voluntary ex ante transparency notice

A voluntary ex ante transparency notice is a public announcement where a contracting authority informs the market that they plan to award a contract directly to a supplier, without conducting a regular tender procedure. This is an important part of public procurement that gives other suppliers the opportunity to object before the contract is signed.

View available voluntary ex ante transparency notices.

How does a voluntary ex ante transparency notice work?

When a contracting authority believes they are entitled to make a direct award, they can publish a voluntary ex ante transparency notice on Doffin (the Norwegian database for public procurement). This is done before the contract is actually awarded.

The notice must include:

• Who the contracting authority is
• Who they plan to award the contract to
• Why they believe they can make a direct award
• When they will award the contract at the earliest (minimum 10 days after the notice)

For example: A hospital urgently needs to purchase specialised equipment that only one supplier can provide. Instead of running a full tender procedure, they can publish a voluntary ex ante transparency notice explaining the situation and which supplier they intend to buy from.

Standstill period and right to challenge

After the notice is published, the contracting authority must wait at least 10 days (this is called the standstill period) before they can award the contract. During this period, other suppliers who believe they could have delivered the same goods or services can challenge the decision.

Tools like Cobrief can help suppliers keep track of relevant voluntary ex ante transparency notices and assess whether they should challenge planned direct awards.

A voluntary ex ante transparency notice is essentially a safeguard in public procurement designed to prevent unlawful direct awards and ensure transparency in the process. For suppliers, it is important to monitor such notices to protect their interests in the market.