scientific information; the eco-labels are adopted using a procedure in which state institutions, consumers, manufacturers, distributors, environmental organisations and other interested persons can participate;
2) indicate that the products and services bearing the eco-label are presumed to comply with the technical specifications laid down in the contract documents. In such a case, it must accept any other appropriate means of proof, such as a technical dossier of the manufacturer or a test report from a notified body.
7. Appropriate means referred to in paragraphs 4 and 5 of this Article might be constituted by a technical dossier of the manufacturer or a test report by the notified body. A notified body shall be a test and calibration laboratory and certification and inspection body which complies with applicable European standards. A contracting authority must accept conformity certificates from notified bodies established in other EU Member States.
8. Unless justified by the subject-matter of the contract, technical specifications may not refer to a specific make or source, or a particular process, or to trade marks, patents, types or a specific origin or production with the effect of favouring or eliminating certain undertakings or certain products. Such reference shall be permitted on an exceptional basis, where a sufficiently precise and intelligible description of the subject-matter of the contract pursuant to paragraphs 3 and 4 of this Article is not possible. Such a reference shall be accompanied by the words ‘or equivalent’.
Article 26. Variants
1. The contracting authority must indicate in the contract notice whether or not it authorises variants. The contracting authority may authorise to submit variants only where the criterion for the evaluation of tenders is that of the most economically advantageous tender. Only variants submitted by the tenderer and meeting the minimum requirements laid down by the contracting authority shall be taken into consideration by the contracting authority.
2. The contracting authority shall indicate in the contract documents the minimum specifications to be respected by the variants and any specific requirements for their presentation.
Article 27. Provision of Contract Documents
1. The contracting authority shall publish the contract documents which can be submitted by electronic means, including technical specifications, document clarifications (fine-tuning), also replies to the suppliers’ enquiries, in the Central Portal of Public Procurement together with a contract notice. Where it is not possible to publish the contract documents in the Central Portal of Public Procurement, the contracting authority shall provide the supplier with the contract documents by other means.
2. The contracting authority (where the contract documents are held by the authorised entity, rather than the contracting authority – the authorised entity) must provide the contract documents immediately, but not later than within six days after the receipt of the supplier’s request if the request is submitted in due time before the deadline fixed for submitting tenders. At the request of the supplier, additional contract documents (adjustments, clarifications, corrections) must be provided not later than six days before the deadline fixed for submitting tenders, if they have been requested in due time. In case of restricted procedure or the accelerated form of negotiated procedure referred to in paragraph 6 of Article 46 and paragraph 3 of Article 59 of this Law the additional contract documents must be provided not later than four days before the deadline fixed for submitting tenders, if the request is submitted in due time before the deadline fixed for submitting tenders.
3. The contracting authority may, in reply to the supplier’s request, send at the same time clarifications to all other suppliers whom it has provided with contract documents, not specifying however from whom it has received the request to present a clarification.
4. Before the expiry of the time limit for the submission of tenders the contracting authority may at its own initiative clarify (fine-tune) the contract documents.
5. In the event of fine-tuning the published information, the contracting authority must accordingly fine-tune the notice and, where necessary, extend the time limit for submission of tenders by a time limit in compliance with the criterion of reasonableness, within which the suppliers, while drafting tenders, could take account of the fine-tuning performed.
6. If the contracting authority prepares a meeting with the suppliers, it shall draw up minutes of the meeting. All questions relating to the contract documents put during the meeting as well as replies to them shall be recorded in the minutes. The minutes shall be dispatched to all suppliers who take part in the procurement procedures.
7. The time-limits for providing with contract documents referred to in paragraph 2 of this Article shall not apply if the contracting authority immediately after the date of dispatch of a contract notice or invitation to tender provides the suppliers with the contract documents by electronic means directly and free of charge.
8. The contracting authority may not provide the contract documents before the contract notice is published as specified in paragraph 3 of Article 23 of this Law. When providing the contract documents, the contracting authority shall observe the principles of equality and non-discrimination of suppliers.
Article 28. Submission of Requests and Tenders
1. The contracting authority must specify a deadline for submission of requests to participate and tenders by indicating in the contract documents the date, the hour and the minute. In the event a tender is received outside the specified deadline, it shall be returned unopened to the supplier which has submitted it. The envelope with the tender shall also be returned if the tender is submitted in an unsealed envelope as indicated in paragraph 5 of this Article.
2. The minimum time limits for the receipt of requests to participate and tenders as established by this Law shall be counted (except for the public contracts subject to Chapter IV of this Law) from the date of dispatch of the contract notice for publication from the Public Procurement Office to the Official Journal of the European Union, the supplement Informaciniai pranešimai to the official gazette Valstybės žinios or the date of dispatch of invitations to candidates to submit their tenders.
Version of paragraph 2 after 1 January 2012:
2. The minimum time limits for the receipt of requests to participate and tenders as established by this Law shall be counted (except for the public contracts subject to Chapter IV of this Law) from the date of dispatch of the contract notice for publication from the Public Procurement Office to the Official Journal of the European Union or the date of dispatch of invitations to candidates to submit their tenders.
3. The contracting authority must fix a sufficient time limit not shorter than the minimum time limits set for receipt of requests to participate and tenders in Articles 44, 46, 52, 59 or 75 of this Law, and shall be sufficiently long to give the suppliers reasonable time for drawing up and submitting their requests to participate and tenders. When fixing this time limit, the contracting authority must take account of the complexity of procurement and the time required for drawing up the requests and tenders.
4. If, for whatever reason, the contract documents or parts thereof, although requested in due time, have not been provided within the time limits fixed in Article 27 of this Law, or where it transpires after the provision of the contract documents that tenders can be made only after a visit to the site or after on-the-spot inspection of the documents supporting the contract documents, the contracting authority must extend the time limits for the receipt of tenders so that all suppliers concerned can access the entire information needed to draw up a tender and notify thereof by fine-tuning the notice.
5. The contracting authority must indicate in the contract documents that the request to participate or tender must be submitted in writing and duly signed by the supplier or a person authorised by the supplier. The tender must be submitted in a sealed envelope. If the contracting authority intends to choose the most economically advantageous tender, it must request in the contract documents that the suppliers submit two sealed envelopes: one with the price offer, the other with the remaining parts of the tender (technical data and other information and documents). The two envelopes must be put into a single envelope, which must also be sealed. The pages of the tender (with annexes) must be numbered and thread-sewn and bear the signature of the supplier or the person authorised by it on the backside of the last page and indicate the name, surname, job position (if any) of the supplier or the authorised person and the number of the pages constituting the tender. A copy of the document evidencing tender security shall be thread-sewn and numbered together with other pages of the tender. The document evidencing tender security shall not be thread-sewn and numbered, but shall be put into the single envelope. Where the tender is of a considerable volume and consists of several parts, this requirement shall apply to each part of the tender. The requirements to submit the tender or parts thereof in envelopes, to have the tender numbered, thread-sewn and bearing the signature of the supplier or the person authorised by it on the backside of the last page, the name, surname, job position (if any) of the supplier or the person authorised by it and the number of the pages constituting the tender indicated, and to have the copy of the document evidencing tender security thread-sewn and numbered together with other pages of the tender shall not apply where the contracting authority accepts the tenders submitted by electronic means.
6. The requirement set in paragraph 5 of this Article to submit a tender in two envelopes shall not apply if the contract is awarded by way of negotiated procedure. The contracting authority must indicate in the contract documents that tenders should be submitted in a sealed envelope.
7. Requests to participate and tenders may be submitted by electronic means in accordance with the requirements set in Article 17 of this Law.
8. Upon the supplier’s request, the contracting authority must furnish a written confirmation of the receipt of the supplier’s request to participate or tender by specifying the date, the hour and the minute of receipt.
9. The supplier may submit only one tender and where the contract is divided into lots for each of which a contract is intended to be awarded, the supplier may submit to the contracting authority a tender for one, for several or for all the lots as indicated by the contracting authority except in cases where variants are authorised in the contract documents.
Article 29. Tender Validity Period. Modifying and Revoking Tenders
1. A tender shall be valid for a period of time specified by the supplier. The period may not be shorter than that set in the contract documents. If the tender does not specify the period of its validity, it shall be considered to be valid for the period indicated in the contract documents.
2. As long as the tender validity period has not expired, the contracting authority may request suppliers to extending the validity period until the specified date. Any supplier may reject such a request without loosing his right to tender security.
3. A supplier who agrees to extend the tender validity period and notifies the contracting authority thereof in writing shall extend the validity period of the tender or provide a new tender security. If the supplier fails to respond to the request made by the contracting authority as regards extension of the tender validity period, or does not extend the validity period or fails to provide a new tender security, it shall be deemed that such supplier rejected the request of the contracting authority to extend the tender validity period.
4. At any time before the deadline for receipt of tenders, the supplier may modify or revoke his tender without losing the right to tender security. Any such modification or notification about the tender being revoked shall be deemed valid, if the contracting authority received it before the deadline fixed for the receipt of tenders.
Article 30. Tender Security and Security for the Performance of the Contract
1. The contracting authority may request that the validity of tenders, and must request that the performance of the contract, be secured by means of the ways of securing the discharge of obligations established by the Civil Code of the Republic of Lithuania. In public procurement procedures conducted by electronic means, the contracting authority may establish that tender security and security for the performance of the contract be transmitted by electronic means.
2. The contracting authority may not reject tender security or security for the performance of the contract on the grounds that the security has not been issued by an economic entity of the Republic of Lithuania, provided that the tender security and the security for the performance of the contract and the supplier who issued the security conform to the requirements set forth in the contract documents.
3. Prior to submitting tender security or prior to submitting security for the performance of the contract, a supplier may request the contracting authority to confirm that it finds the proposed tender security or security for the performance of the contract acceptable. In this case, the contracting authority must respond to the supplier’s request not later than within three working days from the receipt of the request. Such confirmation shall not preclude the contracting authority from rejecting the tender security or security for the performance of the contract upon receipt of information that the economic entity providing the tender security or the security for the performance of the contract has become insolvent or defaulted on its obligations to the contracting authority or to other economic entities, or otherwise lacks creditworthiness.
Article 31. Opening of Tenders
1. Tenders shall be opened at a meeting of the Commission. The meeting shall be held at the place and shall commence on the day, at the hour and the minute specified in the contract documents. As used in this Law, the initial examination of the tenders received buy electronic means shall be equivalent to the opening of tenders. The day and the hour of the meeting must coincide with the deadline for receipt of tenders. The change of the deadline for the receipt of tenders must result in the change of the date for opening tenders. All tenders received within the time limits fixed for their submission must be opened at the fixed time. All suppliers who have submitted tenders or their representatives shall have the right to be present during the tender opening procedure, except in cases where the contract is awarded by way of a negotiated procedure or the competitive dialogue. In the case of the negotiated procedure, all suppliers participating in the negotiated procedure or their representatives shall have the right to be present during the opening of tenders containing the final prices offered by the suppliers and final technical data.
2. If the contracting authority chose to evaluate tenders according to the criterion of the most economically advantageous tender, the tenders (except for the negotiated procedure) must be opened at two meetings of the Commission. Solely the envelopes containing technical data of the tender and another information shall be opened at the first meeting, and the envelopes with the price offers – at the second meeting of the Commission. The second meeting may take place only after the contracting authority verifies the compliance of the technical data of the tenders and the suppliers’ qualification against the requirements fixed in the contract documents, and assesses the technical merits of the tenders according to the requirements of the contract documents and, in cases specified in this Law, the qualification of the suppliers. The contracting authority must communicate in writing the results of such verification and assessment to all suppliers concerned, indicating the time and venue of the second tender opening meeting. Where the contracting authority, upon verifying and assessing the data submitted by the supplier in the first envelope, rejects its tender, the unopened envelope with the price offers together with other documents submitted by the supplier shall be preserved in the manner established in Article 21 of this Law.
3. Envelopes shall be opened by one member of the Commission in the presence of the suppliers who submitted their tenders or their representatives. The envelopes shall be opened even if the supplier or its representative is not present at the meeting.
4. After opening of the envelope, the members of the Commission attending the meeting shall affix their signatures on the backside of the last page of the tender. The above provision shall not apply if the tender is transmitted by electronic means.
5. The Commission shall record the results of the tender opening procedure and initial examination of the tender submitted by electronic means in the minutes of the meeting. The obligatory particulars of the minutes shall be established by the Public Procurement Office.
6. During the procedure of opening envelopes with the tenders containing the technical data of the tender, the suppliers or their representatives attending the procedure shall be announced the name of the supplier submitting the tender and the main technical data of the tender and whether the tender security has been presented (if requested) or whether the submitted tender has been thread-sewn and numbered and bearing the signature of the supplier or its authorised representative on the backside of the last page or whether the name, surname, job position of the authorised person and the number of the pages constituting the tender have been indicated. Should at least one supplier or its representative participating in the tender opening procedure request so, all technical data of the tender that will be taken into account when evaluating the tenders must be announced.
7. The suppliers or their representatives present at the procedure of opening of envelopes with price offers shall be announced the name of the supplier submitting the tender and the price quoted in the tender. In the event that the price quoted in the tender and expressed in figures does not correspond to the price expressed in words, the price given in words shall be deemed correct.
8. Where the tender is evaluated on the basis of the lowest price criterion, the suppliers or their representatives participating in the tender opening procedure shall be announced the name of the supplier submitting the tender, the price offered in the tender, and notified whether the tender security has been presented (where required) or whether the submitted tender has been thread-sewn and numbered and bearing the signature of the supplier or its authorised representative on the backside of the last page or whether the name, surname, job position of the authorised person and the number of the pages constituting the tender have been indicated. In the event that the price quoted in the tender and expressed in figures does not correspond to the price expressed in words, the price given in words shall be deemed correct.
9. Where the contract consists of several lots, the suppliers or their representatives participating in the procedure of opening of envelopes with price offers shall be announced the price offered for each lot. The prices must be recorded in the minutes of the meeting at which envelopes with prices are opened.
10. During the opening of tenders, the Commission must allow the interested suppliers or their authorised representatives participating in the meeting to publicly remove the shortcomings of the binding or execution of the tenders which have been pointed out by the Commission and which it is possible to remove during the meeting.
11. The information announced during the tender opening procedures shall be communicated in writing also to the suppliers which have submitted tenders, but are not participating in the tender opening procedure, if they request so. Each supplier or its representative taking part in the tender opening procedure shall have the right to examine the publicly announced information; however, when communicating such information, the contracting authority may not disclose the confidential information provided in the supplier’s tender.
Article 32. Verification of the Qualification of Suppliers
1. The contracting authority must verify whether a supplier is competent, reliable and capable of performing the contract, hence the contracting authority shall have the right to define in the contract notice or other contract documents the minimum requirements for the qualification of candidates or tenderers (the right to pursue an activity, the financial, economic standing and the technical ability) and request that candidates or tenderers provide the information and documents proving their qualification as specified in the contract documents. The minimum qualification requirements shall be set following the provisions of Articles 35-37 of this Law.
2. The minimum requirements set by the contracting authority for the qualification of candidates or tenderers may not arbitrarily restrict competition. They must be reasonable and proportionate to the subject-matter of the contract, precise and clear. The requirements may not prejudice the supplier’s right to protect intellectual property, production and trade secrets. Requirements with regard to qualification, as well as information and the documents to be furnished by candidates or tenderers shall be set following the provisions of Articles 33, 34, 35, 36, 37 and 38 of this Law. Upon request of competent state and local authorities, the contracting authority must furnish justification of the qualification requirements.
3. The supplier may, in a particular contract, rely on the capacities of other economic entities, regardless of the legal nature of the links which it has with them. In that case, the supplier must prove to the contracting authority that it will have at its disposal the resources necessary for the execution of the contract. Under the same conditions, a group of economic entities may rely on the capacities of participants of the group of economic entities or other economic entities.
4. If, for any valid reason, the candidate or participant is unable to provide the documents requested by the contracting authority, he shall have the right to submit instead other documents which the contracting authority considers appropriate or information proving that the candidate’s or tenderer’s qualification meets the set requirements.
5. In the event that the candidate or tenderer provides inaccurate or incomplete qualification data, the contracting authority must request, without prejudice to the public procurement principles, that the candidate or tenderer supplement or clarify the data within a reasonable time limit.
6. The contracting authority must reject the request to participate or the tender of the candidate or tenderer if its qualification is below the minimum qualification requirements established in the contract documents or if the candidate or tenderer fails to respond to the request of the contracting authority to revise the inaccurate or incomplete data which it has provided on its qualification.
7. Candidates’ and tenderers’ qualification data shall be assessed on the basis of the criteria and procedures set forth in the contract documents provided to them. The Commission shall take a decision on the qualification data of each candidate or tenderer which has submitted a request to participate or a tender and communicate in writing without delay, but not later than within three working days the results of verification to each of them providing a justification of the decisions taken. Only those candidates or tenderers the qualification whereof meets the qualification requirements of the contracting authority shall be allowed to continue in the procurement procedure.
8. The Government of the Republic of Lithuania or an institution authorised by it shall establish the cases when the contracting authority may request that suppliers provide, in place of the documents proving their qualification, a declaration of compliance with the minimum qualification requirements indicated in the contract documents of the form established by it. In these cases, the documents attesting to compliance with minimum qualification requirements shall be required solely from the supplier whose tender may be recognised as the successful tender according to the results of the assessment.
Article 33. Conditions Prohibiting and Limiting Suppliers’ Participation in Procurement Procedures
1. The contracting authority shall reject requests to participate and tenders if the supplier who is a natural person or the head of the supplier which is a legal person or a general member (members) of a partnership entitled to enter into a transaction on behalf of the legal person or an accountant (accountants) or another person (persons) entitled to draw up and sign the supplier’s accounting documents has (have) an unspent or unexpunged conviction or a judgment of conviction was passed and became effective against the supplier (legal person) within the past five years for participation in a criminal organisation, formation or being in charge thereof, for bribery, bribery of an intermediary, graft, fraud, use of a credit, loan or targeted support not in accordance with its purpose or the established procedure, credit fraud, tax evasion, provision of inaccurate data on income, profit or assets, failure to file a tax return or to submit a report or another document, acquisition or handling of the property obtained by criminal means, money or property laundering or a judgment of conviction was passed and became effective against the suppliers of other countries for the crimes defined in the legal acts of the European Union listed in Article 45(1) of Directive 2004/18/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 31 March 2004 on the coordination of procedures for the award of public works contracts, public supply contracts and public service contracts
2. The contracting authority may establish in the contract documents that a request to participate or a tender shall be rejected if the supplier:
1) is bankrupt, is being wound up, has entered into a composition with creditors (an arrangement between the supplier and creditors on continuation of the supplier’s activities, when the supplier assumes certain obligations, and the creditors agree to postpone, reduce or waive their claims), has suspended or limited business activities or who is in any analogous or similar situation under the laws of the country of registration;
2) is the subject of in-court restructuring proceedings, in-court or out-of-court proceedings for a declaration of bankruptcy, the initiated proceedings for an order for compulsory winding up or of an arrangement with creditors or of any other similar proceedings under the laws of his country of registration;
5) a natural person has an unspent or unexpunged conviction or a legal person against which a judgment of conviction became effective within the past five years for criminal acts against property, property rights and property interests, intellectual or industrial property, the economy and business practice, the financial system, civil service and public interests, with the exception of the acts listed in paragraph 1 of this Article;
Version of subparagraph 4 before 21 August 2011:
4) has been guilty of grave professional misconduct proven by any means which the contracting authorities can justify. The concept ‘professional misconduct’ as used in this subparagraph shall be understood as an infringement of the legal acts regulating competition, labour, safety and health at work and environmental protection for which the supplier who is a natural person is imposed an administrative penalty, whereas the supplier which is a legal person – an economic sanction specified by laws of the Republic of Lithuania, when less than one year has lapsed since the entry into force of a decision imposing this sanction. Where a supplier which is a legal person and participates in procurement procedures commits an infringement of Article 5 of the Law of the Republic of Lithuania on Competition, such an infringement under this subparagraph shall be deemed professional misconduct where less than three years have lapsed from the entry into force of a decision imposing the economic sanction specified in the Law of the Republic of Lithuania on Competition;
Version of subparagraph 4 after 21 August 2011:
4) has been guilty of grave professional misconduct proven by any means which the contracting authorities can justify. The concept ‘professional misconduct’ as used in this subparagraph shall be understood as an infringement of professional ethics, when less than one year has lapsed from recognition of the supplier as not complying with standards of professional ethics, or as an infringement of the legal acts regulating competition, labour, safety and health at work and environmental protection for which the supplier who is a natural person is imposed an administrative penalty, whereas the supplier which is a legal person – an economic sanction specified by laws of the Republic of Lithuania, when less than one year has lapsed since the entry into force of a decision imposing this sanction. Where a supplier which is a legal person and participates in procurement procedures commits an infringement of Article 5 of the Law of the Republic of Lithuania on Competition, such an infringement under this subparagraph shall be deemed professional misconduct where less than three years have lapsed from the entry into force of a decision imposing the economic sanction specified in the Law of the Republic of Lithuania on Competition;
5) has not fulfilled obligations relating to the payment of social security contributions in accordance with the legal provisions of the country of registration or the country in which the contracting authority is established;
6) has not fulfilled obligations relating to the payment of taxes in accordance with the legal provisions of the country of registration or the country in which the contracting authority is established;
The paragraph shall be supplemented with subparagraph 8 as of 1 August 2011:
8) has been imposed a punishment for permitting to perform illegal work, when less than one year has lapsed since imposition of the administrative penalty, or the supplier which is a natural person has an unspent or unexpunged conviction, or a judgement of conviction has become effective against the supplier which is a legal person.
3. Where the contracting authority requests in the contract documents that the supplier provide proof of the absence of any of the circumstances referred to in paragraph 1 and subparagraphs 1, 2, 3, 5 and 6 of paragraph 2 of this Article, it shall accept as sufficient proof a document issued by a court, the state enterprise Centre of Registers or another competent authority. To prove the mentioned circumstances, the supplier may submit a document issued by the state enterprise Centre of Registers in accordance with the procedure laid down by the Government of the Republic of Lithuania attesting to the common data processed by competent authorities.
4. Where the contracting authority has doubts about the supplier’s suitability it shall have the right to apply to competent authorities in order to be provided with all the required information. Where the required information is related to the supplier from a Member State other than that of the contracting authority, it may apply to the relevant competent authorities of that Member State.
Version of paragraph 5 before 1 August 2011:
5. Where the supplier is unable to present the documents specified in paragraph 3 of this Article as the documents are not issued in the country concerned or where these do not cover all the cases specified in paragraph 1 and subparagraphs 1, 2 or 3 of paragraph 2 of this Article, they may be replaced by a declaration on oath or, in the countries where there is no provision for declarations on oath, by a solemn declaration made by the supplier before a competent judicial or administrative authority, a notary or a competent professional or trade body in the country of origin or the country whence it comes, and in the cases referred to in subparagraph 1 of paragraph 2 of this Article, when the supplier has not entered into an arrangement with creditors, has not suspended or restricted its activities, in the case referred to in subparagraph 2 of paragraph 2 of this Article, when the supplier is not the subject of proceedings for an order for compulsory winding up or of an arrangement with creditors, and in the case referred to in subparagraph 4 of paragraph 2 of this Article – the supplier’s declaration in a free-form format.
Version of paragraph 5 after 1 August 2011:
5. Where the supplier is unable to present the documents specified in paragraph 3 of this Article as the documents are not issued in the country concerned or where these do not cover all the cases specified in paragraph 1 and subparagraphs 1, 2 or 3 of paragraph 2 of this Article, they may be replaced by a declaration on oath or, in the countries where there is no provision for declarations on oath, by a solemn declaration made by the supplier before a competent judicial or administrative authority, a notary or a competent professional or trade body in the country of origin or the country whence it comes, and in the cases referred to in subparagraph 1 of paragraph 2 of this Article, when the supplier has not entered into an arrangement with creditors, has not suspended or restricted its activities, in the case referred to in subparagraph 2 of paragraph 2 of this Article, when the supplier is not the subject of proceedings for an order for compulsory winding up or of an arrangement with creditors, and in the case referred to in subparagraphs 4 and 8 of paragraph 2 of this Article – the supplier’s declaration in a free-form format.
6. The Public Procurement Office must compile a list of the enterprises and institutions of the Republic of Lithuania competent to issue the documents referred to in paragraph 3 of this Article, and furnish the list to the European Commission. The Public Procurement Office shall also be responsible for submitting to the European Commission the new data on the list.
Article 34. Right of Candidates and Tenderers to Pursue Activity
1. The contracting authority shall have the right to require in contract documents that the candidate or tenderer possess an authorisation to pursue the activity which is necessary for performing the public contract. The candidate or tenderer may prove that he holds such authorisation by presenting certificates issued by managers of the relevant professional or activity registers, institutions authorised by the State, as prescribed in the Member State in which it is registered, or a declaration on oath evidencing the candidate’s or tenderer’s right to pursue the appropriate activity.
2. In procedures for the award of public service contracts, insofar as candidates or tenderers have to possess a particular authorisation or to be members of a particular organisation in order to be able to perform in their country of origin the service concerned, the contracting authority may require them to prove that they hold such authorisation or membership.
Article 35. Economic and Financial Standing of Candidates and Tenderers
1. The contracting authority shall have the right to specify in the contract documents the requirements for the economic and financial standing of candidates or tenderers, and request to provide one or more of the following references characterising the economic and financial standing of the candidate or tenderer:
1) appropriate statements from banks or, as necessary, evidence of relevant professional risk indemnity insurance of the candidate or tenderer;
2) balance-sheets or extracts from the balance-sheets for the last financial year, where publication of the balance-sheet is required under the law of the country in which the economic entity is registered;
3) a statement of the overall turnover of the candidate’s or tenderer’s undertaking for a maximum of the last three financial years available and, where the undertaking was registered or commenced activity in the area concerned less than three years ago, since the date of registration or commencing the activity in the area covered by the contract or, where appropriate, a statement of turnover relating to a specific activity in the area covered by the contract, as far as the information on these turnovers is available.
2. The contracting authority shall specify, in the contract documents, which references mentioned in paragraph 1 of this Article or other references the candidates or tenderers have to provide in order to prove that their financial and economic standing corresponds to the requirements of the contracting authority.
3. If, for any valid reason, the candidate or tenderer is unable to provide the references requested by the contracting authority and specified in contract documents, he shall have the right to provide other references which the contracting authority considers appropriate to prove that his economic or financial standing meets the necessary requirements .
Article 36. Technical and Professional Capacity of Candidates and Tenderers
1. The contracting authority, taking into account the nature, quantity, importance and use of the supplies, services or works, shall have the right to assess and examine the technical and professional capacities of candidates and tenderers in the manner specified in this Article and define in the contract documents the documents (one or several) to be furnished by the suppliers as evidence of their technical and/or professional ability:
1) a list of the works carried out over the past five years, accompanied by the contractors’ certificates of satisfactory execution for the most important works; these certificates must indicate the value, date and site of the works and specify whether they were carried out according to the requirements of the valid regulatory documents regulating performance of works and properly completed; where appropriate, the contracting authority may receive such certificates directly from the contractors;
2) the lists of the principal deliveries effected or the main services provided in the past three years, with the sums, dates and recipients of the supplies or services, whether they are contracting authorities or not, involved. Evidence of delivery or services provided shall be given by candidates or tenderers: where the recipient was a contracting authority, in the form of the certificate countersigned by it, where the recipient is not the contracting authority, by the recipient’s certification or, failing this, by a declaration by the candidate or tenderer;
3) an indication of the technicians and technical bodies involved in the procurement, whether or not subordinate to the candidate or tenderer, especially those responsible for quality control and, in the case of public works contracts, those technicians and technical bodies upon whom the contractor may call in order to carry out the work;
4) a description of the technical facilities and measures used by the supplier or service provider for ensuring quality and study and research facilities;
5) where the products or services to be supplied are complex or, exceptionally, are required for a special purpose, a check carried out on the candidate’s or tenderer’s production capacities or technical abilities of service provision and, if necessary, on the means of study and research which are available to it and the quality control measures it will operate. The check shall be carried out by the contracting authority or on its behalf by a competent official body of the country in which the candidate or tenderer is registered;
6) the educational and professional qualifications of the service provider or contractor and/or those of the undertaking’s managerial staff and, in particular, those of the person or persons responsible for providing the services or managing the work;
7) for public works contracts or public service contracts, and only in appropriate cases, an indication of the environmental management measures that the economic entity will be able to apply when performing the contract;
8) a statement of the average annual manpower of the service provider or contractor and the number of managerial staff for the last three years;
9) a statement of the tools, plant and technical equipment available to the service provider or contractor for carrying out the contract;
10) an indication of the proportion of the contract, which the services provider intends possibly to subcontract;
11) samples, descriptions and photographs of products, the authenticity of which must be certified by the candidate or tenderer if the contracting authority so requests;
12) certificates issued by official quality control institutes or agencies of recognised competence attesting the conformity of products clearly identified by references to specifications and standards. The contracting authority must recognise the certificates issued by competent bodies accredited in Member States, attesting the quality of products, services or works.
2. In procedures for awarding public contracts having as their object supplies requiring siting or installation work, the ability of the supplier to provide the services or to execute the installation and other works may be evaluated in particular with regard to the supplier’s skills, efficiency, experience and reliability.
Article 37. Quality Assurance and Environmental Management Standards
1. The contracting authority may require the production by the candidate or tenderer of certificates issued by independent body attesting its compliance with certain quality assurance standards. For that purpose, the contracting authority must refer in the contract documents to quality assurance systems based on the relevant European standards series certified by a certification body conforming to the requirements set forth by EU legislation. The contracting authority must recognise equivalent certificates from bodies established in other Member States. It shall also accept other evidence of equivalent quality assurance measures from candidates or tenderers.
2. Should contracting authorities, in public works contracts and public service contracts in the case referred to in subparagraph 7 of paragraph 1 of Article 36 of this Law require the production of certificates issued by independent bodies attesting compliance of the supplier with certain environmental management standards, they must refer in the contract documents to the EU Community Eco-Management and Audit Scheme (EMAS) or to environmental management standards based on the relevant European or international standards certified by bodies conforming to EU law or the relevant European or international standards concerning certification. The contracting authorities shall recognise equivalent certificates from bodies established in other Member States. They shall also accept other evidence of equivalent environmental management measures from the suppliers.
Article 38. Official Lists of Approved Suppliers
1. In order to more speedily assess compliance of the suppliers’ qualification with the established requirements, official lists of approved contractors, suppliers or service providers meeting the qualification requirements may be drawn up. Official lists of approved suppliers shall be drawn up by the competent authority (authorities) designated by the Government of the Republic of Lithuania. The Government of the Republic of Lithuania or an institution authorised by it shall approve the rules for entering the suppliers in the official lists.
2. The requirements for registration of suppliers in the official lists of approved suppliers shall be set in compliance with the provisions contained in paragraph 1 of Article 33, subparagraphs 1-4 and 7 of paragraph 2 of Article 33, Articles 34, 35, 36, and paragraph 1 and, where appropriate, paragraph 2 of Article 37 of this Law. As regards applications for registration submitted by economic entities belonging to a group of economic entities, they may claim resources made available to them by the other economic entities in the group. In such case, these economic entities must prove to the authority establishing the official list that they will have these resources at their disposal throughout the period of validity of the certificate attesting to their being registered in the list and that throughout the same period these economic entities continue to fulfil the requirements relied upon for their registration in the list.
3. The competent authorities shall register suppliers on official lists on their request provided that they meet the requirements set for them in paragraph 2 of this Article. Lithuanian suppliers and suppliers from other Member States shall be registered on equal terms. The authority shall forthwith notify the suppliers of the adopted decision.
4. The supplier may, for each contract, submit to the contracting authority a certificate of registration on the official lists of approved suppliers issued by the competent authority. The certificates shall state the references which enabled the supplier to be registered in the list and the classification given in that list.
5. A certificate of the payment of social security contributions or taxes and other documents supporting the supplier’s qualification which have not been provided when entering the supplier on the official list may be additionally required by the contracting authority of any supplier registered on the official list.
6. The contracting authority shall not require that the suppliers undergo registration in the official lists in order to participate in a public contract. The contracting authorities shall recognise a certificate issued by the competent authority, also equivalent certificates from competent authorities of other Member States and may not question them without justification. The supplier may also present other documents as proof that its qualification is in compliance with the requirements set by the contracting authority.
Article 39. Evaluation and Comparison of Tenders
1. The contracting authority may request the tenderers to clarify their tenders, however, it may not request, suggest or allow changing the subject-matter of the tender submitted by open or restricted procedure or of the final tender submitted by applying the competitive dialogue, namely, changing the price or making any other changes due to which an irregular tender would become acceptable. In the event of establishing errors in the price calculation during evaluation of tenders, the contracting authority must request the tenderers to correct, within the time limit set by it, the arithmetic errors identified in the tender without changing the price quoted at the tender opening meeting. When correcting the arithmetic errors identified in the tender, the tenderer shall not have the right to withdraw components of the price or supplement the price with new components. Where the tenderer fails to correct the arithmetic errors within the time limit laid down by the contracting authority and/or clarify the tender, its tender shall be rejected as irregular. When awarding contracts by way of negotiations, the price and other conditions of the tender may be negotiated, but the final result of negotiations documented in the record of negotiations or in the final tenders submitted after the negotiations may not be changed.
2. The contracting authority must reject the tender if:
1) the tenderer who submitted a request to participate or tender fails to meet the minimum qualification requirements set out in the contract documents or to adjust, at the request of the contracting authority, the inaccurate or incomplete data provided about its qualification;
3) all tenderers whose tenders have not been rejected on other grounds offered too high prices, which are unacceptable for the contracting authority;
4. The criteria on which the contracting authority shall evaluate tenders shall be:
1) the most economically advantageous tender, when the award is made to the tenderer which has submitted the most economically advantageous tender from the point of view of the contracting authority selected on the basis of the criteria specified by it and linked to the subject-matter of the contract, usually quality, price, technical merit, aesthetic and functional characteristics, environmental characteristics, running costs, cost-effectiveness, after-sales service and technical assistance, delivery date, delivery period or period of completion, or
5. In the case referred to in subparagraph 1 of paragraph 4 of this Article, the contracting authority shall specify, in the contract documents, the relative weighting which it gives to each of the criteria chosen to determine the most economically advantageous tender. The relative weighting of the criteria can be expressed by a specific amount or by providing for a range within which the value attributed to each criterion shall be stated. In exceptional cases, where the purpose of procurement does not allow the establishment of the relative weight of the criteria, the contracting authority must specify the descending order of importance for the criteria in the contract documents.
6. Where the contracting authority evaluates tenders by their economic advantage, it must first verify and assess only the technical data of the tender and, after communicating the results of such verification and assessment to the tenderers, proceed with the overall evaluation of the tenders taking into account the price.
7. In order to take a decision on the awarding of a public contract, the contracting authority must, in accordance with the evaluation criteria and procedure specified in the contract documents, evaluate without delay the tenders submitted by the tenderers, in the case specified in paragraph 8 of Article 32 of this Law assess the compliance with minimum qualification requirements by the supplier whose tender may be recognised as the successful tender according to the results of the assessment, produce a ranking of tenders (this does not apply in the cases where only one supplier is invited to tender or the tender is submitted by only one supplier) and determine the successful tender. The ranking of tenders shall be done in the decreasing order of economic advantage or increasing order of prices. When the criterion of the most economically advantageous tender is applied and the tenders submitted by several suppliers are equal in terms of their economic advantage or when the tender evaluation criteria is the lowest price offered and several tenders offering the same price are submitted, the ranking of tenders shall be produced putting the tenderer who was the first to register the envelope containing his tender or to submit his tender by electronic means first in the ranking order.
8. Acting in compliance with the tender evaluation criteria referred to in paragraph 4 of this Article and having regard to the requirements of Articles 26, 40 of this Law, the contracting authority shall recognise as the successful tender the tender from amongst the tenders which have not been rejected according to the requirements of Articles 32-39 of this Law. Where only one supplier takes part in the negotiated procedure, the contract shall be awarded to such a supplier, provided that he meets qualification requirements laid down by the contracting authority and his tender meets the requirements set by the contracting authority.
Article 40. Abnormally Low Tenders
1. If, for a given contract, tenders appear to be abnormally low in relation to the supplies, works or services, the contracting authority shall request the tenderer to justify the offered price, and if the tenderer fails to produce justification to the satisfaction of the contracting authority, it shall reject the tender. The Government of the Republic of Lithuania or an institution authorised by it shall have the right to define the concept of an abnormally low tender in relation to the supplies, services or works.
2. In order to obtain justification of the abnormally low price, the contracting authority shall request in writing that the tenderer concerned provide details of the constituent elements of the tender which it considers relevant, price elements and calculations. In evaluating the price justification, the contracting authority shall take into consideration:
1) the efficiency of the manufacturing process, of the services provided or of the construction method;
2) the technical solutions chosen and/or the exceptionally favourable conditions available for the provision of supplies, services, or execution of works;
4) the compliance with the regulations on safety at work and working conditions, valid in the place of provision of supplies, services or performance of works;
3. Where the contracting authority establishes that a tender is abnormally low on the grounds that the tenderer has obtained State aid, the tender can be rejected on that ground alone where the latter is unable to prove, within a sufficient time frame fixed by the contracting authority, that the aid in question was granted legally. Upon rejecting the tender on the said ground, the contracting authority must inform the European Commission of that fact. State aid shall be any measure corresponding to the criteria set in paragraph 1 of Article 107 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union.
Article 41. Informing of the Results of the Procurement Procedure
1. With the exception of the cases when the value of the contract awarded by simplified procurement procedure is less than LTL 10000 (net of VAT), the contracting authority shall as soon as possible, but not later than within five working days inform interested candidates and interested tenderers in writing of a decision reached concerning the award of the public contract or conclusion of a framework agreement, or admittance to a dynamic purchasing system, provide a summary of the relevant information referred to in paragraph 2 of this Article which has not been provided during the procurement procedure and indicate the established ranking of tenders, the successful tender and the exact period of deferment. The contracting authority must also indicate the grounds for any decision not to award the public contract or conclude the framework agreement or to recommence the procedure or implement the dynamic purchasing system.
2. Upon the receipt of a written request of the candidate or tenderer, the contracting authority must as soon as possible, but not later than within 15 days after receipt of the request, inform:
2) the tenderer who has made an admissible tender – of the characteristics of the successful tender and relative advantages due to which this tender has been recognised as the successful tender as well as the name of the tenderer who has submitted this tender or of the parties to the framework agreement;
5) the tenderer whose tender has been rejected – of the reasons for rejection of the tender, including those indicated in paragraphs 4 and 5 of Article 25 of this Law, also of the reasons for adoption of the decision on inequality or the decision on non-compliance of the supplies, services or works with the performance or functional requirements.
3. The contracting authority may not provide certain information in the cases referred to in paragraph 2 of this Article, where the release of such information would impede law enforcement, be contrary to the public interest, would prejudice the legitimate commercial interests of suppliers or prejudice fair competition between them.
4. Where the contracting authority requested in the contract documents to provide samples of the products, it must, after evaluating the tenders, establishing the ranking of tenders and taking a decision on the successful tender, allow all the tenderers to examine the samples presented before the award of the public contract.
5. Access to the information relating to the examination, clarification, evaluation and comparison of tenders shall be granted only to the Commission members and experts invited by the contracting authority, representatives of the Public Procurement Office, the head of the contracting authority, the persons authorised by him, other persons and institutions entitled under the laws of the Republic of Lithuania to have access to such information, also the public legal persons authorised by a resolution of the Government of the Republic of Lithuania and administering the financial assistance of the European Union or individual states.
Article 42. Types of Award Procedures
1. The supplies, services or works contracts may be awarded by means of the following procedures:
2. When awarding a public contract, the contracting authority may use:
3) the negotiated procedure with publication of a contract notice – in the circumstances specified in Article 55 of this Law;
Article 43. Open Procedure
1. The number of tenderers in the open procedure shall be unlimited. The contracting authority shall evaluate the tenders submitted in compliance with the requirements set in the contract documents by all suppliers who meet the minimum qualification requirements.
Article 44. Time Limit for Submission of Tenders in the Open Procedure
1. The contracting authority shall fix a time limit for submission of tenders in compliance with provisions of Article 28 of this Law.
2. The final time limit fixed for the submission of tenders may not be shorter than 52 days from the day of dispatch of the contract notice from the Public Procurement Office.
3. If the contracting authority published a prior information notice at least 52 days, but not more than 12 months before commencing the procedure, and provided the contract information in the notice in the manner prescribed by paragraph 1 of Article 22 of this Law, then the time limits specified in paragraph 2 of this Article may be reduced to 36 days. In case of emergence of circumstances unforeseeable by the contracting authority the time limit may be shorter than 36 days, but not less than 22 days from the day of dispatch of the notice from the Public Procurement Office.
4. If the contracting authority draws up and transmits the contract notice by electronic means, the time limit for the submission of tenders referred to in paragraph 2 and 3 of this Article may be shortened by seven days.
5. The time limit for the submission of tenders referred to in paragraph 2 of this Article may be reduced by five more days where the contracting authority offers unrestricted and full direct access by electronic means to all contract documents from the date of publication of the contract notice in accordance with the procedure prescribed by this Law specifying in the text of the contract notice the internet address at which this documentation is accessible.
Article 45. Restricted Procedure
1. The contracting authority shall conduct the restricted procedures in two phases:
1) following the procedure set forth in Articles 22 and 23 of this Law, the contracting authority shall publish the contract notice and, on the basis of the qualification criteria specified therein, select the candidates to be invited to submit their tenders;
Article 46. Time Limits for Submission of Requests to Participate and Tenders in the Restricted Procedure
1. The contracting authority shall fix the time limits for submission of requests to participate and tenders in compliance with provisions of Article 28 of this Law.
2. The time limit for submission of requests to participate may not be shorter than 37 days from the day of dispatch of the notice from the Public Procurement Office.
3. The time limit for submission of tenders may not be shorter than 40 days from the day of dispatch of invitations to tender to suppliers.
4. If the contracting authority published a prior information notice at least 52 days, but not more than 12 months before commencing the procurement procedure, and provided the contract information in the notice in the manner prescribed by Article 22 of this Law, then the time limit specified in paragraph 3 of this Article may be reduced to 36 days. Upon emergence of circumstances unforeseeable by the contracting authority, the time limit may be shorter than 36 days, but not less than 22 days from the day of dispatch of the notice from the Public Procurement Office.
5. Where the contract notice is drawn up and transmitted by electronic means, the time limits for submission of requests to participate referred to in paragraph 2 of this Article may be reduced by seven days, and where the contracting authority offers to suppliers unrestricted and full direct access by electronic means to all contract documents from the date of publication of the contract notice specifying in the text of the contract notice the internet address at which this documentation is accessible, the time limit for submission of tenders as specified in paragraph 3 of this Article may be shortened by five more days.
6. In case of urgency, where it is not possible to comply with the time limits specified in this Article, the contracting authority shall have the right to have recourse to the accelerated form of the restricted procedure and to fix a time limit for submission of requests to participate of at least 15 days from the day of dispatch of the contract notice from the Public Procurement Office or at least 10 days where the notice was dispatched by electronic means and a time limit for submission of tenders of at least 10 days from the day of dispatch to the suppliers of the invitation to tender. The contracting authority shall state in the contract notice valid reasons for the recourse to the accelerated form of the procurement procedure.
Article 47. Pre-qualification Selection of Candidates
1. The contracting authority shall fix in the contract documents (contract notice) the minimum and, where necessary, maximum number of candidates to be invited to submit tenders, as well as define the pre-qualification selection criteria and procedure to be used.
2. When fixing the number of candidates and defining the pre-qualification selection criteria or procedure, the contracting authority must comply with the following requirements:
4. When selecting candidates, the contracting authority must apply only those pre-qualification selection criteria and procedure that are specified in the contract documents. The contracting authority must make pre-qualification selection only from those candidates who meet the minimum qualification requirements set forth by the contracting authority.
5. The contracting authority must invite the number of candidates that is at least equal to the minimum number of candidates to be invited as set by the contracting authority. Should the number of candidates meeting the minimum qualification requirements be less than the set number of candidates to be invited, the contracting authority shall invite all candidates meeting the minimum qualification requirements to submit their tenders. In the context of this procedure, the contracting authority may not invite to participate other suppliers who did not request to participate, or candidates who do not meet the minimum qualification requirements.
Article 48. Submission of Requests to Participate in Pre-qualification Selection
1. Requests to participate may be submitted both by an individual economic entity, and a group of economic entities as defined in paragraph 2 of Article 5 of this Law.
2. Requests to participate shall be submitted according to the requirements set in paragraph 8 of Article 17 of this Law. The request to participate shall be accompanied by the information and documents required by the contracting authority.
Article 49. Invitation to Submit Tenders
1. The contracting authority shall invite the candidates selected according to Article 47 of this Law to submit their tenders.
2. The contracting authority shall send invitations to submit tenders to all the selected suppliers simultaneously in writing.
3. A copy of the contract documents shall be enclosed with the invitation to submit tenders or the invitation shall state the address from which all the contract documents may be requested by the candidates if the contracting authority provides to the candidates a possibility of unrestricted and direct access to them by electronic means.
4. Where the contract documents are held not by the contracting authority, but by the authorised body, the invitation shall indicate the address from which the documents may be requested and, if appropriate, the deadline for requesting such documents. Moreover, the invitation to submit tenders must contain the following information:
2) the address from which all the remaining contract documents may be requested and, if required, the deadline for requesting such documents;
3) the deadline for submission of the tenders, the address to which the tenders must be sent and the language or languages in which the tenders must be drawn up;
4) the documents specified by the contracting authority that the suppliers must present regarding their qualification;
5) tender evaluation procedure, evaluation criteria and the relative weighting of the evaluation criteria and, where appropriate, the descending order of importance for such criteria, if they are not given in the contract notice, or in other contract documents;
Article 50. Conditions of Competitive Dialogue
1. Where the contracting authority considers that the use of the open or restricted procedure will not allow the award of a particularly complex contract, the latter may make use of the competitive dialogue provided that at least one of the following conditions is present:
1) the contracting authority is not objectively able to define the technical requirements for the subject-matter of the contract in accordance with subparagraphs 2, 3 and 4 of paragraph 3 of Article 25 of this Law, capable of satisfying their needs or objectives;
2. A public contract shall be awarded by applying the competitive dialogue on the sole basis of the criterion of the most economically advantageous tender.
Article 51. Conduct of Competitive Dialogue
1. The contracting authority shall publish a contract notice in the manner set forth in Articles 22 and 23 of this Law setting out its needs and requirements in that notice and/or in a descriptive document.
2. The contracting authority shall select candidates in compliance with the established pre-qualification selection criteria and shall open, in accordance with the procedure laid down in Article 54 of this Law, a competitive dialogue the aim of which shall be to identify and define the means best suited to satisfying the needs of the contracting authority. The contracting authority may discuss all aspects of the contract with the chosen candidates during the competitive dialogue.
3. The contracting authority may, during the competitive dialogue, provide for the procedure to take place in successive stages in order to reduce the number of solutions to be discussed during the competitive dialogue stage by applying the award criteria in the contract notice or the descriptive document. The contract notice or the descriptive document should indicate whether recourse will be had to this option.
4. The contracting authority shall continue such dialogue until it can identify the solution or solutions, if necessary after comparing them, which are capable of meeting its needs.
5. Having concluded the dialogue, the contracting authority shall inform the suppliers participating in it thereof and shall ask to submit the final tenders the suppliers whose solutions meet the needs of the contracting authority. The suppliers who are not invited to submit a tender shall be informed of the solutions selected and indicated the principal reasons for their selection. The final tenders shall be drawn up on the basis of the solutions submitted and fine-tuned during the dialogue. These tenders must contain all the elements required and necessary for execution of the procurement. The contracting authority may request the tenderers to clarify, fine-tune and specify tenders, however, such clarification, fine-tuning, specification or additional information may not involve changes to the basic features of the tender or the call for the participation in the dialogue, variations in which are likely to distort or restrict competition and have a discriminatory effect with respect to suppliers.
6. The contracting authority shall assess the tenders received on the basis of the award criteria laid down in the contract notice or the descriptive document and shall choose the most economically advantageous tender. The contracting authority may request the tenderer identified as having submitted the most economically advantageous tender to clarify aspects of the tender or confirm commitments contained in the tender provided this does not have the effect of modifying substantial aspects of the tender or of the call for tender and does not risk distorting competition or causing discrimination.
7. During the dialogue, the contracting authority must:
2) no information obtained from the supplier may be revealed to the third parties without the prior consent of the supplier; the contracting authority may not disclose to the supplier any information about the solutions proposed by other suppliers;
3) the same requirements must apply to all participants; all participants must be provided the same conditions and the same information;
Article 52. Time Limits for Submission of Requests to Participate in the Competitive Dialogue
1. The contracting authority shall fix the time limits for submission of requests to participate in the competitive dialogue according to the provisions of Article 28 of this Law.
Article 53. Pre-qualification Selection of Candidates to the Competitive Dialogue
1. The pre-qualification selection of candidates to be invited to participate in the dialogue shall be conducted according to the provisions of Article 47 of this Law.
2. Where the number of the suitable candidates is sufficient, the contracting authority shall have the right to limit the number of candidates to be invited to participate in the competitive dialogue. The contracting authority shall indicate in the contract notice objective and non-discriminatory criteria and rules which it intends to apply when selecting the candidates, the minimum number of candidates invited to participate in the dialogue which shall be not less than three and, where necessary, their maximum number.
3. The contracting authority must invite to the competitive dialogue a number of candidates at least equal to the minimum number set in advance by the contracting authority. Should the number of candidates meeting the minimum qualification requirements be less than the number indicated in the contract notice, the contracting authority may continue the procedure and invite to the dialogue all candidates who have submitted requests to participate and who meet the minimum qualification requirements. In the context of this procedure, the contracting authority may not invite to participate other suppliers who did not request to participate, or candidates who do not meet the minimum qualification requirements.
Article 54. Invitation to Participate in the Competitive Dialogue
1. The contracting authority shall simultaneously and in writing invite the candidates selected according to the procedure established in Article 53 of this Law to take part in the competitive dialogue.
2. The invitation shall include either a copy of the specifications or of the descriptive document or other supporting documents, or a reference to accessing them, when the contracting authority offers unrestricted and full direct access by electronic means to all contract documents in accordance with the procedure laid down by this Law. In addition, the invitation to participate in the dialogue must contain at least:
2) in the case of competitive dialogue, the date and the address set for the start of dialogue and the language or languages used;
3) a reference to any possible adjoining documents to be submitted, in support of verifiable qualifications established by the contracting authority;
4) tender evaluation procedure, evaluation criteria, the relative weighting of the evaluation criteria and, where appropriate, the descending order of importance for such criteria, if they are not given in the contract notice or the descriptive document;
Article 55. Conditions of the Negotiated Procedure with Publication of a Contract Notice
Public contracts may be awarded by negotiated procedure, after publication of a contract notice, in the presence of at least one of the following conditions:
1) in the event of the submission of tenders which are unacceptable in response to an open or restricted procedure or a competitive dialogue or which do not fully meet the requirements set in the contract documents insofar as the original terms of the contract are not substantially altered;
2) in exceptional cases, when the nature of supplies, services or works or the risks attaching thereto do not permit prior overall pricing by the contracting authority;
3) in the case of services, inter alia services within category 6 of A-type services listed in Appendix 2 of this Law, and intellectual services, such as services involving the design of works, insofar as the nature of the services to be provided is such that contract specifications cannot be established with sufficient precision to permit the award of the contract by selection of the best tender according to the rules governing open or restricted procedures;
Article 56. Conditions of the Negotiated Procedure without Publication of a Contract Notice
1. Public supply contracts, public service contracts or public works contracts may be awarded by a negotiated procedure without prior publication of a contract notice provided at least one of the following conditions is present:
1) in the event of submission of tenders which are unacceptable in response to an open or restricted procedure or a competitive dialogue or which do not fully meet the requirements set in the contract documents insofar as the original terms of the contract are not substantially altered and all suppliers who meet the minimum qualification requirements and requirements for submission of tenders set by the contracting authority and who have submitted tenders for the open or restricted procedure or competitive dialogue are invited to negotiate;
2) when no tender or no suitable tender has been submitted in response to an open procedure or restricted procedure, whereas the initial conditions of contract are not substantially altered and provided that the European Commission is upon its request given a detailed report about the procurement conducted or the contract awarded on this ground;
3) when, for technical or artistic reasons, or for reasons related to the protection of exclusive rights, the supplies may be delivered, services rendered or works performed only by a particular supplier;
4) in so far as it is strictly necessary, for reasons of extreme urgency brought about by events unforeseeable by the contracting authority in question, the time limit fixed in this Law for the open, restricted or negotiated procedures with publication of a contract notice cannot be kept. The circumstances invoked to justify extreme urgency must not in any event be attributable to the contracting authority;
2. Supply public contracts may also be awarded without the publication of a contract notice in the presence of at least one of the following conditions:
1) when the products involved are manufactured purely for the purpose of research, experiment, study or development, this provision does not extend to quantity production to establish commercial viability or to recover research and development costs;
2) where the contracting authority has procured supplies from a supplier under the original public contract and established the expediency of additional deliveries by the supplier which are intended either as a partial replacement of existing and normal supplies or installations or as the extension of existing supplies or installations where a change of supplier would oblige the contracting authority to acquire material having different technical characteristics which would result in incompatibility or disproportionate technical difficulties in operation and maintenance. The length of such contracts as well as that of recurrent contracts may, as a general rule, not exceed three years following the award of the initial contract;
4) for purchase on particularly advantageous terms, from either a supplier which is being liquidated, restructure, is involved in bankruptcy proceedings, is bankrupt or has entered into a composition with creditors, or by following a similar procedure under the legal acts of its country of registration.
3. Public service contracts awarded by the negotiated procedure without publication of a contract notice may also follow a design contest conducted in compliance with the requirements set forth by this Law and be awarded to the successful candidate or to one of the successful candidates. In the latter case, all successful candidates shall be invited to participate in the negotiations.
4. As regards public service and works contracts, the negotiated procedure without publication of a contract notice may be applied under at least one of the following conditions:
1) for additional works or services not included in the project initially considered or in the contract first concluded but which have, through unforeseen circumstances, become necessary for the performance of the services or works described therein, where such additional services or works cannot be technically or economically separated from the initial contract without major inconvenience to the contracting authority or where such works or services, although they may be separated from the initial public contract, are necessary for the completion of the contract. However, such a public contract for additional works or services may only be concluded with the supplier to whom the initial public contract was awarded and the aggregate value of all other additionally awarded contracts may not exceed 50% of the value of the main contract;
2) for new deliveries of services or works by the existing supplier, which are similar to those procured under the previous public contract, on the condition that the previous public contract was awarded by means of the open or restricted procedure, the contract notice whereof included the value of such additional contracts and provided for the possibility thereof, and all mentioned contracts are intended for the execution of the same project. The length of such additional public contracts may not exceed three years after the initial public contract is awarded.
Article 57. Conducting the Negotiated Procedure with and without Publication of a Contract Notice
1. The contracting authority shall conduct the negotiated procedure with publication of a contract notice in the following phases:
1) according to the procedure set forth in Articles 22 and 23 of this Law, invite suppliers to submit requests to participate in the negotiated procedure with publication of a contract notice;
2) verify qualification of the candidates who submitted requests against the minimum requirements set forth in the contract documents, and perform the pre-qualification selection of candidates, where such selection is provided for in the contract documents;
3) invite candidates to submit tenders and negotiate with each one of them according to the conditions set forth in Article 58 of this Law aiming at the highest economic advantage according to the requirements set in contract documents. The contracting authority may provide for the negotiated procedure to take place in successive stages in order to reduce the number of tenders to be negotiated according to the criteria set in the contract documents. The contract notice or other contract documents must indicate whether the contracting authority intends to have recourse to the negotiated procedure in successive stages;
2. When applying the negotiated procedure without publication of a contract notice, the contracting authority shall:
1) where more than one candidate is invited to negotiate – verify if the qualification of candidates meets the set requirements, negotiate aiming at the highest economic advantage, and, based on the results of negotiations and the evaluation criteria specified in the contract documents, identify the successful tender;
2) when only one candidate is invited to negotiate – verify if the qualification of the candidate meets the set requirements, and negotiate aiming at the highest economic advantage. In the negotiated procedure without publication of a contract notice, when only one candidate is invited to negotiate, the contracting authority shall have the right not to give to the candidate all the information referred to in Article 24 of this Law, if the contracting authority deems that some items of information are not necessary.
Article 58. Requirements with respect to the Negotiated Procedure with and without Publication of a Contract Notice
1. During the negotiated procedures, the contracting authority must comply with the following requirements:
2) no information obtained from the supplier may be revealed to the third parties without the prior consent of the supplier; the contracting authority may not disclose to the supplier any information about the solutions proposed by other suppliers;
3) all tenderers shall be subject to the same requirements, they must be provided with equal opportunities and with the same information; the contracting authority may not provide information in a discriminatory manner which may give some tenderers an advantage over others;
4) minutes must be taken of negotiations. The minutes of the negotiations shall be signed by the chairman of the Commission and the authorised representative of the tenderer who has participated in the negotiated procedure;
5) tenders containing the final prices offered by the suppliers as well as final technical data evaluated according to the criterion of the most economically advantageous tender must be submitted in sealed envelopes. It shall be possible not to apply this provision in the cases specified in subparagraph 4 of paragraph 1 of Article 56, subparagraph 4 of paragraph 1 of Article 73 of this Law or in other cases when the tender is submitted by one supplier.
2. The contracting authority shall negotiate separately with each tenderer meeting the qualification requirements set forth by the contracting authority, and shall identify the best tender following the provisions of Article 39 of this Law.
Article 59. Time Limits for Submission of Requests to Participate and Tenders in Case of the Negotiated Procedure with Publication of a Contract Notice
1. The contracting authority shall fix the time limits for submission of requests to participate and tenders in compliance with provisions of Article 28 of this Law.
2. The time limit for submission of requests to participate may not be shorter than 37 days from the day of dispatch of the notice from the Public Procurement Office. Where the contract notice is dispatched by electronic means the time limit may be shortened by seven days.
3. In case of urgency, if it is not possible to keep to the time limits specified in this Article, the contracting authority shall have the right to apply accelerated procedure to conducting negotiations and to fix a time limit for the submission of requests to participate which may not be less than 15 days from the day of dispatch of the contract notice from the Public Procurement Office or less than 10 days if the notice was dispatched by electronic means. In the contract notice, the contracting authority shall specify the reasons justifying the use of the accelerated procedure.
Article 60. Pre-qualification Selection of Candidates in the Negotiated Procedure with Publication of a Contract Notice
1. In cases of negotiated procedure with publication of a contract notice, the contracting authority may limit the number of candidates to be invited according to the rules set forth in Article 47 (except for paragraph 3) of this Law. The minimum number of candidates to be invited to participate in the negotiated procedure and specified in the contract documents (contract notice or invitation to tender) shall be not less than three.
Article 61. Submission of Requests to Participate in the Negotiated Procedure with Publication of a Contract Notice
1. Requests to participate in the negotiated procedure with publication of a contract notice shall be submitted according to the requirements set in paragraph 8 of Article 17 of this Law. The contracting authority must specify in the contract documents that requests to participate in the negotiated procedure with publication of a contract notice must be accompanied by information and documents according to the requirements specified in the contract notice.
Article 62. Invitation to Negotiate
1. In the negotiated procedure with publication of a contract notice, the contracting authority shall send invitations to negotiate in writing simultaneously to all candidates selected according to the provisions of Article 60 of this Law, or, if there was no pre-qualification selection, to all candidates who meet the minimum qualification requirements.
2. A copy of the contract documents shall accompany the invitation to participate in the negotiations or a reference to accessing them shall be provided, when the suppliers are offered unrestricted and direct access by electronic means to all contract documents according to the procedure set forth in this Law. In addition, the invitation to negotiate must contain the following information:
1) in case of the negotiated procedure with publication of a contract notice – a reference to the contract notice;
2) the address from which all the remaining contract documents may be requested and, if required, the deadline for requesting such documents;
3) the final date for the receipt of tenders, the address to which the tenders shall be sent and the language or languages in which the tenders must be drawn up, if the information was not submitted;
5) tender evaluation procedure, evaluation criteria and their relative weight, or, where appropriate, the descending order of importance for such criteria, if they are not given in the contract notice or other contract documents;
3. Where the contract documents are held not by the contracting authority, but by the authorised body, the invitation shall indicate the address from which the documents may be requested and, if appropriate, the deadline for requesting such documents.
Article 63. Framework Agreement
1. The contracting authority (contracting authorities) shall have the right to conclude framework agreement with one or several suppliers in accordance with the procedure laid down by this Law.
2. The contracting authority shall comply with the requirements of this Law both when concluding the framework agreement and when awarding contracts on its basis.
3. When awarding contracts based on a framework agreement, the contracting authority must comply with the requirements set forth in paragraphs 7, 8, 9,10 of this Article. The contracts may only be awarded to the suppliers who are parties to the framework agreement.
4. When awarding contracts based on a framework agreement, the parties may under no circumstances make substantial amendments to the terms laid down in that framework agreement.
5. The term of a framework agreement may not exceed four years, save in exceptional cases duly justified and referred to in the contract notice.
6. The contracting authority may not use a framework agreement improperly or in such a way as to prevent, restrict or distort competition.
7. Where a framework agreement is concluded with a single supplier, the contracting authority may, when awarding a public contract on the basis of the agreement, consult the supplier party to the framework agreement requesting it to supplement its tender as necessary and indicating that supplementing the tender may not involve changes to the basic features of the tender.
8. Where a framework agreement is concluded with several suppliers, the latter must be at least three in number, insofar as there are three and more suppliers to satisfy the qualification requirements set forth by the contracting authority and submit admissible tenders.
9. A public contract based on a framework agreement concluded with several suppliers may be awarded either:
1) by application of the terms laid down in the framework agreement without reopening competition, or
2) where not all the terms are laid down in the framework agreement, when suppliers are again in competition on the basis of the same or more precisely formulated terms, and, if necessary, other terms of the framework agreement in accordance with the procedure laid down in paragraph 10 of this Article.
10. When the suppliers are again in competition, the contracting authority shall:
1) consult in writing the suppliers and request to submit tenders in writing before the expiry of the time limit fixed for submission of tenders;
2) fix a time limit, which is sufficiently long to allow tenders for each specific contract to be submitted, taking into account factors such as the complexity of the subject-matter of the contract and the time needed to send in tenders;
3) ensure that the content of tenders remains confidential until the stipulated time limit for reply has expired;
Article 64. Dynamic Purchasing System
1. The contracting authority may use dynamic purchasing systems to conduct procurement procedures. In applying this system and awarding public contracts under this system, the contracting authority shall make use only of electronic means.
2. In setting up a dynamic purchasing system, the contracting authority must follow the rules of the open procedure in all phases of the dynamic purchasing system up to the award of the public contract. All the tenderers meeting the qualification requirements set forth by the contracting authority and having submitted an indicative tender which complies with the contract documents shall be admitted to the dynamic purchasing system. An indicative tender shall be a tender that may be improved at any time of the dynamic purchasing system provided that it continues to comply with the requirements set in the contract documents.
3. For the purposes of using a dynamic purchasing system, the contracting authority shall:
1) publish a contract notice following the procedure set in Article 22 and 23 of this Law, making it clear in the notice that a dynamic purchasing system is involved;
2) indicate in the contract documents, amongst other matters, the subject-matter of the contract envisaged under that system, as well as all the necessary information concerning the purchasing system, the electronic equipment used and the technical connection arrangements and specifications;
4. The contracting authority shall give any supplier, throughout the entire period of the dynamic purchasing system, the possibility of submitting an indicative tender and of being admitted to the system under the conditions referred to in paragraph 2 of this Article. The contracting authority must complete evaluation of the indicative tender not later than within a maximum of 15 days from the date of submission of the indicative tender. The contracting authority shall have the right to extend the indicative tender evaluation period provided that no invitation to tender is issued in the meantime. The contracting authority shall inform the supplier without delay of its admittance to the dynamic purchasing system or of the rejection of its indicative tender.
5. Before issuing the invitation to tender in a specific procurement, the contracting authority shall publish a simplified contract notice under the dynamic system and invite all interested suppliers to submit an indicative tender, in accordance with paragraph 4 of this Article, within a time limit that may not be less than 15 days from the date on which the simplified contract notice under the dynamic system was dispatched from the Public Procurement Office. The contracting authority may not proceed with procurement procedures until it has completed evaluation of all the indicative tenders received by that deadline.
6. The contracting authority shall invite all suppliers admitted to the dynamic purchasing system to submit a tender for each specific contract to be awarded under the system. To that end, it shall set a time limit for the submission of tenders.
7. On the basis of the tender evaluation criteria set out in the notice for the establishment of the dynamic purchasing system, the contracting authority shall establish the tenderer which submitted the best tender and award the public contract to it. Those criteria may, if necessary, be formulated more precisely in the invitation referred to in the paragraph 6 of this Article.
8. A dynamic purchasing system may not last for more than four years, except in cases duly justified by the contracting authority.
9. The contracting authority may not resort to the dynamic purchasing system to prevent, restrict or distort competition.
Article 65. Electronic Auction
1. The contracting authority may use electronic auctions in open, restricted or negotiated procedures with publication of a contract notice in the case referred to in subparagraph 1 of paragraph 1 of Article 55 of this Law. An electronic auction may also be held on the reopening of competition among the parties to a framework agreement, when the framework agreement is concluded with several suppliers, or on contracts to be awarded under a dynamic purchasing system.
2. Tenders submitted to the electronic auction shall be evaluated on the basis of:
3. The contracting authority, which decides to hold an electronic auction, shall state that fact in the contract notice. The notice shall include, inter alia, the following information:
1) the values of features of the tender, provided that they are quantifiable and can be expressed in figures or percentages;
2) any limits on the values of the tender which may be submitted, as they result from the specifications relating to the subject of the contract;
3) the information which will be made available to tenderers in the course of the electronic auction and, where necessary, when it will be made available to them;
5) the conditions under which the tenderers will be able to bid and, in particular, the minimum differences which will, where necessary, be required when bidding;
4. Before proceeding with an electronic auction, the contracting authority shall:
1) make a full initial evaluation of the tenders in accordance with the award criterion of the lowest price or the most economically advantageous tender and with the weighting fixed for them;
2) invite simultaneously by electronic means all tenderers who have submitted admissible tenders to submit new prices and/or new values. The invitation shall contain all relevant information concerning individual connection to the electronic equipment being used and shall state the date and time of the start of the electronic auction. The electronic auction may take place in a number of successive phases. The electronic auction may not start sooner than two working days after the date on which invitations are sent out.
5. When a tender is evaluated according to the criterion of the most economically advantageous tender, the invitation shall be accompanied by the outcome, in values, of a full evaluation of features of the tender submitted by the relevant tenderer. The invitation shall also state the mathematical formula to be used to determine the automatic ranking of new tenders. That formula must incorporate the values obtained as a result of evaluation of features of all tenders according to the criterion expressed by a specific value, as indicated in the contract notice or in other contract documents. Where variants are authorised, a separate formula shall be provided for each variant.
6. Throughout each phase of an electronic auction the contracting authority shall instantaneously communicate to all tenderers at least sufficient information to enable them to ascertain their relative rankings at any moment. They may also communicate other information concerning prices and values submitted, provided that this is stated in the contract documents. The contracting authority may also at any time announce the number of participants in that phase of the auction, however, in no case may it disclose the identities of the tenderers during any phase of an electronic auction.
7. The contracting authority shall close an electronic auction in one or more of the following manners:
1) in the invitation to take part in the auction it shall indicate the date and time fixed in advance;
2) when it receives no more new prices or new values which meet the requirements set by the contracting authority concerning minimum differences among submitted tenders. In that event, the contracting authority shall state in the invitation to take part in the auction the time which it will allow to elapse after receiving the last submission before it closes the electronic auction;
3) when the number of phases in the auction, fixed in the invitation to take part in the auction, has been completed. When the contracting authority has decided to close an electronic auction in accordance with this subparagraph, or possibly in combination with the arrangements laid down in subparagraph 2 of this paragraph, the invitation to take part in the auction shall indicate the timetable for each phase of the auction.
8. After closing an electronic auction, the contracting authority shall determine the winner who will be awarded the contract on the basis of the results of the electronic auction.
Article 66. Public Works Contracts: Particular Rules on Subsidised Housing Schemes
1. In the case of procurement of works relating to the design and construction of a subsidised housing scheme, the size and complexity of which, and the estimated duration of the work involved require that planning of this procurement be based from the outset on close collaboration within a team comprising representatives of the contracting authority, experts and the contractor to be responsible for carrying out the works, special rules may be adopted for selecting the contractor most suitable for integration into the team. The rules shall be approved by the contracting authority according to Articles 3, 17, 19, 22, 23, 27, 28, 33-38 and 41 of this Law.
2. In particular, the contracting authority shall include in the contract notice as accurate as possible a description of the works to be carried out so as to enable interested contractors to form a valid idea of the project. Furthermore, the contracting authority shall state in the contract notice the pre-qualification selection criteria set for the suppliers.
Article 67. Conditions of a Design Contest
Design contest may be used when awarding contracts for territorial planning, architecture, engineering, data processing or other services of a similar character.
Article 68. Conducting a Design Contest
1. A notice of a design contest shall be published following the provisions of Articles 22 and 23 of this Law.
2. The design contest shall be conducted in order to determine the supplier (suppliers) who submitted the best plan or design (usually of territorial planning, architecture, civil engineering or data processing), where:
1) a design contest is conducted as part of procurement of services, when the public service contract is to be awarded to the winner of the design contest, or
2) the winner, winners or participants of the design contest is to be provided with prizes, or other rewards for participation. In this case, the contracting authority shall have the right to continue the services contract award procedure by means of the negotiated procedure without publication of a contract notice, inviting to negotiate the winner or all winners (top rated tenderers) of the design contest.
3. Both legal and natural persons or a group of such persons shall be allowed to take part in the design contest.
4. The admission of suppliers to design contests shall not be limited by reference to the specific territory or other restriction of discriminatory nature.
5. The final date fixed for submission of tenders in the contract documents may not be shorter than 52 days after the date of dispatching the notice for publication from the Public Procurement Office.
6. The contracting authority may decide to conduct pre-qualification selection of candidates to be invited to submit their plans or projects. In such case, the pre-qualification selection criteria set forth by the contracting authority in the contract documents must be non-discriminatory and ensure genuine competition.
Article 69. Jury of a Design Contest
1. The plans or projects submitted by candidates shall be evaluated by the jury formed by the contracting authority or the authorised body. The contracting authority must fully authorise the jury to perform evaluation of the plans or projects and identify the winners. The jury must be composed exclusively of natural persons who are independent of tenderers in the contest. Only natural persons of impeccable reputation who have signed a declaration of impartiality and a pledge of confidentially shall be appointed chairman and members of the jury. Where a particular professional qualification is required from participants in a design contest, at least a third of the members of the jury must have the same or similar qualification. Decisions shall be reached only in the meetings of the jury. Minutes shall be taken of the meetings of the jury.
2. The jury shall be autonomous in its decision-making. The jury shall evaluate anonymous plans or projects (the members of the jury may find out the name of the tenderer only after the jury has reached a common opinion or has taken a decision as regards the best plan or project).
3. The submitted plans or projects shall be evaluated subject to the criteria set forth in the contract documents, and these shall not be necessarily based on the lowest price or the criterion of the most economically advantageous tender. The jury shall record the ranking of projects in a report signed by its members, made according to the merits of each project, together with its remarks and any points which may need clarification.
CHAPTER III
procurement PROCEDURES of entities operating in water, energy, transport or POSTAL SERVICES sectors
Article 70. Regulation of Procurement Procedures of Entities Operating in Water, Energy, Transport or Postal Services Sectors
1. This Chapter shall apply to the procurement procedures of the following contracting authorities operating in the water, energy, transport or postal services sectors and carrying out one or several of the activities listed in paragraph 2 of this Article:
1) the contracting authorities defined in subparagraphs 1, 2 and 3 of paragraph 1 of Article 3 of this Law;
3) any undertaking over which the contracting authorities referred to in subparagraph 1 of this paragraph may exercise directly or indirectly a dominant influence by virtue of their ownership of it, their financial participation or the rules which govern the activities of the undertaking. A dominant influence on the part of the contracting authority shall be presumed when it, directly or indirectly, in relation to an undertaking which: holds the majority of the undertaking’s authorised capital or controls the majority of the votes attaching to shares issued by the undertaking or can appoint more than half of the undertaking’s administrative, management or supervisory body members;
4) undertakings granted by the competent authority special or exclusive rights to carry out an activity specified in paragraph 2 of this Article. As used in this Article, special or exclusive rights shall mean rights granted by the competent authority by law or any other legal acts to one or several undertakings to carry out the activity indicated in paragraph 2 of this Law, which therefore has a substantive effect on the possibilities of other undertakings to carry out the activity.
2. Activities in the water, energy, transport or postal services sectors include:
1) provision and operation of fixed networks intended to provide services to the public in connection with the production, transport or distribution of drinking water, electricity, gas or heat, as well as activities pertaining to the supply of drinking water, electricity, gas or heat to such networks;
2) the activities of implementation of hydraulic engineering projects, irrigation or land drainage connected with production, supply or distribution of drinking water, provided that more than 20% of the total volume of water made available by such projects shall be supplied as drinking water;
3) the activities of sewage disposal or treatment connected with the production, supply or distribution of drinking water;
4) provision and operation of networks providing services to the public in the field of transport by railway, automated systems, tramway, trolley bus, bus or cable. As regards transport services, a network shall be considered to exist where the service is provided under operating conditions laid down by a competent authority, such as conditions on the routes to be served, the frequency of the service, the capacity to be made available. Provision of bus transport services shall be excluded from the scope of this Law where any economic entity is free to provide such services, either in a general or a particular geographical area, under the same conditions as the contracting authority;
5) exploitation of a geographical area for the purpose of exploring for and extracting oil, gas, coal or other solid fuels;
6) exploitation of a geographical area for the purpose of provision of airport, maritime or inland port or other terminal facilities to carriers by air, sea or inland waterway;
7) provision of postal services. For the purpose of this Law, postal services and postal item shall be used within the meaning defined in the Postal Law of the Republic of Lithuania;
8) the provision of services other than postal services on condition that such services are provided by an economic entity which also provides postal services. Services other than postal services shall be: postal service management services (services both preceding and subsequent to collection, distribution, carriage and delivery, such as mailroom management services); added-value services linked to and provided entirely by electronic means (including the secure transmission of coded documents by electronic means, address management services and transmission of registered electronic mail); services concerning postal items not defined in the Postal Law of the Republic of Lithuania, such as direct mail bearing no address, financial services of category 6 referred to in the list of A-type services of Appendix 2 of this Law, except for those referred to in subparagraph 2 of paragraph 2 of Article 10 of this Law, including in particular postal money orders and postal giro transfers; philatelic services, and logistics services (services combining physical delivery and/or warehousing with other non-postal functions).
3. The activities in the water and energy sectors shall not be regarded as the activities referred to in paragraph 2 of this Article if they are performed by the contracting authorities indicated in subparagraphs 2, 3 and 4 of paragraph 1 of this Article to supply to the fixed networks intended to provide a service to the public:
1) gas or heat, where the production thereof is the unavoidable consequence of carrying on activities other than those referred to in paragraph 2 of this Article and supply to the public network is aimed only at the economic exploitation of such production and amounts to not more than 20% of the entity’s turnover having regard to the average for the preceding three years, including the current year;
2) in the case of electricity, where the production of electricity is conditioned by the activity other than that referred to in paragraph 2 of this Article, and supply to the public network depends only on the entity’s own consumption and has not exceeded 30% of the entity’s total production of electricity having regard to the average for the preceding three years, including the current year;
3) drinking water, where the production of drinking water is the unavoidable consequence of carrying on activities other than those referred to in paragraph 2 of this Article, and supply to the public network is aimed only at the economic exploitation of such production and amounts to not more than 30% of the entity’s average amount of drinking water production for the preceding three years, including the current year.
Article 71. Procedure for Establishing whether a Given Activity is Directly Exposed to Competition
1. Contracts intended to enable an activity mentioned in Article 70 of this Law to be carried out shall not be subject to this Law if the activity is directly exposed to competition on markets to which access is not restricted.
2. For the purposes of paragraph 1 of this Article, the question of whether an activity is directly exposed to competition shall be decided. On the basis of criteria that are in conformity with provisions on competition of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, such as the characteristics of the goods or services concerned, the existence of alternative goods or services, the prices and the actual or potential presence of more than one supplier of the goods or services in question.
3. Access to the market in question shall be deemed free subject to implementation and application of EU legislation indicated in Appendix 4 of this Law. Where free access to a given market cannot be presumed on the basis thereof, it must be demonstrated that access to the market in question is free de facto and de jure.
4. An application to apply paragraph 1 of this Article may be filed with the European Commission by the contracting authority itself or by the authorised state institutions within their competence. The application shall be filed according to the procedure laid down by Commission Decision 2005/15/EC of 7 January 2005 on the detailed rules for the procedure provided for in Article 30 of Directive 2004/17/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council coordinating the procurement procedures of entities operating in the water, energy, transport and postal services sectors. The European Commission may also initiate the procedure of taking a decision stipulating application of paragraph 1 of this Article to a specific activity. In this case, the European Commission shall notify the Member State without delay.
Article 72. Procurement Procedures of the Contracting Authorities Operating in the Water, Energy, Transport or Postal Services Sectors
1. The contracting authorities may award contracts according to the following procedures:
2. The contracting authority may use the open procedure, the restricted procedure or the negotiated procedure with publication of a contract notice in all cases without limitations provided that the contract notice was published according to the requirements set in Article 74 of this Law.
3. In cases specified in Article 73 of this Law, the contracting authority may award the contract by means of the negotiated procedure without publication of a contract notice.
4. The contract may be awarded by using the design contest in cases referred to in Article 67 of this Law.
5. The contracting authority may award contracts using the dynamic purchasing system or the electronic auction as specified in Articles 64 and 65 of this Law. The contracting authority may apply electronic auctions to award contracts by means of the open procedure, restricted procedure or negotiated procedure with publication of a contract notice provided that the subject-matter of the contract may be given a precise description. Electronic auction may also be used for the award of contract using the dynamic purchasing system.
Article 73. Conditions of the Negotiated Procedure without Publication of a Contract Notice
1. Supply, services or works contracts may be awarded by means of the negotiated procedure without publication of a contract notice in the presence of at least one of the following conditions:
1) when no tenders or no request to participate or no suitable request (meeting the set requirements necessary to satisfy the needs of the contracting authority) have been submitted in response to an open or restricted procedure or negotiated procedure with publication of a contract notice, provided that the initial conditions of contract are not substantially altered;
2) where a supply, services or works contract is purely for the purpose of research, experiment, study or development, and not for the purpose of securing a profit or of recovering research or development costs, and in so far as the award of such contract does not prejudice the competitive award of subsequent contracts;
3) when, for technical or artistic reasons, or for reasons related to the protection of exclusive rights, the supplies may be delivered, services rendered and works performed only by a particular supplier;
4) when, for reasons of extreme urgency brought about by events unforeseeable by the contracting authority in question, the time limit for the open, restricted or negotiated procedures with publication of a contract notice cannot be kept within the time limits fixed by this Law;
2. Supply public contracts may also be awarded without the publication of a contract notice in the presence of at least one of the following conditions:
1) where the contracting authority has procured supplies from a supplier under the original public contract and established the expediency of additional deliveries by the supplier which are intended either as a partial replacement of existing and normal supplies or installations or as the extension of existing supplies or installations where a change of supplier would oblige the contracting authority to acquire material having different technical characteristics which would result in incompatibility or disproportionate technical difficulties in operation and maintenance;
3) where it is possible to procure supplies by taking advantage of a particularly advantageous opportunity available for a very short time at a price considerably lower than normal market prices;
4) for purchase on particularly advantageous terms, from either a supplier which is being liquidated, restructure, is involved in bankruptcy proceedings, is bankrupt or has entered into a composition with creditors, or by following a similar procedure under the legal acts of its country of registration.
3. In case of the negotiated procedure without publication of a contract notice, services may also be procured following a design contest from the successful candidate or from one of the successful candidates. In the latter case, all successful candidates shall be invited to participate in the negotiations.
4. As regards public service contracts and public works contracts, the negotiated procedure without publication of a contract notice may be applied where, through unforeseen circumstances, additional works or services become necessary, when such additional services or works have not been included in the original public contract and cannot be technically or economically separated from the main public contract without major inconvenience to the contracting authority, or when they, even though separable from the principal contract, are necessary for the performance of the principal contract at its later stages, provided that the additional public contract is concluded with the contractor or service provider performing the original public contract.
5. As regards procurement, from the existing contractor, of new works consisting of the repetition of similar works procured under an earlier public contract, the negotiated procedure without publication of a contract notice may be applied, provided that the previous public contract was awarded according to the open or restricted procedures or negotiated procedure with publication of a contract notice, where the total estimated cost of subsequent works has been taken into consideration, and that the possibility of additional contracts has been pointed out in the contract notice and all the above-mentioned contracts were intended for the performance of the same project..
Article 74. Notices
1. The contracting authority shall publish in advance, at least once per year under the terms and in accordance with the procedure prescribed in Articles 22 and 23 of this Law, a regular indicative notice of planned procurement.
2. Publishing a regular indicative notice of the planned procurement, especially of large scale projects, the contracting authority may refrain from repeating in the notice the information that has already been published, provided that it is expressly stated that this is an additional notice.
3. In case of supplies, services and works contracts, a call for competition for the award of a public contract shall be made by one of the following methods:
4. Where a call for competition is made by a regular indicative notice of the planned procurement, the notice shall be published at least 12 months before the date of dispatch of an invitation under Article 78 of this Law and must contain an indication that there will be no publication of a separate contract notice. Moreover, the contracting authority shall be obliged to comply with the time limits for the submission of requests and tenders set in Article 75 of this Law.
5. Having decided to use the qualification system as prescribed by Article 77 of this Law, the contracting authority must publish a notice to the effect, specifying the purpose and requirements of the qualification system. In case the intended period of application of the qualification system is over three years, the notice shall be published every year, and in case of a shorter period of application the notice shall be published once.
6. In case of a dynamic purchasing system, an invitation to take part in the system procedures shall be made by a contract notice referred to in subparagraph 3 of paragraph 3 of this Article, while a call for competition for a specific contract – by a simplified contract notice used in the application of the dynamic purchasing system.
7. Having awarded a public contract, the contracting authority shall publish a notice of:
1) the award of the contract, including the conclusion of the framework agreement, within two months of the award of the contract and conclusion of the framework agreement. The contacting authority shall not be bound to publish a notice in case it awards a contract on the basis of the framework agreement;
8. The contracting authority shall publish the results of a completed design contest within two months from the approval of the results of the design contest.
9. The contract award notice, including the conclusion of the framework agreement and the design contest results contract may not contain any confidential information referred to by the contracting authority as a commercial secret: the number of the received tenders, the identity of the supplier or prices. The information shall be published only in the simplified form for the purpose of statistics.
10. Where the contracting authority awards a research-and-development service contract, in the contract award notice it:
1) may limit the information provided concerning the nature and quantity of the services and indicate that these are ‘research and development services’, where the contract is awarded by way of the negotiated procedure without publication of a contract notice;
2) may, on grounds of commercial confidentiality, limit the information provided concerning the nature and quantity of the services, where the research and development contract is awarded by way other than the negotiated procedure without publication of a contract notice;
3) shall ensure that any information referred to in subparagraph 2 of this paragraph is no less detailed than that contained in the notice published in accordance with paragraph 3 of this Article;
11. The contracting authority shall publish a notice of a public contract which has not been awarded upon completion of procurement in the cases indicated in subparagraphs 2-6 of paragraph 3 of Article 7 of this Law, not later than within 48 days after adoption of the decision not to award the public contract. This requirement shall not apply in the case of the negotiated procedure without publication of a contract notice.
Article 75. Time Limits for the Submission of Requests and Tenders
1. Time limits in the procurement procedures depend on the selected type of the procurement procedure. The contracting authority shall fix time limits for the submission of requests to participate and tenders according to the provisions of Article 28 of this Law by taking into account the complexity of procurement and the time necessary for drawing up the requests to participate and tenders and without prejudice to the minimum time limits for the submission of the requests to participate and tenders specified in this Article.
2. In case of the open procedure, the time limit for submission of tenders shall be 52 days from the day of dispatch from the Public Procurement Office of the notice specified in paragraph 3 of Article 74 of this Law.
3. In the case of the restricted procedure or negotiated procedure with publication of a contract notice, where the contract notice has been published according to the provisions of subparagraph 3 of paragraph 3 of Article 74 of this Law or an invitation referred to in paragraph 2 of Article 78 of this Law has been dispatched, the time limit fixed for submission of requests to participate may not be shorter than 37 days from the dispatch of the notice from the Public Procurement Office or from the day of dispatch of the invitation. The time limit may, upon emergence of circumstances unforeseeable by the contracting authority, be shortened, but may not be shorter than 22 days, and not shorter than 15 days if the notice is transmitted by electronic means.
4. In the case of the restricted procedure or negotiated procedure with publication of a contract notice, the time limit for submission of tenders may be set by mutual agreement between the contracting authority and the selected candidates, provided that all candidates are given the same time limit to draw up and submit their tenders. Where it is not possible to reach an agreement, the contracting authority shall fix a time limit for the submission of tenders which shall be at least 24 days from the day of dispatch of the invitation to submit tenders or, in case of emergence of circumstances unforeseeable by the contracting authority, the time limit may be shortened, but may not be shorter than 10 days from the date of the dispatch of invitation to tender.
5. If the contracting authority published a prior information notice at least 52 days, but not more than 12 months before commencing the procurement procedure in the manner prescribed by paragraph 1 of Article 22 of this Law, and provided the entire required information, the time limits for submission of tenders may be reduced to 36 days in the case of the open procedure. Upon emergence of circumstances unforeseeable by the contracting authority, the time limit may be shorter than 36 days, but not less than 22 days from the day of dispatch of the notice from the Public Procurement Office.
6. If the contracting authority draws up and transmits notices by electronic means in accordance with the requirements set by this Law, the time limit for the receipt of requests to participate in case of the restricted procedure and negotiated procedure with publication of a contract notice and receipt of tenders in case of the open procedure may be shortened by seven days.
7. Where the contracting authority offers unrestricted and full direct access by electronic means to all contract documents and any supplementary documents from the date of publication of a contract notice, the time limits for submission of tenders in case of open, restricted and negotiated procedure with publication of a contract notice may be reduced by five more days, except in cases where, in the award of contracts by restricted procedure or by negotiated procedure with publication of a contract notice, the time limit for submission of tenders is set by mutual agreement between the contracting authority and the selected candidates. The notice must specify the Internet address at which this documentation is accessible.
8. The cumulative effect of the reductions provided for in paragraphs 5, 6 and 7 of this Article may in no case result in a time limit for submission of tenders in an open procedure of less than 15 days from the day of dispatch of the notice. However, if the notice is not transmitted by fax or electronic means, the cumulative effect of the reductions provided for in paragraphs 5, 6 and 7 of this Article may in no case result in a time limit for submission of tenders in an open procedure of less than 22 days from the day of dispatch of the notice.
9. In the restricted procedure or negotiated procedure with publication of a contract notice, the cumulative effect of the reductions provided for in paragraphs 4, 6 and 7 of this Article may in no case result in a time limit for submission of requests to participate of less than 15 days from the day of dispatch of the notice or the invitation to tender, and the time limit for submission of tenders, except for the time limit set by mutual agreement between the contracting authority and the selected suppliers, result in a time limit for the receipt of tenders of less than 10 days from the day of dispatch of the invitation to tender.
10. If, for whatever reason, the contract documents or additional information, although requested in good time, have not been supplied within the time limits set in Articles 27 of this Law, or where, upon submission of the contract documents, it transpires that tenders can be made only after a visit to the site or after on-the-spot inspection of the contract documents, the contracting authority must extend the time limits for submission of tenders accordingly so that all interested suppliers may be aware of all the information needed for the preparation of a tender or publish a notice about it according to the procedure set in Article 23 of this Law. The time limit set for submission of tenders by mutual agreement by the contracting authority and the selected suppliers may be refused extension.
Article 76. Verification of Suppliers’ Qualification and Pre-qualification Selection Thereof
1. When awarding the contract by open, restricted or negotiated procedure, the contracting authority shall verify the suppliers’ qualification according to the requirements set by it. Qualification requirements shall be set based on the provisions of Articles 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37 of this Law. All interested suppliers must be introduced to the qualification requirements.
2. When awarding a contract by restricted or negotiated procedure, the contracting authority shall select the candidates according to the established pre-qualification selection criteria and requirements. The contracting authority shall have the right to reduce the number of candidates to a level which is justified by the need to balance the particular characteristics of the procurement procedure with the resources required to conduct it; however, the number of candidates selected must take account of the need to ensure adequate competition.
3. In conducting procurement, the contracting authority may create or use a qualification system created by other contracting authorities as prescribed by Article 77 of this Law.
4. The contracting authority, which selects candidates for restricted or negotiated procedures, must do so according to equal selection criteria and rules.
5. When selecting candidates to participate in a restricted or negotiated procedure, the contracting authority may not impose on certain suppliers any administrative, technical or financial mutual recognition conditions and certificates, tests and evidence which it does not impose on other suppliers nor require tests or evidence which would duplicate evidence already available.
Article 77. Qualification System
1. The contracting authority may establish and operate a qualification system of suppliers. The contracting authority which establishes and operates the system shall ensure that suppliers are at all times able to request qualification assessment. A decision concerning the inclusion or refusal to include the supplier in the list of qualified suppliers shall be taken by the contracting authority within six months from the submission of the application.
2. The suppliers’ qualification for the purpose of establishing the qualification system may involve different qualification assessment stages.
3. The qualification system shall be established on the basis of the criteria and rules established by the contracting authority. Where those criteria include technical specifications, the provisions of Article 25 of this Law shall also apply.
4. The criteria of qualification assessment must include the exclusion criteria listed in Article 33 of this Law under the terms and conditions set out therein.
5. Where the criteria of qualification assessment are related to the suppliers’ economic and financial capacities as well as technical and/or professional abilities, the latter may where necessary rely on the capacity or abilities of other economic entities, whatever the legal nature of the link between the supplier and such economic entities. In this case, the supplier must prove to the contracting authority that these resources will be available to it throughout the period of the validity of the qualification system. Under the same conditions, a group of economic entities may rely on the capacity and abilities of participants in the group or of other economic entities.
6. The criteria of and rules for the suppliers’ qualification assessment shall be made available to economic entities on request. Where necessary, the criteria and rules may be updated. The updating of these criteria and rules shall be communicated to interested suppliers.
7. Having assessed the suppliers’ qualification, the contracting authority shall compile a list of qualified suppliers. When compiling the list, the suppliers may be divided into separate categories to which appropriate qualification requirements shall be applied taking into account the type of procurement.
8. When establishing and operating the suppliers’ qualification system, the contracting authority must:
1) publish a notice of the existence of a qualification system following the provisions of paragraph 5 of Article 74 of this Law;
2) deliver the information to economic entities having applied for qualification assessment concerning their inclusion in the qualification system as specified in paragraphs 2, 3 and 4 of Article 79 of this Law;
3) select participants in the restricted or negotiated procedure on the basis of equivalent criteria when a call for competition is made by means of a notice on the existence of a qualification system;
4) comply with the provisions regarding the requirements for mutual recognition of administrative, technical or financial conditions as well as certificates, tests and evidence as set forth in paragraph 5 of Article 76 of this Law and Article 37 of this Law when selecting participants for the restricted procedure and the negotiated procedure, deciding on qualification or updating criteria and rules.
Article 78. Invitation to Submit Tenders or to Negotiate
1. The contracting authority shall issue a written invitation to the candidates selected according to the procedure established in Article 76 of this Law to submit tenders or to negotiate. The content of the invitation shall be specified by Articles 49 and 62 of this Law.
2. In the cases where a call for competition is made by publication of a regular indicative notice of the planned procurement, the contracting authority shall, before commencing the selection of participants in the restricted or negotiated procedure, invite all candidates to confirm their agreement to participate in the procurement procedures. The invitation shall contain at least the following information:
1) the nature of procurement and quantity procured, including all options concerning complementary contracts and, if possible, the estimated time available for exercising these options for renewable contracts, and, if possible, the nature and quantity and, if possible, the estimated publication dates of contract notices of supplies, services or works to be procured;
3) where appropriate, the date on which the delivery of supplies, execution of works and provision of services is to commence and terminate;
4) the address and closing date for the submission of requests for tender documents and the language in which a request must be drawn up;
5) the address of the contract authority which is to award the contract and the information necessary for obtaining technical specifications and other documents;
6) economic and technical conditions, tender security and/or security for the performance of the public contract and information required from suppliers;
8) the form of the public contract: purchase of supplies, rental, leasing (financial lease) or hire purchase, with or without option to buy, or any combination of these;
Article 79. Information to Suppliers about the Results of Procurement Procedures and Qualification Assessment
1. The contracting authority shall inform the candidates and participants of the results of the procurement procedures following the requirements set in paragraphs 1, 2, 3 and 4 of Article 41 of this Law.
2. The contracting authority which establishes and operates a qualification system of suppliers shall inform the supplier of its decision to enter the supplier in the list of qualified suppliers within a period of six months. If the decision takes longer than four months from the submission of the supplier’s request, the contracting authority shall inform the supplier, within two months of the submission of the request, of the reasons justifying the longer period and of the date by which his request will be accepted or refused.
3. The suppliers whose qualification does not meet the requirements of the qualification system of the contracting authority shall be informed of this decision and the reasons for refusal immediately, but in no case later than 15 days later than the adoption of the decision. The reasons must be based on the criteria of evaluation of the suppliers’ qualification referred to in paragraphs 2 and 3 of Article 77 of this Law.
Article 80. Design Contest
Design contests shall be conducted according to provisions of Section Eight of Chapter II of this Law.
Article 81. Specific Features of Framework Agreements
1. The contracting authority shall conclude a framework agreement in compliance with the requirements of this Chapter in the same manner as prescribed for the award of contracts by paragraphs 30-33 of Article 2 of this Law.
2. Where the contracting authority has concluded a framework agreement following the requirements set in paragraph 1 of this Article, it may award a contract on the basis of the agreement by means of the negotiated procedure without publication of a contract notice under the condition specified in subparagraph 5 of paragraph 1 of Article 73 of this Law.
3. Where the contracting authority has concluded a framework agreement not following the requirements set in paragraph 1 of this Article, it may not award a contract on the basis of the agreement by means of the negotiated procedure without publication of a contract notice under the condition specified in subparagraph 5 of paragraph 1 of Article 73 of this Law.
Article 82. Tenders Comprising Products Originating in Third Countries
1. This Article shall apply to tenders covering products originating in third countries with which the European Union has not concluded, whether multilaterally or bilaterally, an agreement ensuring comparable and effective access for EU undertakings to the markets of those third countries. These requirements shall be without prejudice to the obligations of the European Union or its Member States in respect of third countries.
2. Any tender submitted for the award of a supply contract may be rejected where the proportion of the products originating in third countries, as determined in accordance with Council Regulation (EEC) No 2913/92 of 12 October 1992 establishing the Community Customs Code, exceeds 50% of the total value of the products constituting the tender. For the purposes of this Article, software used in telecommunications network equipment shall be regarded as products.
3. Where two or more tenders are equivalent in the light of the tender evaluation criteria as established by the contracting authority, preference shall be given to those tenders which may not be rejected pursuant to paragraph 2 of this Article. The prices of those tenders shall be considered equivalent for the purposes of this Article, if the price difference does not exceed 3%. However, a tender shall not be preferred to another where this preference would oblige the contracting authority to acquire equipment having technical characteristics different from those of existing equipment, resulting in incompatibility and technical difficulties in operation and maintenance, or disproportionate costs.
Article 83. Provision of Information on the Award of Contracts in Third Countries
1. The contracting authority and the suppliers shall inform the Ministry of Economy of any general difficulties, in law or in fact, encountered by them in securing the award of service contracts in third countries. The Ministry of Economy shall provide the information to the European Commission.
2. The contracting authorities and the suppliers shall inform the Ministry of Social Security and Labour of the Republic of Lithuania of any difficulties, in law or in fact, encountered by them when endeavouring to award service contacts in third countries which are due to the non-observance of the following provisions of legal acts of the International Labour Organization:
2) Convention 98 concerning the Applications of the Principles of the Right to Organise and to Collective Bargaining;
Article 84. Scope of Simplified Procurement Procedures
This Chapter shall regulate the following procurement procedures (hereinafter referred to as “simplified procurement procedures”):
2) the contracts for B-type services listed in Appendix 2 of this Law regardless of the value of the contract;
Article 85. Procedure for Conducting Simplified Procurement
Version of paragraph 1 before 21 August 2011:
1. The contracting authority, with the exception of the bodies referred to in paragraph 5 of this Article, must, in conducting simplified procurement procedures, act in compliance with the requirements set forth in subparagraphs 5, 9 and 23 of paragraph 2, paragraphs 3 and 5 of Article 24 (with the exception of procurement without publication of a contract notice, when only one supplier is invited to tender and where the contracting authority deems that such information is not required), paragraph 1 of Article 27, Article 40, paragraph 1 of Article 41 of Chapter I, Chapters IV and V of this Law (in the case of small value procurement, shall not be under the obligation to act in compliance with the requirements set forth in paragraphs 1, 2, 5, 7 and 8 of Article 17, paragraphs 1, 2, 3 and 6 of Article 18, subparagraphs 5, 9 and 23 of paragraph 2, paragraphs 3 and 5 of Article 24 and paragraph 1 of Article 27 of this Law).
Version of paragraph 1 after 21 August 2011:
1. The contracting authority, with the exception of the bodies referred to in paragraph 5 of this Article, must, in conducting simplified procurement procedures, act in compliance with the requirements set forth in subparagraphs 5, 9 and 23 of paragraph 2, paragraphs 3 and 5 of Article 24 (with the exception of procurement without publication of a contract notice, when only one supplier is invited to tender and where the contracting authority deems that such information is not required), paragraph 1 of Article 27, Article 40, paragraph 1 of Article 41 of Chapter I, Chapters IV and V of this Law (in the case of small value procurement, shall not be under the obligation to act in compliance with the requirements set forth in paragraphs 1, 2, 5, 7 and 8 of Article 17, paragraphs 1, 2, 3 and 6 of Article 18, subparagraphs 5, 9 and 23 of paragraph 2, paragraphs 3 and 5 of Article 24, paragraph 1 of Article 27 and Article 40 of this Law).
2. The contracting authority, with the exception of the bodies referred to in paragraph 5 of this Article, conduct simplified procurement according to the rules approved by it, which it shall publish not later than within three working days from approval thereof in accordance with the procedure laid down in Article 86 of this Law in the Central Portal of Public Procurement and on its website, if available, also make these rules accessible to the suppliers in other ways.
3. Simplified procurement (with the exception of small value procurement) shall be conducted by the Commission. Small value procurement may be conducted by the civil servants and employees who have been appointed by the head of the contracting authority and who must be of good repute, subject to signing a declaration of impartiality and a pledge of confidentially, or the Commission as specified by the contracting authority in the rules approved by it.
4. The contracting authority must possess the documents supporting the conformity of the decisions taken by it to the requirements of this Law.
5. The procedure for conducting simplified procurement by diplomatic missions, consular posts of the Republic of Lithuania abroad and missions of the Republic of Lithuania to international organisations, also other contracting authorities procuring abroad the supplies, services or works intended for their divisions abroad, military envoys or special attachés shall be laid down by the Government of the Republic of Lithuania or an institution authorised by it.
Article 86. Publication of a Notice of Simplified Procurement Procedures
1. The contracting authority shall publish a notice of simplified procurement, the information notice referred to in paragraph 2 of Article 92 of this Law and the notice for voluntary ex ante transparency referred to in paragraph 3 of this Article, which are to be published under this Law and/or the rules approved by the authority, in the supplement Informaciniai pranešimai to the official gazette Valstybės žinios and in the Central Portal of Public Procurement, and notices for voluntary ex ante transparency – also in the Official Journal of the European Union. A notice of small value procurement to be published by the contracting authority under the rules approved by it shall be published in the Central Portal of Public Procurement. Notices and information notices and notices for voluntary ex ante transparency may be additionally published on the website of the contracting authority and on other websites, in other publications or through other media. The date of publication of a notice or an information notice shall be the day of publication thereof in the supplement Informaciniai pranešimai to the official gazette Valstybės žinios, the date of publication of a notice for voluntary ex ante transparency shall be the date of publication of the notice in the Official Journal of the European Union, and in the case of small value procurement – in the Central Portal of Public Procurement.
Version of paragraph 1 after 1 January 2012:
1. The contracting authority shall publish a notice of simplified procurement, the information notice referred to in paragraph 2 of Article 92 of this Law and the notice for voluntary ex ante transparency referred to in paragraph 3 of this Article, which are to be published under this Law and/or the rules approved by the authority, in the Central Portal of Public Procurement, and notices for voluntary ex ante transparency – also in the Official Journal of the European Union. Notices and information notices and notices for voluntary ex ante transparency may be additionally published on the website of the contracting authority and on other websites, in other publications or through other media. The date of publication of a notice or an information notice shall be the day of publication thereof in the Central Portal of Public Procurement, the date of publication of a notice for voluntary ex ante transparency shall be the date of publication of the notice in the Official Journal of the European Union.
2. The contracting authorities must deliver the notices, information notices and notices for voluntary ex ante transparency intended for publication in the supplement Informaciniai pranešimai to the official gazette Valstybės žinios and in the Central Portal of Public Procurement and in the Official Journal of the European Union to the Public Procurement Office, which shall, within three working days, dispatch them for publication in the supplement Informaciniai pranešimai to the official gazette Valstybės žinios and in the Official Journal of the European Union and shall publish them in the Central Portal of Public Procurement. A notice, information notice, notice for voluntary ex ante transparency may not appear on the website of the contracting authority, other websites, in any publication or may not be published through other media before it is published in the supplement Informaciniai pranešimai to the official gazette Valstybės žinios and in the Official Journal of the European Union, and in the case of small value procurement – in the Central Portal of Public Procurement. The same notice, information notice, notice for voluntary ex ante transparency published in different publications must contain the same information.
Version of paragraph 2 after 1 January 2012:
2. The contracting authorities must deliver the notices, information notices and notices for voluntary ex ante transparency intended for publication in the Central Portal of Public Procurement and in the Official Journal of the European Union to the Public Procurement Office, which must, within three working days, publish them in the Central Portal of Public Procurement and dispatch to the Office of Official Publications of the European Union for publication in the Official Journal of the European Union. A notice, information notice, notice for voluntary ex ante transparency may not appear on the website of the contracting authority, other websites, in any publication or may not be published through other media before it is published in the Central Portal of Public Procurement and in the Official Journal of the European Union. The same notice, information notice, notice for voluntary ex ante transparency published in different publications must contain the same information.
3. The contracting authority may publish a notice for voluntary ex ante transparency in the case of procurement of B-type services listed in Appendix 2 of this Law, provided that the value of the contract is not below the specified international threshold. In such a case, the contracting authority shall not be under the obligation to publish the information notice as indicated in paragraph 2 of Article 92 of this Law.
4. Upon awarding a public contract or concluding a framework agreement for B-type services listed in Appendix 2 of this Law, where the value of procurement is not less than the applicable international threshold, the contract authority must, not later than within 48 days from the public contract award or the conclusion of the framework agreement, deliver a notice of the contract award or the conclusion of the framework agreement to the Public Procurement Office in accordance with the procedure laid down by it. The notice must indicate whether the contracting authority agrees to publication of this notice.
Article 87. Qualification of the Suppliers of Simplified Procurement
1. In selecting the supplier, the contracting authority shall verify, according to Articles 32-38 of this Law, whether the supplier will be capable of fulfilling the public contract.
Article 88. Technical Specifications of Simplified Procurement
In conducting simplified procurement procedures (with the exception of small value procurement), the contracting authority shall draft technical specifications in compliance with the requirements set forth by Article 25 of this Law. In conducting small value procurement, the contracting authority shall not be under the obligation to act in compliance with the requirements set forth in Article 25 of this Law, however it must ensure compliance with the principles specified in Article 3 of this Law.
Article 89. Time Limits for the Submission of Tenders in Simplified Procurement Procedures
In publishing a simplified contract notice, the contracting authority must lay down a sufficient time limit for the submission of requests to participate or tenders which may not be shorter than seven working days from publication of the contract notice in the supplement Informaciniai pranešimai to the official gazette Valstybės žinios.
Version of Article 89 after 1 January 2012:
Article 89. Time Limits for the Submission of Tenders in Simplified Procurement Procedures
In publishing a simplified contract notice, the contracting authority must lay down a sufficient time limit for the submission of requests to participate or tenders which may not be shorter than seven working days from publication of the contract notice in the Central Portal of Public Procurement.
Article 90. Evaluation of Tenders
Supplies, services or works shall be procured from the supplier which has submitted the most economically advantageous tender or has offered the lowest price according to the results of the evaluation of tenders performed in accordance with the procedure laid down in paragraph 7 of Article 39 of this Law. When awarding contracts for territorial planning, architecture, engineering, data processing, artistically or culturally complex services or services of a similar character, the submitted tenders may be evaluated subject to the criteria set forth by the contracting authority, and these shall not be necessarily based on the lowest price or the criterion of the most economically advantageous tender.
Article 91. Simplified Procurement from Social Enterprises of the Disabled, Social Enterprises, the Enterprises in which 50% of the Employees are Inmates of Penitentiary Institutions or the Enterprises in which Health Care Institutions Have an Interest, if at least 50% of the Employees are Occupational Therapy Patients
1. The contracting authority referred to in subparagraphs 1, 2 and 3 of paragraph 1 of Article 4 of this Law, with the exception of the diplomatic missions, consular posts of the Republic of Lithuania abroad and missions of the Republic of Lithuania to international organisations, also other contracting authorities procuring abroad the supplies, services or works intended for their divisions, military envoys or special attachés, must, when conducting simplified procurement procedures, procure at least 5% of the total value of contracts awarded in simplified procurement procedures from social enterprises of the disabled, social enterprises, the enterprises in which 50℅ of the employees are inmates of penitentiary institutions serving the sentence of arrest, fixed-term imprisonment or the sentence of life imprisonment or the enterprises in which health care institutions have an interest, if at least 50% of the employees are occupational therapy patients for the purpose of procurement of supplies manufactured, services provided or works performed by them or implementation of protected job programmes where most of the employees are disabled persons, with the exception of the cases when these institutions and enterprises do not manufacture supplies, do not provide services or do not perform works for the contracting authority. The contract documents and a contract notice must indicate that only the suppliers referred to in this paragraph may participate in procurement procedures and contain the requirement to provide evidence that the supplier’s undertaking complies with the requirements of this Article (a document issued by the competent authority or a statement approved by the supplier shall be presented).
2. The supplier’s institutions and undertakings referred to in paragraph 1 of this Article:
1) shall regularly publish lists of the supplies manufactures, services provided or works performed in the Central Portal of Public Procurement;
Article 92. Peculiarities of Simplified Procurement Procedures
Version of paragraph 2 before 21 August 2011:
2. The contracting authority shall not be under the obligation to publish a simplified contract notice, provided at least one of the conditions referred to in paragraphs 3-7 of this Article is present. In such a case, with the exception of the procurement procedures referred to in subparagraphs 3, 4 of paragraph 3, subparagraphs 2, 3 of paragraph 4, subparagraph 3 of paragraph 5, subparagraphs 2-5 of paragraph 6 and subparagraph 2 of paragraph 7 of this Article, the contracting authority, where it decides to procure supplies, services or works without publication of a contract notice, must publish an information notice thereof in accordance with the procedure laid down by Article 86 of this Law, and award a public contract not earlier than after the lapse of five working days from publication of the information notice.
Version of paragraph 2 after 21 August 2011:
2. The contracting authority shall not be under the obligation to publish a simplified contract notice, provided at least one of the conditions referred to in paragraphs 3-7 of this Article is present. In conducting simplified procurement procedures without publication of a contract notice in the cases referred to in subparagraphs 1, 2, 6 of paragraph 3, subparagraph 1 of paragraph 4, subparagraphs 1, 2, 4, 5 of paragraph 5, subparagraphs 1 and 5 of paragraph 6 and subparagraph 1 of paragraph 7 of this Article and upon establishing the successful tender, the contracting authority must publish an information notice thereof in accordance with the procedure laid down by Article 86 of this Law, and award a public contract not earlier than after the lapse of five working days from publication of the information notice.
3. In case of public supply, service or works contracts, the procedure without publication of a contract notice may be used:
1) where the procedure with publication of a contract notice has failed, since no tenders or no requests to participate have been submitted;
2) where in the procedure with publication of a contract notice all the tenders submitted do not comply with the requirements of the contract documents or the offered prices are too high and are not acceptable for the contracting authority, provided the initial conditions of contract are not substantially altered and all the suppliers who meet the minimum qualification requirements set by the contracting authority and who have submitted tenders are invited to the procedure without publication of a contract notice;
3) upon emergence of circumstances unforeseeable by the contracting authority, it is necessary to urgently procure the required supplies, services or works. The circumstances invoked to justify extreme urgency must not in any event be attributable to the contracting authority;
6) when, for technical, artistic or objective reasons, the supplies may be delivered, services rendered or works performed only by a particular supplier, and there is no other alternative;
4. In case of public supply and service contracts, the procedure without publication of a contract notice may be used:
1) where the contracting authority had previous contracts with the same supplier of goods or services and determined, that, from the technical compatibility point of view, it is reasonable to procure the additional supplies or services from the same supplier, provided that such earlier contracts were efficient, that the price and other contract conditions are not substantially altered, and that changing the supplier would result in technical incompatibility, where the new suppliers or services could not be operated together with the previously procured supplies or services, and contracting authority could incur considerable losses. If the price of such additional public supply or service contracts exceeds 30% of the price in the previous contract, an expert assessment of the technical compatibility of the additionally procured goods or services shall be carried out;
2) for procurement abroad of the supplies and services intended for diplomatic missions, consular posts of the Republic of Lithuania abroad and missions of the Republic of Lithuania to international organisations, military envoys and special attachés;
5. In case of public supply contracts, the procedure without publication of a contract notice may be used:
1) when the products involved are manufactured purely for the purpose of research, experiment, study or development, not seeking profit or recovery of research or development costs;
3) when the object of the procurement is museum exhibits, archive and library documents, subscribed papers and magazines;
4) for purchases under particularly advantageous conditions from economic entities involved in bankruptcy proceedings, going into liquidation or being in the process of restructuring;
6. In case of public service contracts, the procedure without publication of a contract notice may be used:
1) where the subject of the contract is a licence to use library documents or data (information) bases;
2) where contracts are awarded for training services of judges, prosecutors, servicemen in professional military service, the contracting authority’s civil servants and/or staff employed under the employment contract;
3) where contracts are awarded for the services of authors, performers of literary, scientific and artistic works or groups thereof, also the services of evaluation of projects in the fields of science, culture and art as well as the services of evaluation of the activities carried out in these fields by candidates for the bonuses established in accordance with the procedure laid down by legal acts;
4) where contracts are awarded for the non-material (intellectual) services to be provided by members of expert commissions, committees and councils whose formation is governed by laws of the Republic of Lithuania;
7. In case of public service and works contracts, the procedure without publication of a contract notice may be used:
1) through unforeseen circumstances, additional works or services which have not been included in the public contract become necessary for the performance of the contract. However, such a public contract may only be concluded with the supplier to whom the initial public contract was awarded and the aggregate value of the initial contract and all other additionally awarded contracts may not exceed 50% of the value of the initial public contract;
2) for new deliveries of services or works by the existing supplier, which are the same as procured under the previous contracts, on the condition that the previous contract was awarded by means of publication of a contract notice and the contract notice provided for the possibility of such additional contracts and included their value, and all the mentioned contracts are intended for the execution of the same project. The length of such additional public contracts may not exceed three years after the initial public contract is awarded.
CHAPTER V
EXAMINATION OF DISPUTES, COMPENSATION FOR DAMAGE, NULLIFICATION OF PUBLIC CONTRACTS, ALTERNATIVE SANCTIONS, EXAMINATION OF INFRINGEMENTS OF EUROPEAN UNION LAW
Article 93. Right to Dispute the Actions of or the Decisions Adopted by the Contracting Authority
Version of subparagraph 1 before 1 October 2011:
Version of subparagraph 1 after 1 October 2011:
2) annulment or amendment of the decisions of the contracting authority which do not meet the requirements of this Law;
Version of paragraph 2 before 21 August 2011:
2. A supplier wishing to dispute the decisions or actions of the contracting authority prior to awarding of a public contract must first file a claim against the contracting authority in accordance with the procedure laid down by this Law. The claim must be filed in writing by means indicated in Article 17 of this Law. A decision of the contracting authority adopted upon examining the supplier’s claim may be appealed against to court in accordance with the procedure laid down by this Chapter.
Version of paragraph 2 from 21 August 2011 until 1 October 2011:
2. A supplier wishing to dispute the decisions or actions of the contracting authority prior to awarding of a public contract must first file a claim against the contracting authority in accordance with the procedure laid down by this Law. The claim must be filed by fax, electronic means or against signature by courier. A decision of the contracting authority adopted upon examining the supplier’s claim may be appealed against to court in accordance with the procedure laid down by this Chapter.
As of 1 October 2011, the Article shall be supplemented with paragraph 2, paragraph 2 shall be renumerated as paragraph 3.
2. The supplier may refer to court for application of interim protection measures in accordance with the procedure laid down by the Code of Civil Procedure of the Republic of Lithuania.
3. A supplier wishing to dispute the decisions or actions of the contracting authority prior to awarding of a public contract must first file a claim against the contracting authority in accordance with the procedure laid down by this Law. The claim must be filed by fax, electronic means or against signature by courier. A decision of the contracting authority adopted upon examining the supplier’s claim may be appealed against to court in accordance with the procedure laid down by this Chapter.
Article 94. Time Limits for Filing a Claim with the Contracting Authority, Filing an Application or Bringing an Action before Court
1. A supplier shall have the right to file a claim with the contracting authority, file a request or bring a lawsuit before court (with the exception of an action for nullification of a public contract):
1) within 15 days from dispatch to suppliers of a written notice of the contracting authority of the decision adopted by it;
Version of paragraph 2 before 1 October 2011:
2. Where the contracting authority fails, within the specified time limit, to examine a claim filed with it, the supplier shall have the right to bring a lawsuit before court within 15 days from the day on which the contracting authority ought to have given a written notice of the taken decision to the supplier which has filed the claim, interested candidates and interested tenderers.
Version of paragraph 2 after 1 October 2011:
2. Where the contracting authority fails, within the specified time limit, to examine a claim filed with it, the supplier shall have the right to file a request or bring a lawsuit before court within 15 days from the day on which the contracting authority ought to have given a written notice of the taken decision to the supplier which has filed the claim, interested candidates and interested tenderers.
3. A supplier shall have the right to bring a lawsuit for nullification of a public contract within six months from awarding of the public contract.
4. In the cases when the damage has been incurred to the supplier by the unlawful actions or decisions of the contracting authority, but this Law does not impose on the contracting authority the obligation to give a written notice to the suppliers or to publish its actions or decisions, the periods of limitation provided for the bringing of an action as stipulated in the Civil Code of the Republic of Lithuania shall apply.
Article 941. Review of a Claim by the Contracting Authority
1. The contracting authority shall review only those claims of suppliers which have been received before the awarding of a public contract.
2. Upon receiving a claim, the contracting authority shall forthwith suspend procurement procedures until the claim is fully examined and a decision is taken. The contracting authority may award a public contract not earlier than after the lapse of 15 days from dispatch of a written notice of a decision taken by it to the supplier which has filed a claim, interested candidates and interested tenderers.
3. The contracting authority must examine a claim and take a reasoned decision not later than within five working days of the receipt of the claim and give a written notice of a decision taken to the supplier who filed the claim, interested candidates and interested tenderers not later than on the next working day, also notify them of changes in the time limits of procurement procedures specified earlier.
Version of the Article before 1 October 2011:
Article 95. Examination of a Request or a Lawsuit in Court
1. Upon filing a request or bringing a lawsuit before court, the supplier must, without undue delay and no later than within three working days, submit to the contracting authority a copy of the request or the lawsuit with the stamp of receipt or other evidence of receipt by the court by fax, by electronic means or against signature by courier.
2. Upon receipt of a copy of the supplier’s request or lawsuit, the contracting authority may not award a public contract until the expiry of the period of deferment or the time limits referred to in paragraph 2 of Article 941, subparagraph 3 of paragraph 3 of Article 951 and subparagraph 3 of paragraph 4 of Article 951 of this Law and until the receipt by the contracting authority of a court’s notice of:
2) a reasoned ruling on dismissal of the supplier’s request to apply interim protection measures, where this request was filed with the court prior to bringing of the lawsuit;
3. The court shall, without undue delay and no later than within three days, give a notice of the reasoned ruling or resolution adopted according to paragraph 2 of this Article to the contracting authority and the supplier which has filed the request or brought the lawsuit.
4. Where the time limits of procurement procedures notified to the suppliers are changed due to filing of the supplier’s claim or bringing of a lawsuit before court, the contracting authority shall dispatch to the suppliers a notice to the effect indicating the reasons for the extension of time limits.
5. The court shall pass a reasoned ruling on application of interim protection measures in compliance with the principle of economic advantage and effectiveness and public interest. The court may decide not to apply interim protection measures where their detrimental effects might exceed the benefits.
6. A lawsuit brought before court must be examined in accordance with the written or oral procedure laid down in the Code of Civil Procedure of the Republic of Lithuania. A lawsuit or an appeal must be reviewed not later than within 45 days from the day of admission thereof.
Version of the Article after 1 October 2011:
Article 95. Examination of a Request or a Lawsuit in Court
1. Upon filing a request or bringing a lawsuit before court, the supplier must, without undue delay and no later than within three working days, submit to the contracting authority a copy of the request or the lawsuit with evidence of receipt by the court by fax, by electronic means or against signature by courier.
2. Upon receipt of a copy of the supplier’s request or lawsuit, the contracting authority may not award a public contract until the expiry of the period of deferment or the time limits referred to in paragraph 2 of Article 941, subparagraph 3 of paragraph 3 of Article 951 and subparagraph 3 of paragraph 4 of Article 951 of this Law and until the receipt by the contracting authority of a court’s notice of:
2) a reasoned ruling on dismissal of the supplier’s request to apply interim protection measures, where this request was filed with the court prior to bringing of the lawsuit;
3. Where the time limits of procurement procedures notified to the suppliers are changed due to filing of the supplier’s claim or bringing of a lawsuit before court, the contracting authority shall dispatch to the suppliers a notice to the effect indicating the reasons for the extension of time limits.
Article 951. Nullification of a Public Contract
1. A court shall nullify a public contract in any of the following cases:
1) the contracting authority has awarded the public contract without publication of an international contract notice in the Official Journal of the European Union or without publication of a simplified contract notice, when this is not permitted pursuant to requirements of this Law;
2) the contracting authority has infringed upon the requirements of paragraph 2 of Article 941, paragraph 2 of Article 95 or paragraph 9 of Article 18 of this Law and other requirements of this Law, which has impaired the chances of the tenderer who has filed a request or brought a lawsuit before court to be awarded a public contract, and this tenderer could not avail of any remedy prior to awarding of the public contract;
3) in awarding a contract of an international threshold value, the contracting authority has infringed upon the provisions of subparagraph 2 of paragraph 9 of Article 63 or paragraphs 5, 6 and 7 of Article 64 of this Law and, in awarding the public contract, has invoked a derogation entailing non-application of the period of deferment.
Version of paragraph 2 before 1 October 2011:
Version of paragraph 2 after 1 October 2011:
2. A court may nullify a public contract in the cases of infringement of norms of this Law other than referred to in paragraph 1 of this Article.
3. A court may not nullify a public contract under subparagraph 1 of paragraph 1 of this Article, if there are all of the following conditions:
1) the contracting authority decides that this Law permits awarding without publication of an international contract notice in the Official Journal of the European Union or without publication of a simplified contract notice;
2) the contracting authority publishes a notice for voluntary ex ante transparency (in the case of awarding of a contract of an international threshold value) or an information notice;
4. A court may not nullify a public contract under subparagraph 3 of paragraph 1 of this Article, if there are all of the following conditions:
1) the contracting authority believes that in awarding a public contract, it complied with the provisions of subparagraph 2 of paragraph 9 of Article 63 or paragraphs 5, 6 and 7 of Article 64 of this Law;
2) the contracting authority dispatches to interested tenderers notices of its decision to award a public contract in accordance with the requirements of paragraph 1 of Article 41 of this Law;
Article 952. Alternative Sanctions and Imposition Thereof
1. A court shall impose alternative sanctions according to paragraph 4 of this Article, where the contracting authority infringes upon the requirements of paragraph 2 of Article 941, paragraph 2 of Article 95 or paragraph 9 of Article 18 of this Law, in the absence of other circumstances provided for in subparagraph 2 of paragraph 1 of Article 951 of this Law.
Version of paragraph 2 before 1 October 2011:
2. A court shall be permitted not to nullify a public contract and to impose alternative sanctions according to paragraph 4 of this Article, although the public contract has been awarded unlawfully according to provisions of paragraph 1 of Article 951 of this Law, where the effects of awarding of the public contract must be preserved for defence of the public interest, including the economic interest not related to awarding of the public contract due to which nullification of the public contract would give rise to disproportionate effects. The economic interest directly related to the public contract shall inter alia include the expenses arising from a delay in execution of the public contract, commencement of a new procurement procedure, change in the supplier performing the public contract, and legal obligations arising from nullification of the public contract.
Version of paragraph 2 after 1 December 2011:
2. A court shall be permitted not to nullify a public contract and to impose alternative sanctions according to paragraph 4 of this Article, although the public contract has been awarded unlawfully according to provisions of paragraphs 1 and 2 of Article 951 of this Law, where the effects of awarding of the public contract must be preserved for defence of the public interest, including the economic interest not related to awarding of the public contract due to which nullification of the public contract would give rise to disproportionate effects. The economic interest directly related to the public contract shall inter alia include the expenses arising from a delay in execution of the public contract, commencement of a new procurement procedure, change in the supplier performing the public contract, and legal obligations arising from nullification of the public contract.
3. When nullifying a public contract only from entry into force of a court’s decision, the court must additionally impose alternative sanctions according to subparagraph 2 of paragraph 4 of this Article having regard to undischarged obligations under the public contract.
4. The alternative sanctions imposed by a court must be effective, proportionate and dissuasive. The alternative sanctions imposed by the court shall be:
5. In imposing alternative sanctions, the court must take account of all relevant circumstances, including the seriousness of an infringement, the conduct of the contracting authority and, in the cases specified in paragraph 3 of this Article, the undischarged obligations under the public contract. An alternative sanction imposed by the court, including the amount of a fine imposed upon the contracting authority, must be reasoned by a decision of the court.
Article 96. Compensation for Damage
1. A court shall satisfy the supplier’s claim solely as regards damages where the public contract has already been awarded, and while conducting procurement procedures the contracting authority complied with the requirements set forth in paragraphs 1 and 9 of Article 18, paragraph 7 of Article 32, paragraph 7 of Article 39, paragraph 1 of Article 41, Article 94, paragraph 2 of Article 941, paragraph 2 of Article 95, paragraphs 1-4 of Article 951 and Article 952 of this Law.
2. Where a supplier claims damages of the amount equal to the costs of drawing up of the tender or participation in procurement procedures, the supplier claiming damages must provide evidence of the amount of damage, also of infringement of requirements of this Law and of loss of the public contract resulting from this infringement.
Article 97. Investigation of Complaints Regarding Infringements of European Union Law
1. Upon receipt of a notice from the Public Procurement Office of a grave infringement of provisions of EU law detected by the European Commission about the review of the infringement, the contracting authority must immediately, but not later than within three working days from the receipt of the notice, provide the Public Procurement Office with all information relevant to the contract concerned.
2. The contracting authority must forthwith notify the Public Procurement Office of the decisions taken or actions carried out by it in relation to the grave infringement of provisions of EU Law detected by the European Commission.
3. The Public Procurement Office must, within 21 days from the receipt of a notice of the European Commission of a detected grave infringement of Community law, provide the European Commission with:
2) a reasoned explanation of a failure to eliminate the infringement, if the elimination of the infringement is refused;
4. A reasoned explanation referred to in subparagraph 2 of paragraph 3 of this Article may inter alia be based on the fact that the potential infringement is already under investigation by the Public Procurement Office, a court or another law enforcement institution. The Public Procurement Office shall give a notice of the outcome of these proceedings to the European Commission immediately upon becoming aware thereof.
5. Upon giving a notice of suspended procurement procedures as stipulated in subparagraph 3 of paragraph 3 of this Article, the Public Procurement Office must notify the European Commission of cancellation of suspension of the procurement procedures or of commencement of a new procurement procedure relating, completely or in part, to the same subject-matter of the contract. Such a notice must serve to confirm elimination of a potential infringement or provide a reasoned explanation as to the failure to eliminate the infringement.
6. Upon receipt of a notice from the European Commission about a detected grave infringement of provisions of EU law, the Public Procurement Office shall be entitled to file a claim with the court if it believes that the contracting authority has violated provisions of this Law and has failed to eliminate the infringement.
Article 98. Repealed as of 2 March 2010.
Article 99. Repealed as of 2 March 2010.
Article 100. Repealed as of 2 March 2010.
Appendix 1 of the Republic of Lithuania Law on Public Procurement
REPUBLIC OF LITHUANIA
ECONOMIC ACTIVITIES REFERRED TO IN PARAGRAPH 30 OF ARTICLE 2 OF THE LAW ON PUBLIC PROCUREMENT
| Economic Activities Listed in the Statistical Classification of Economic Activities (EVRK1) |
|||||
| Section F |
Construction |
Reference to the Common Procurement Vocabulary (CPV) |
|||
| Division |
Group |
Class |
Subject |
Notes |
|
| 45 |
|
|
Construction |
This division includes: - construction of new buildings and works, renovation and regular repair works |
45000000 |
|
|
45.1 |
|
Site preparation |
|
45100000 |
|
|
|
45.11 |
Demolition and wrecking of buildings; earth moving |
This class includes: - demolition of buildings and other structures - clearing of building sites - earth moving: excavation, landfill, levelling and grading of construction sites, trench digging, rock removal, blasting, etc. - site preparation for mining: - overburden removal and other development and preparation of sites and mineral properties
This class also includes: - building site drainage - drainage of agricultural and forestry land
|
45110000 |
|
|
|
45.12 |
Test drilling and boring |
This class includes: - test drilling, test boring and core sampling for construction, geophysical, geological or similar purposes
This class excludes: - drilling of production oil and gas wells, see 11.20 - water well drilling, see 45.25 - shaft sinking, see 45.25 - oil and gas file exploration, geophysical, geological and seismic surveying, see 74.20
|
45120000 |
|
|
45.2 |
|
Complete or partial construction of buildings; civil engineering |
|
45200000 |
|
|
|
45.21 |
General construction of buildings and civil engineering works |
This class includes: - construction of all types of buildings - construction of civil engineering constructions: bridges, including those for elevated highways, viaducts, tunnels and subways - long-distance pipelines, communication and power lines - urban pipelines, urban communication and power lines - ancillary urban works - assembly and erection of prefabricated constructions on the site
This class excludes: – paslaugų, susijusių su naftos ir - erection of complete prefabricated constructions from self-manufactured parts not of concrete, see divisions 20, 26 and 28 - construction work, other than buildings, for sports arenas, stadiums, swimming pools, sport clubs and other sports facilities, see 45.23 - building installation, see 45.3 - building completion and finishing, see 45.4 - architectural and engineering activities, see 74.20 - project management for construction, see 74.20
|
45210000 Except for: -45213316 45220000 45231000 45232000 |
|
|
|
45.22 |
Erection of roof covering and frames |
This class includes: - erection of roofs - roof covering - waterproofing |
45261000 |
|
|
|
45.23 |
Construction of highways, roads, airfields and sports facilities |
This class includes: - construction of highways, streets, roads, other vehicular and pedestrian ways - construction of railways - construction of airfield runways - construction work, other than buildings, for sports arenas, stadiums, swimming pools, tennis courts and golf courses - painting of markings on road surfaces and car parks
This class excludes: - preliminary earth moving, see 45.11 |
45212212 and DA03 45230000 Except for: -45231000 -45232000 -45234115
|
|
|
|
45.24 |
Construction work for water projects |
This class includes: - construction: - construction of waterways, harbour and river works, pleasure ports (marinas), locks, etc. - dredging of dams and dykes - surface work
|
45240000 |
|
|
|
45.25 |
Other construction work involving special trades |
This class includes: - construction activities specialising in one aspect common to different structures, requiring specialised skill or equipment: - construction of foundations, including pile driving - water well drilling and construction, shaft sinking - erection of non-self-manufactured steel elements - steel bending - bricklaying and stone setting - scaffolds and work platform erecting and dismantling, including renting of scaffolds and work platforms - erection of chimneys and industrial ovens
This class excludes: - renting of scaffolds without erection and dismantling, see 71.32 |
45250000 45262000 |
|
|
45.3 |
|
Building installation |
|
45300000 |
|
|
|
45.31 |
Installation of electrical wiring and fittings |
This class includes: - installation in buildings or other structures of: - electrical wiring and fittings - telecommunications systems - electrical heating systems - residential radio and television antennas - fire alarms - burglar alarm systems - lifts and escalators - lightning conductors, etc. |
4521331645310000Except for: -45316000 |
|
|
|
45.32 |
Insulation work activities |
This class includes: - installation in buildings or other structures of thermal, sound or vibration insulation This class excludes: - waterproofing, see 45.22 |
45320000 |
|
|
|
45.33 |
Plumbing |
This class includes: - installation in buildings or other structures of: - plumbing and sanitary equipment - gas fittings - heating, ventilation, refrigeration or air-conditioning equipment and ducts - sprinkler systems
This class excludes: - electrical heating systems, see 45.31 |
45330000 |
|
|
|
45.34 |
Other building installation
|
This class includes: - installation of illumination and signalling system for roads, railways, airports and harbours - installation in buildings and other structures of fittings and fixtures n.e.c. |
45234115 45316000 45340000 |
|
|
45.4 |
|
Building completion |
|
45400000 |
|
|
|
45.41 |
Plastering |
This class includes: - application in buildings and other structures of interior and exterior plaster or stucco, including related lathing materials |
45410000 |
|
|
|
45.42 |
Joinery installation |
This class includes: - installation of non self-manufactured doors, windows, door and window frames, fitted kitchen, staircase, shop fittings and the like, of wood or other materials - interior completion such as ceilings, wooden wall coverings, movable partitions, etc.
This class excludes: - laying of parquet and other wood floor coverings, see 45.43 |
45420000 |
|
|
|
45.43 |
Floor and wall covering |
This class includes: - laying, tiling, hanging or fitting in buildings or other structures of: - ceramic, concrete or cut stone wall or floor tiles - laying of parquet and other wood floor coverings - carpets or linoleum floor coverings, including of rubber or plastic - terrazzo, marble, granite or slate floor or wall covering - wallpaper |
45430000 |
|
|
|
45.44 |
Painting and glazing |
This class includes: - interior and exterior painting of buildings - painting of civil engineering structures - installation of glass, mirror, etc.
This class excludes: - installation of windows, see 45.42 |
45440000 |
|
|
|
45.45 |
Other building completion |
This class includes: - installation of private swimming pools - steam cleaning, sand blasting and similar activities for building exteriors - other building completion and finishing work n.e.c.
This class excludes: - interior cleaning of buildings and other structures, see 74.70
|
45212212 and 04 45450000 |
|
|
45.5 |
|
Renting of construction or demolition equipment with operator |
|
45500000 |
|
|
|
45.50 |
Renting of construction or demolition equipment with operator |
This class excludes: renting of construction or demolition machinery and equipment without operator, see 71.32 |
45500000 |
1) The Statistical Classification of Economic Activities (EVRK) prepared by the Department of Statistics of Lithuania according to the Classification of Economic Activities in the European Community (NACE) and approved by the Government of the Republic of Lithuania by Resolution No 696 of 17 May 1995 on the Classification of Economic Activities (Official Gazette, No 43-1054, 1995).
Note: In the event of any difference of interpretation of works between the EVRK and the CPV, the EVRK nomenclature shall apply.
Appendix 2
of the Republic of Lithuania Law on Public Procurement
SERVICES REFERRED TO IN PARAGRAPH 31 OF ARTICLE 2 OF THE LAW OF THE REPUBLIC OF LITHUANIA ON PUBLIC PROCUREMENT
| Category No |
Name of services |
Reference to Central Product Classification (CPC) |
Reference to the Common Procurement Vocabulary (CPV) |
| 1. |
Maintenance and repair services |
6112, 6122, 633, 886 |
50100000-6 to 50884000-5 (except 50310000-1) and 50324200-4 to 50116510-9 50190000-3, 50229000-6, 50243000-0) and from 51000000-9 to 51900000-1 |
| 2. |
Land transport services2, including armoured car services and courier services, except mail transportation by land services |
712 (except for 71235), 7512, 87304
|
From 60100000-9 to 60183000-4 (except for 60160000-7, 60161000-4, 60220000-6) and from 64120000-3 to 64121200-2 |
| 3. |
Passenger and freight transportation by air services, except mail transportation by air services |
73 (except for 7321) |
From 60410000-5 to 60424120-3 (except for 60411000-2, 60421000-5) and 60500000-3 From 60440000-4 to 60445000-9 |
| 4. |
Mail transportation by land2 and air services |
71235, 7321 |
60160000-7,60161000-4 60411000-2, 60421000-5 |
| 5. |
Telecommunications services |
752 |
From 64200000-8 to 64228200-2 72318000-7 and From 72700000-7 to 72720000-3 |
| 6. |
Financial services: a) insurance; b) banking and investment3 |
ex.81, 812, 814 |
From 66100000-1 to 66720000-3(3) |
| 7. |
Computer and related services |
84 |
From 50310000-1 to 50324200-4 From 72000000-5 to 72920000-5 (except for 72318000-7 and from 72700000-7 to 72720000-3), 79342410-4 |
| 8. |
Research and development services4 |
85 |
From 73000000-2 to 73436000-7 (except for 73200000-4, 73210000-7, 73220000-0) |
| 9. |
Accounting, auditing and book-keeping services |
862 |
From 79210000-9 to 79223000-3 |
| 10. |
Market research and public opinion polling services |
864 |
From 79300000-7 to 79330000-6 and 79342310-9, 79342311-6 |
| 11. |
Management consulting5 and related services |
865, 866 |
From 73200000-4 to 73220000-0 From 79400000-8 to 79421200-3 and 79342000-3, 79342100-4 79342300-6, 79342320-2 79342321-9, 79910000-6, 79991000-7 98362000-8 |
| 12. |
Architectural services: engineering and integrated engineering services; urban planning and landscape architectural services; engineering-related scientific and technical consulting services; technical testing and analysis services |
867 |
From 71000000-8 to 71900000-7 (except for 71550000-8) and 79994000-8
|
| 13. |
Advertising services |
871 |
From 79341000-6 to 79342200-5 (except for 79342000-3 and 79342100-4) |
| 14. |
Building cleaning and residential property management services |
874 82201 – 82206 |
From 70300000-4 to 70340000-6 and from 90900000-6 to 90924000-0 90924000-0 |
| 15. |
Publishing and printing on a fee or contract basis |
88442 |
From 79800000-2 to 79824000-6 and 79970000-6 to 79980000-7 79980000-7 |
| 16. |
Sewage and refuse disposal; sanitation and other similar services |
94 |
From 90400000-1 to 90743200-9 (except for 90712200-3), from 90910000-9 to 90920000-2 and 50190000-3, 50229000-6 50243000-0
|
1)CPC shall be applied for establishing the service sector regulated by the Law on Public Procurement.
3) Except for financial services in connection with money, exchange rate, state debt management, treasury agent, foreign stock management transactions or other policies in connection with transactions in securities or other financial instruments, as well as central bank services. The services relating to the acquisition or rental of land, existing buildings or other immovable property or acquisition of the title thereto following any financial procedures shall also be excluded; however, the financial services provided prior to the conclusion, in the course of conclusion or upon conclusion of contracts for the acquisition or rental of land, existing buildings or other immovable property, whatever their form, of the title thereto shall fall within the scope of the Law.
4) Except for contracts for research and development services, which, however, are not only to the advantage of the contracting authority and which are fully paid for by the contracting authority.
5) Except for contracts for services of arbitration and conciliation;
B-TYPE SERVICES
| Category No |
Name of services |
Reference to the Central Product Classification (CPC) |
Reference to the Common Procurement Vocabulary (CPV) |
| 17. |
Hotel and restaurant services |
64 |
From 55100000-1 to 55524000-9 and from 98340000-8 to 98341100-6 |
| 18. |
Transport services by rail |
711 |
From 60200000-0 to 60220000-6 |
| 19. |
Water transport services |
72 |
From 60600000-4 to 60653000-0 and from 63727000-1 to 63727200-3 |
| 20. |
Supporting and auxiliary transport services |
74 |
From 63000000-9 to 63734000-3 (except for 63711200-8, 63712700-0, 63712710-3 and from 63727000-1 to 63727200-3) and 98361000-1 |
| 21. |
Legal services |
861 |
From 79100000-5 to 79140000-7 |
| 22. |
Personnel placement and supply services(1) |
872 |
From 79600000-0 to 79635000-4 (except for 79611000-0, 79632000-3, 79633000-0) and from 98500000-8 to 98514000-9 |
| 23. |
Investigation and security services, except armoured carrier services |
873, except 87304 |
From 79700000-1 to 79723000-8
|
| 24. |
Education and vocational training services |
92 |
From 80100000-5 to 80660000-8 (except for 80533000-9, 80533100-0, 80533200-1) |
| 25. |
Health care and social services |
93 |
79611000-0 and from 85000000-9 to 85323000-9 (except for 85321000-5 and 85322000-2)
|
| 26. |
Recreational, cultural and sporting services(2)
|
96 |
From 79995000-5 to 79995200-7 and from 92000000-1 to 92700000-8 (except for 92230000-2, 92231000-9, 92232000-6) |
| 27. |
Other services |
|
|
2) Except for services contracts for the production of radio and television programmes, the services of their preparation for broadcasting, contracts for the broadcasting time of already developed programmes and parts of radio and television programmes, where the procurement is performed by the broadcaster conforming to the specified requirements for the contracting authority referred to in subparagraphs 1, 2 or 3 of paragraph 1 of Article 4 of this Law.
Note: In the case of any difference of interpretation of services between the CPC and the CPV, the CPC nomenclature shall apply.
Appendix 3
of the Republic of Lithuania Law on Public Procurement
DEFINITION OF CERTAIN TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS
For the purposes of this Law:
1) technical specification in the case of public works contracts means the totality of the technical prescriptions contained in particular in the tender documents, defining the characteristics required of a material, product and supply, which permits a material, a product and a supply to be described in a manner such that it fulfils the use for which it is intended by the contracting authority. These characteristics shall include levels of environmental performance, design for all requirements (including accessibility for disabled persons) and conformity assessment, performance, safety or dimensions, including the procedures concerning quality assurance, terminology, symbols, testing and test methods, packaging, marking and labelling and production processes and methods. The data shall also include rules relating to design and costing, the test, inspection and acceptance conditions for works and methods or techniques of construction and all other technical conditions which the contracting authority is in a position to prescribe, under general or specific regulations, in relation to the finished works and to the materials or parts which they involve;
2) technical specification in the case of public supply or service contracts means a specification in a document defining the required characteristics of a product or a service, such as quality levels, environmental performance levels, design for all requirements (including accessibility for disabled persons) and conformity assessment, performance, use of the product, or dimensions, including requirements relevant to the product as regards: the name under which the product is sold, terminology, symbols, testing and test methods, packaging, marking and labelling, user instructions, production processes and methods and conformity assessment procedures;
3) standard means a technical specification approved by a recognised standardising body for repeated and continuous application, compliance with which is not compulsory and which falls into one of the following categories:
international standard: a standard adapted by an international standards organisation and made available to the general public,
European standard: a standard adopted by a European standards organisation and made available to the general public,
national standard: a standard adopted by a national standards organisation and made available to the general public;
4) European technical approval means a favourable technical assessment of the fitness for use of a product for a particular purpose, based on the fulfilment of the essential requirements for building works, by means of the inherent characteristics of the product and the defined conditions of application and use;
5) Common technical specification means a technical specification laid down in accordance with a procedure recognised by the Member States which has been published in the Official Journal of the European Union with a view to ensuring its uniform application in all the Member States;
EUROPEAN UNION LEGAL ACTS REFERRED TO IN PARAGRAPH 3 OF ARTICLE 71 OF THE LAW OF THE REPUBLIC OF LITHUANIA ON PUBLIC PROCUREMENT
1. Transmission or distribution of gas or heat:
Directive 98/30/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 22 June 1998 concerning common rules for the internal market in natural gas.
2. Electricity generation, transmission or distribution:
Directive 96/92/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 19 December 1996 concerning common rules for the internal market in electricity.
5. Contracting authorities operating in urban railway, tram, trolley-bus or bus services sector:
there is no legal act.
6. Contracting authorities operating in postal services sector:
Directive 97/67/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 15 December 1997 on common rules for the development of the internal market of Community postal services and the improvement of quality of service.
7. Prospecting and production of petroleum or gas:
Directive 94/22/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 30 May 1994 on the conditions for granting and using authorizations for the prospection, exploration and production of hydrocarbons..
8. Contracting authorities operating in sea and inland port or other terminals installation sector:
there is no legal act.
LEGAL ACTS OF THE EUROPEAN UNION IMPLEMENTED BY THIS LAW
1. Council Directive 89/665/EEC of 21 December 1989 on the coordination of the laws, regulations and administrative provisions relating to the application of review procedures to the award of public supply and public works contracts (OJ 2004, special edition, Chapter 6, Volume 1, p. 246) with the latest amendments done by Directive 2007/66/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 11 December 2007 (OJ 2007, L 335, p.31).
2. Council Directive 92/13/EEC of 25 February 1992 coordinating the laws, regulations and administrative provisions relating to the application of Community rules on the procurement procedures of entities operating in the water, energy, transport and telecommunications sectors (OJ 2004, special edition, Chapter 6, Volume 1, p. 315), with the latest amendments done by Directive 2007/66/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 11 December 2007 (OJ 2007, L 335, p.31).
3. Regulation (EC) No 2195/2002 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 5 November 2002 on the Common Procurement Vocabulary (CPV) (OJ 2004, special edition, Chapter 6, Volume 5, p. 3), with the latest amendments done by Commission Regulation (EC) No 2153/2003 of 10 December 2003 (OJ 2004, special edition, Chapter 6, Volume 6, p. 72).
4. Council Directive 2004/17/EEC of 31 March 2004 Directive 2004/17/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 31 March 2004 coordinating the procurement procedures of entities operating in the water, energy, transport and postal services sectors (OJ 2004, special edition, Chapter 6, Volume 7, p. 19), with the latest amendments done by Council Directive 2006/97/EC of 20 November 2006 (OJ 2006, L 363, p.107).
5. Directive 2004/18/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 31 March 2004 on the coordination of procedures for the award of public works contracts, public supply contracts and public service contracts (OJ 2004, special edition, Chapter 6, Volume 7, p. 132), with the latest amendments done by Council Directive 2006/97/EC of 20 November 2006 (OJ 2006, L 363, p. 107).
6. Commission Decision 2005/15/EC of 7 January 2005 on the detailed rules for the application of the procedure provided for in Article 30 of Directive 2004/17/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council coordinating the procurement procedures of entities operating in the water, energy, transport and postal services sectors (OJ 2005, L 7, p. 7).
7. Commission Directive 2005/51/EC of 7 September 2005 amending Annex XX to Directive 2004/17/EC and Annex VIII to Directive 2004/18/EC of the European Parliament and the Council on public procurement (OJ 2005, L 257, p. 127).
8. Commission Regulation (EC) No 1564/2005 of 7 September 2005 establishing standard forms for the publication of notices in the framework of public procurement procedures pursuant to Directives 2004/17/EC and 2004/18/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council (OJ 2005, L 257, p.1), with the latest amendments done by Commission Regulation (EC) No 1150/2009 of 10 November 2009 (OJ 2009, L 313, p. 3).
9. Directive 2005/75/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 16 November 2005 correcting Directive 2004/18/EC on the coordination of procedures for the award of public works contracts, public supply contracts and public service contracts (OJ 2005, L 323, p. 55).
10. Directive 2006/32/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 5 April 2006 on energy end-use efficiency and energy services and repealing Council Directive 93/76/EEC (OJ 2006, L 114, p. 64).
11. Commission Regulation (EC) No 213/2008 of 28 November 2007 amending Regulation (EC) No 2195/2002 of the European Parliament and of the Council on the Common Procurement Vocabulary (CPV) and Directives 2004/17/EC and 2004/18/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council on public procurement procedures, as regards the revision of the CPV (Text with EEA relevant( OJ 2008, L 74, p. 1).