Joint tender procedures
Article 4
1. A joint tender procedure shall be deemed necessary for the purpose of this Decision if either: (i) it is reasonable to expect that the joint procurement of goods and services would result in more advantageous purchase conditions in accordance with the principles of cost-efficiency and effectiveness; or (ii) the central banks need to adopt harmonised requirements and standards in relation to such goods and/or services. 2. After having identified a potential case for a joint procurement, EPCO shall invite the central banks to participate in a joint tender procedure. The central banks shall inform EPCO in good time whether they intend to participate in the joint tender procedure and, if so, communicate their business requirements to EPCO. A central bank may withdraw from participating in a joint procurement prior to the publication of the contract notice. 3. On the basis of an annual procurement plan of joint tender procedures prepared by EPCO, and after consulting with the EPCO Steering Committee, the Governing Council may initiate joint tender procedures and choose the leading central bank(s) from among the central banks participating in the joint tender procedure. The Governing Council shall be provided with each update of the annual procurement plan. 4. The leading central bank shall carry out the joint tender procedure for the benefit of the central banks participating in the joint tender procedure, in accordance with the procurement rules to which the leading central bank is subject. The leading central bank shall, in the contract notice, specify which central banks are participating in the joint tender procedure as well as the structure of the contractual relationships. 5. The leading central bank shall prepare the tender documentation and shall evaluate the applications and tenders in cooperation with EPCO and the other central banks participating in the joint tender procedure. 6. The leading central bank shall carry out the joint tender procedure in the language(s) laid down in the annual procurement plan.