Mobile Communication Carrier Services

This is an open EU procurement tender (EUROPOL/2026/OP/0007) led by the European Union Agency for Law Enforcement Cooperation to award a single‑supplier framework agreement for mobile communication carrier services (voice, SMS, data) for Europol, EMA and Eurojust. The published estimated total value is €5,930,000 and the maximum contract duration is up to 48 months (initial 24 months with up to two 12‑month renewals). Submission is electronic only via the EU Funding & Tenders Portal with a tender deadline of 15/10/2026 16:00 Europe/Amsterdam and a questions deadline of 07/10/2026 23:59 Europe/Amsterdam. Award will be by best price‑quality ratio with price weighted at 60% and quality at 40%.

What it funds

Scope

Provision of mobile carrier services (voice, SMS, data), related technical support and optional services (eSIM/DataSIM supply, anonymous SIMs, SMS gateway, reporting and SLA) for Europol, EMA and Eurojust under a single supplier framework agreement.

Contract form and duration:Framework agreement (without reopening). Maximum duration 48 months; initial period 24 months with up to two 12-month renewals. ¹

Who can apply

Telecommunications operators and mobile service providers or consortia able to meet technical, security and data protection requirements. Subcontracting and reliance on other entities is allowed but must be declared; security screenings and certificates of good conduct or security clearances are required for on-site personnel.

Value and award

Estimated total procedure value published:€5,930,000. Award by best price-quality ratio; tenderers must submit technical and financial offers as specified in the tender documents.

Key procurement dates:Deadline for receipt of tenders: 15 October 2026 16:00 Europe/Amsterdam. Public opening: 16 October 2026 14:00. See portal page for subscription and eSubmission requirements.

1. 1What is procured: mobile voice, SMS, data services and associated management, reporting and support
2. 2Who may bid: licensed mobile carriers, telecom operators, consortia; must meet security, legal and technical selection criteria
3. 3How awarded: framework contract to one supplier based on best price-quality ratio

Tenders must follow the administrative and technical specifications and use the provided Financial and Technical Tender Forms (Annexes to the invitation). eSubmission requires an EU Login account and PIC registration.

Footnotes

1. 1Full procurement documents, technical specifications, draft contract and forms are published on the EU Funding & Tenders Portal: Tender details.

Opportunity overview and procurement identity

Title:Mobile Communication Carrier Services. Reference: EUROPOL/2026/OP/0007 (TED reference: 176/2026 628824-2026). Lead contracting authority: European Union Agency for Law Enforcement Cooperation (Europol), acting on behalf of participating contracting authorities: Europol, EMA (European Medicines Agency) and Eurojust. Procedure type: Open procedure (call for tenders). Submission method: Electronic only via the EU Funding & Tenders Portal eSubmission. Main CPV: 64210000 Telephone and data transmission services (also 64212000). Nature of contract: services; framework agreement (without reopening of competition). Award method: best price-quality ratio.

Estimated value and contract duration:Published estimated total value on the F&T Portal / TED: €5,930,000 (estimated overall contract amount). The Special Conditions in the published draft framework contract include a maximum expenditure figure of €4,726,000 (this appears in the draft contract and should be clarified with the contracting authority prior to contract signature). Maximum contract duration: up to 48 months (framework contract concluded for an initial 24 months, renewable up to two times for 12 months each).

1. 1Framework contract with a single supplier to provide mobile carrier services (voice, SMS, data) and associated services for Europol, EMA and Eurojust.
2. 2Framework contract model: one contractor, specific contracts/purchase orders issued against the framework as required by each participating authority.
3. 3Nature of services includes service profiles (Europe and World profiles), eSIM/physical SIM supply, data pools, DataSIMs, anonymous SIMs, technical support, SLAs, reporting platform and optional SMS gateway and value optimisation services.

Key deadlines and administrative milestones

Eligibility, procurement and applicant categories

Eligible Applicant Types:legal persons and natural persons offering the required services. The procurement is open to economic operators established in countries allowed under EU procurement rules (EU Member States and other countries with access rights where applicable). The call is interinstitutional and targeted to telecommunications carriers / mobile network operators and providers of telecommunications services and associated platforms. Entities may submit offers as sole tenderers or as groups (joint tenders). Subcontracting is permitted; identified subcontractors must be declared in the tender and provide commitment letters. Entities on whose capacities a tenderer relies (not subcontractors) must provide formal commitment letters. Participation is subject to the contracting authority's exclusion and selection criteria.

Eligible applicant types (detailed):Examples of eligible applicant types based on the procurement subject: mobile network operators, MVNOs, telecom service providers, systems integrators offering carrier services, ICT service providers (telecom platforms and SMS gateway providers), large enterprises, SMEs (if they meet capacity), consortiums (joint tenders), legal entities registered in eligible jurisdictions. Public authorities and research organisations are not the primary target unless they act as commercial providers.

Funding type, commercial model and payments

Funding Type:Procurement (tender) for a services contract implemented through a framework agreement. The contracting authority will order services and pay the awarded contractor under specific contracts/purchase orders. Nature of support: this opportunity provides commercial payments to the awarded contractor for services delivered (monthly fees per service profile, fees for Datasim provisioning and per-unit/consumption charges outside profile allowances). No grants, loans or equity are involved.

Consortium, teaming and contractual structure

Consortium Requirement:Single contractor will be awarded the framework but submissions may be made by a sole tenderer or by a group of economic operators (joint tender). In case of joint tender the group must appoint a group leader with a power of attorney/agreement (Annex 3 model) establishing joint and several liability. Subcontracting is allowed; identified subcontractors (those relied on for selection criteria or >20% share) must be declared and provide signed commitment letters (Annex 5.1). Entities on whose capacity the tenderer relies must provide commitment letters (Annex 5.2).

Beneficiary scope and geographic eligibility

Beneficiary Scope (Geographic Eligibility):The procurement is organised by EU agencies (Europol lead) and is aimed at suppliers that can deliver services to EU agencies. Eligible suppliers are economic operators established in the territories authorised by EU procurement law. Service coverage must at minimum include the Europe Zone defined in the Technical Specifications and a minimum World coverage set out in the appendices. The Technical Specifications explicitly define the Europe Zone (Appendix I) and a minimum list for the outside of the Europe Zone (Appendix II).

Mentioned countries and zones (explicit lists):Appendix I – Europe Zone minimum coverage includes: Austria; Belgium; Bulgaria; Canary Islands (Spain); Croatia; Cyprus (except Northern Cyprus); Czech Republic; Denmark; Estonia; Faroe Islands; Finland; France (incl. French Guyana, Guadeloupe, Martinique, Mayotte, Réunion, St Martin); Germany; Gibraltar; Greece; Hungary; Iceland; Ireland; Isle of Man; Italy; Latvia; Lichtenstein; Lithuania; Luxembourg; Malta; Moldova; Monaco; Netherlands; Norway; Poland; Portugal (incl. Madeira and Azores); Romania; San Marino; Slovakia; Slovenia; Spain (incl. Melilla); Sweden; Switzerland; Turkey; Ukraine; United Kingdom (incl. Jersey, Isle of Man, Guernsey); Vatican City; Andorra; Albania. Appendix II – Outside of the Europe Zone: minimum coverage = usage outside the Europe Zone (World Profile) in worldwide countries/areas (the tender documents require wide global coverage and list minimums; tenderers must provide full details).

Target sectors, project stage and expected maturity

Target Sector:ICT / Telecommunications / Mobile carrier services, including voice, SMS, mobile data, roaming, MVNO/eSIM provisioning, telecom platform services (SMS gateway), and related technical support and reporting. Project Stage: operational service delivery, implementation and migration of live telecom services. This procurement is aimed at established operational providers able to deliver and migrate existing services (migration plan required) and operate production-grade SLAs.

Scope of services and technical requirements (summary)

Scope:provision of mobile communication carrier services (voice, SMS, data) and associated services for Europol, EMA and Eurojust. Delivery model is based on Service Profiles (Europe Profile and World Profile) with flat monthly fees per line, per-line data pots, shared data pools (per agency), overflow / per-GB charges, SIM/eSIM supply, DataSIMs, anonymous SIM service, technical support (24/7 incident reporting and service desk), Service Level Agreement (SLA), reporting portal and invoicing. Optional services include voice/network features, notifications and apps for data consumption, and an SMS gateway platform. Network availability, coverage, quality KPIs and liquidated damages are specified in the Technical Specifications.

1. 1Service Profiles: Europe Profile and World Profile with defined inclusions/exclusions for calls, SMS and data and per-line data pots.
2. 2Data pools: separate per contracting authority (Europol, EMA, Eurojust) sized as 10% of the sum of data limits per agency; overflow price per GB applicable after pools exhausted.
3. 3SIM supply: physical SIM and eSIM options; initial stocking quantities requested for each agency; number portability and quarantining rules included (minimum 6 months).
4. 4Technical support and service desk: 24/7 incident reporting, service operations manager, account manager, migration plan and cooperative migration with incumbent supplier.
5. 5Reporting: comprehensive reporting platform, call detail records (CDR) queries, monthly service, technical and KPI reports.
6. 6SLA and KPIs: network availability 99.8% over 12 months, minimum LTE coverage percentages and quality metrics NAR/NRR targets, liquidated damages and escalation procedures.

Pricing model and financial submission

Pricing:Tenderers must submit a Financial Offer Form (Annex 6) with binding unit prices in EUR (prices exclusive of VAT; Europol is VAT-exempt). Required pricing includes per-line fixed annual/monthly fees by profile and year (price model in the Financial Tender Form for years 2027–2031), price lists for calls/SMS/data outside profiles (verifiable price lists), Datasim one-time fees (if any), optional services pricing and overflow per-GB prices. All prices must be positive values with two decimals. The Financial Offer Form is binding and forms part of the framework contract if awarded.

Financial scenario and estimated contract ceiling:The F&T Portal/TED publication lists an Estimated total value / Estimated overall contract amount of €5,930,000. The draft Special Conditions in Annex II contain a maximum expenditure figure of €4,726,000 in one location; tenderers must rely on the official procurement notice figures and consult contracting authority clarifications where figures differ prior to award. The financial model in Annex 6 provides scenario pricing worksheets and a Total Scenario Price to be filled by tenderers.

Application, evaluation and award procedure

Application Type:Open call for tenders (electronic submission via EU Login / eSubmission). Tender submission requires an EU Login account and a Participant Identification Code (PIC) for organisations. All submissions and questions must be via the Funding & Tenders Portal eSubmission application. The contracting authority will assess exclusion and selection criteria, mandatory compliance with minimum technical requirements, then evaluate quality award criteria and price using the best price-quality ratio method. Award will be to the tender with the highest combined score.

1. 1Administrative checks and exclusion assessment (declaration on honour and documentary checks for the proposed winner).
2. 2Selection assessment against economic, financial, technical and professional capacity criteria (minimum turnover, insurance and technical references).
3. 3Compliance screening against mandatory technical requirements (non-compliant tenders will be rejected).
4. 4Quality evaluation (award criteria): Service Profiles model (32 pts), SLA (30 pts), Reporting & invoicing (20 pts), Migration plan (10 pts), Optional services (8 pts). Minimum pass thresholds apply (overall minimum 50/100 and per-criterion minimums as specified).
5. 5Financial evaluation: Total Scenario Price from the Financial Tender Form. Final ranking: cheapest price / price of tender X weighted 60% plus Total Quality Score weighted 40% (best price-quality ratio).

Number of application stages:effectively three principal stages: 1) submission (eSubmission), 2) exclusion and selection checks (administrative/eligibility), 3) technical and financial evaluation and award decision followed by contract signature (and possible clarifications).

Success rates, co-funding and commercial conditions

Success Rates:The tender is an open EU-level procurement; no published success rate is given. As with most open public tenders, competition is expected from national/international telecom carriers and specialized service providers; therefore success rates are typically low and depend on the competitiveness of technical solution, coverage, SLA performance and price. Co-funding Requirement: No co-funding or matching is required by the contracting authority. The contractor will invoice the authority for services provided according to contracted prices. VAT: contracting authority is VAT-exempt; invoicing must be net of VAT where applicable.

Application content and templates (what to submit)

Tender structure:submissions must include the Administrative documents, Technical Tender (Annex 7 Technical Offer Form) and Financial Tender (Annex 6 Financial Offer Form). Mandatory administrative forms include: Declaration on Honour (exclusion and selection) (Annex 2), Agreement/Power of Attorney for joint tenders (Annex 3), List of identified subcontractors (Annex 4), Commitment letters (Annex 5.1 and 5.2), and other documentation listed in Annex 1 to the Administrative Specifications. The Technical Tender must answer the mandatory checklist questions (security, languages, data handling, mandatory service requirements) and provide the required descriptions for the award criteria (Service Profiles model, SLA, reporting plan and invoicing, migration plan, optional services). The Financial Tender must follow the Excel Financial Offer Form structures and include verifiable price lists and any pricing models for optional services.

Templates and documents provided by contracting authority:The published procurement pack includes: Invitation letter; Annex I Part 1 Administrative Specifications; Annex I Part 2 Technical Specifications; Annex II Draft Contract (V1/V2); Annex 6 Financial Tender Form (Excel); Annex 7 Technical Tender Form (Word); Declaration on Honour (Annex 2); Annexes 3,4,5 editable templates; Draft contract and contract annexes. Tenderers must use the mandatory Annex 6 and Annex 7 forms and comply with naming and file size requirements of eSubmission.

Selection & exclusion specifics (what will be checked)

Exclusion criteria:Tenderers (and specified involved entities) must declare on honour they are not in exclusion situations listed in Article 138 of the Financial Regulation (bankruptcy, fraud, corruption, money laundering, serious professional misconduct, serious breach of obligations related to payment of taxes or social security, creation of entities to circumvent legal obligations, etc.). The contracting authority will request documentary proof for the successful tenderer(s) prior to award. Selection criteria: Minimum economic/financial capacity (average yearly turnover for last two financial years above €2,900,000 as consolidated assessment), professional indemnity / business liability insurance minimum €1,500,000 / event, and technical capacity (ISO 9001 or equivalent and references: at least two similar contracts in the last three years each covering mobile telephony services with minimum 900 subscriptions). The contracting authority may request additional documentary evidence during the procedure and before award.

Procurement evaluation matrix and scoring

Award method:best price-quality ratio (price: 60% weighting; quality: 40% weighting). Quality scoring: total 100 points across 5 criteria; mandatory minimum passing thresholds apply both per criterion (where specified) and overall (minimum total quality score 50/100). Price evaluation: Financial Offer Form Total Scenario Price used and compared across tenderers. Final score formula: (Cheapest Price / Price of Tender X) * 100 * Price weighting (60%) + Total Quality Score (out of 100) * Quality weighting (40%). Ties resolved by lower price.

Contract management, SLA and penalties

Contract delivers a framework agreement with an initial period and renewals as defined in the Draft Contract. The contractor must provide named Account Manager and Service Operations Manager, a reporting platform, invoicing and invoice verification manual, monthly reporting, and SLA commitments. Network availability and performance KPIs are required (e.g. 99.8% availability). Liquidated damages and SLA penalties apply in addition to contract-level liquidated damages. Migration obligations are contractual; failure to complete migration within the committed period may trigger penalties (migration delays can trigger a 50% monthly invoice penalty for impacted month as noted in the Technical Specifications).

Contract start, migration and exit:The framework contract is expected to be signed Q4 2026. The successful tenderer must provide a Migration Plan (max one calendar month migration commitment) and actively cooperate with incumbent to ensure a smooth transition. On contract expiry or termination the contractor must cooperate with successor provider under an exit/migration procedure (no additional charge).

Practical submission notes and eSubmission requirements

Submissions must be made exclusively by eSubmission (EU Login required). Attachments must respect eSubmission System Requirements (supported browsers: Chrome/Firefox latest versions; file size <50 MB per file; max 200 attached documents per submission). The Personal Identification Code (PIC) is mandatory for participating organisations. Tenderers must ensure documents requiring signature are signed (qualified electronic signature recommended) and provide evidence of signing authorisations where required (delegations, powers of attorney). Draft contract acceptance: submission implies acceptance of the draft contract terms; contractual negotiations are not permitted post-submission. Questions to contracting authority are handled via the Portal Q&A; contracting authority is not bound to reply to questions submitted less than six working days before the tender deadline.

Success factors and recommended approach for bidders

1. 1Demonstrate full regulatory and technical capability to be a telecom carrier or MVNO (roaming agreements, network coverage, numbering plan, LTE/5G technology support).
2. 2Provide a clear, robust Service Profiles model addressing Europe and World coverage and an efficient data pool and overflow management solution.
3. 3Submit a comprehensive SLA with measurable KPIs meeting or exceeding stated minimums and a realistic Service Level Agreement governance and escalation model.
4. 4Deliver a detailed Reporting Plan (CDR access, reporting portal, monthly reports) and a transparent invoicing model with Invoice Verification Manual.
5. 5Provide a practical Migration Plan showing minimal disruption, resource allocation and contingency measures, and bind to contractual migration timelines.
6. 6Present competitive and fully populated Financial Offer Form (Annex 6) with verifiable price lists and no ambiguous pricing items.

How to apply: checklist

1. 1Register organisation and obtain PIC in Participant Register.
2. 2Create EU Login account and ensure eSubmission access.
3. 3Carefully review all procurement documents (Invitation letter, Annex I Part 1 & Part 2, Annex II Draft Contract, Annex 6 Financial Form, Annex 7 Technical Form, Declaration on Honour, Annexes 3–5 editable templates).
4. 4Complete Annex 7 Technical Tender Form fully (mandatory checklist items require unconditional YES answers), attach supporting documentation and appendices where required.
5. 5Complete Annex 6 Financial Tender Form in Excel including verifiable price lists as required.
6. 6Upload administrative forms (Declaration on Honour, power of attorney for joint tenders, list of identified subcontractors, commitment letters, certificates) in eSubmission as specified in Annex 1.
7. 7Submit full electronic tender before 15/10/2026 16:00 Europe/Amsterdam via eSubmission.

Final summary: what is this opportunity about and why it matters

This is an open EU procurement (tender) to establish a single-supplier framework agreement for Mobile Communication Carrier Services (voice, SMS, data and associated services) to support three EU agencies (Europol lead, EMA and Eurojust). The procurement requires an experienced telecom carrier or equivalent commercial provider able to offer Europe and World service profiles, large-scale SIM/eSIM provisioning, DataSIMs, shared data pools per agency, worldwide roaming, high availability networks with guaranteed SLAs, a comprehensive reporting and invoicing platform, and robust migration and exit procedures. The procedure is managed electronically through the EU Funding & Tenders Portal; tenderers must submit a technical offer (Annex 7) and a financial offer (Annex 6), meet exclusion and selection criteria (including turnover and technical references) and accept the draft contract terms. Award is based on the best price-quality ratio with price weighted at 60% and quality at 40%. Tenderers should pay particular attention to the mandatory technical requirements in the Tender Specifications, the Service Profiles model, SLA commitments and the Financial Offer Form. The contracting authority published an estimated overall contract amount of €5,930,000; tenderers should verify any discrepancy seen in the draft contract text (which contains an alternate maximum expenditure figure) with contracting authority clarifications before award.

Primary documents and where to access them

All procurement documents are published on the EU Funding & Tenders Portal opportunity page and attached as Annexes. Mandatory documents for bid completion include: Invitation letter, Annex I Part 1 Administrative Specifications, Annex I Part 2 Technical Specifications, Annex II Draft Contract, Annex 6 Financial Tender Form, Annex 7 Technical Tender Form, Declaration on Honour (Annex 2), and editable annexes 3, 4 and 5. Access the Procurement opportunity: ec.europa.eu

Primary contact for procedural questions:All procedural and technical clarification requests must be submitted via the Funding & Tenders Portal Questions & Answers function for this opportunity. EU Login account required for submitting questions and tenders.

This is an EU procurement tender for mobile communication carrier services covering voice, SMS, data and associated services for Europol, EMA and Eurojust. It is an open electronic procedure led by the European Union Agency for Law Enforcement Cooperation, with a published estimated value of €5,930,000 and a maximum contract duration of 48 months.

What the contract is about

The procurement covers carrier services and related support for mobile communications, specifically voice, SMS and data connectivity, together with associated services for the beneficiary organisations. The portal classification and draft documents indicate a telecoms service contract rather than a grant or funding call.

Strategic context:Europol's 2026 to 2028 programming document also identifies mobile communication carrier services as a recurrent need above the EU threshold, with an indicative scale of around €4 million over 4 years.[1]

Who can apply

This is an open procedure, so any economic operator that meets the exclusion and selection criteria in the procurement documents may submit a tender. The portal marks the tender as not SME suitable, which suggests it is aimed mainly at established telecom providers or consortia with the capacity to deliver wide area carrier services and associated support.

• Applicants must submit electronically through the Funding and Tenders Portal.
• An EU Login account is required for submission and portal access.
• A PIC is normally required for the tenderer and for consortium members.
• Tenderers should review the administrative specifications, technical specifications, declaration on honour, financial offer form and draft contract before submitting.
• The tender validity period is 6 months, so offers should remain available for that period.

Funding, duration and pricing

Although this is procurement rather than grant funding, the published estimated contract value is €5.93 million. The contract is described as a framework agreement without reopening of competition, and the portal data shows a maximum duration of 48 months.

The draft contract information also indicates an initial period of 24 months renewable twice, so applicants should verify the final contract text for the exact extension mechanics and whether the stated 48 month maximum includes renewals or reflects the total ceiling.

Award and evaluation

The contract will be awarded on the basis of the best price quality ratio, with quality weighted at 60 percent and price weighted at 40 percent. The detailed scoring methodology is set out in the procurement documents.

Documents and submission requirements

1. 1Invitation letter
2. 2Administrative specifications
3. 3Technical specifications
4. 4Declaration on honour
5. 5Financial tender form
6. 6Technical tender form
7. 7Draft contract
8. 8Editable annexes 3, 4 and 5

The portal shows no public questions and answers at the time of the extract. Submission is exclusively electronic, and the key deadline for clarification questions is 07/10/2026 23:59 Europe/Amsterdam. The supplied metadata also contains an additional deadline timestamp of 2026 01 01 14:00:59 UTC, but the portal record shown here points to 15/10/2026 16:00 Europe/Amsterdam as the operative tender deadline.