Technical Support to the European Commission for the Promotion of Green Public Procurement

The European Commission Directorate-General for Environment (DG ENV) has launched an open procurement tender to provide technical support for the promotion and dissemination of Green Public Procurement (GPP) across the EU. The contract covers drafting and publishing good practice examples (minimum 14 per year), maintenance and development of the GPP website, preparation of eight Commission Newsroom updates per year, and organisation of four webinars per year, with an initial duration of 24 months automatically renewable once (maximum 48 months). The maximum contract value is €572,000 (€286,000 for the initial 24 months) and tenders must be submitted electronically via the EU Funding & Tenders Portal eSubmission system. The submission deadline is 04 May 2026 at 16:00 Europe/Brussels.

What it funds

Scope (high level)

Service contract to support DG ENV on dissemination, guidance and capacity building for Green Public Procurement (GPP). Key tasks include drafting and publishing GPP good practice examples, maintaining and developing the GPP website, preparing eight newsroom updates per year, organising four webinars per year, and regular interim and final reporting.

Key deliverables:At least 14 good practice case examples per year; searchable/filterable case database; 4 webinars/year; 8 Newsroom updates/year; interim and annual reports; final hand-over. ¹

1. 1Estimated total contract value: €572,000 (maximum, including possible renewals)
2. 2Initial 24-month budget: €286,000; contract renewable once up to a total of 48 months
3. 3Procurement type: open procedure (services); award by best price-quality ratio

Eligibility:open to natural and legal persons within the scope of the EU Treaties and to entities from third countries covered by relevant agreements (GPA, LIFE association rules, etc.). Subcontracting allowed; joint tenders require a lead and joint-and-several liability. Tenders must be in an EU official language and submitted electronically.

Key procedural dates:Tender deadline 04 May 2026, 16:00 Europe/Brussels; virtual public opening 05 May 2026. Question cut-off 23 April 2026. See the F&T Portal for official documents and eSubmission access.

Where to apply:Apply and download procurement documents via the EU Funding & Tenders Portal: Funding & Tenders Portal - Tender details.

Footnotes

1. 1See the tender specifications and draft contract on the F&T Portal for full task descriptions, reporting milestones and detailed eligibility and selection criteria.

This is an open procurement procedure by the European Commission, DG Environment (DG ENV), to contract technical communication, dissemination, and knowledge-sharing services that promote Green Public Procurement (GPP) across the EU. The contract implements Circular Economy Action Plan commitments on capacity building, guidance, training, and the dissemination of good practices.

Official source and documents:Full tender notice, eSubmission access, Q&A and downloadable documents are available via the EU Funding & Tenders Portal Tender page. Core documents include the Invitation to Tender, Tender Specifications, and Draft Service Contract. The TED reference is 54/2026 188432-2026.

Scope of Work and Tasks

The contractor will deliver targeted communication, dissemination, and support services that advance GPP implementation in EU Member States, replacing the previous GPP Helpdesk model and focusing on curated tools and outreach.

Task 1: Drafting and publication of GPP good practice examples (≈40% budget):Produce at least 14 good practice examples per year covering diverse Member States, product/service/works categories, policy areas, and environmental themes. Content must be concise, comparable, replicable, and include visuals where appropriate. Workflow: identify and outline candidate cases; submit short outlines to DG ENV for validation; draft full cases with verified procurement data; DG ENV review and validation; publish on the GPP website and index in a searchable database with metadata (filters by labels such as EU Ecolabel, environmental award criteria, contract clauses, product group, sector, country). Within year 1, ensure all new and existing examples are accessible in a searchable and filterable format. Exclude cases solely related to socially responsible public procurement.

Task 2: Maintenance and development of the EU GPP website (≈25% budget):Support the GPP site hosted under the European Commission Green Forum portal, including drafting updates, adding new materials and links, ensuring accuracy and currency, proposing usability and structure improvements, coordinating publication with DG ENV’s technical services, and supporting the integration and updating of the searchable database of practices.

Task 3: Content for GPP updates via the Commission’s Newsroom (≈20% budget):Replace the former GPP News Alert with eight periodic updates per year, summarising updates to criteria, tools, webinars, case studies, news, and events on the GPP website. Responsibilities include annual scheduling tied to website activity, writing in Commission Newsroom editorial style, DG ENV review and approval cycles, and delivering final content ready for upload. Distribution is handled by DG ENV.

Task 4: Organisation of GPP webinars (≈15% budget):Organise four webinars per year (1–1.5 hours each) on GPP topics, including topic and speaker proposals for DG ENV approval, technical platform set-up and moderation for up to 150 participants, agendas, invitations, visuals, pre-event testing, and post-event summaries with publication of presentations on the GPP website.

Core deliverables and meetings:Kick-off meeting in Month 1; Interim Reports at Months 6 and 18; Annual Reports at Months 12 and 24; Final Report with hand-over file at contract end. Minutes for all meetings must be prepared and validated. Additional meetings may be requested by DG ENV. All reports are in English and submitted electronically.

Contract Structure, Value, and Duration

• Nature of contract: Direct service contract (not a framework). Main CPV: 90700000 Environmental services.
• Estimated total value: €572,000 excluding VAT, covering the full maximum duration including one renewal. Initial 24-month budget is €286,000.
• Duration: Initial 24 months, renewable once for 24 months (maximum 48 months).
• Place of performance: Contractor’s premises.
• Ownership and IPR: The Union (European Commission) acquires ownership of results; pre-existing rights are licensed to the Union on a royalty-free, non-exclusive, irrevocable basis for all exploitation modes specified.

Timeline, Procedure and Submission

Tenders must be submitted in one of the official EU languages via eSubmission; each participating organisation must be registered in the Participant Register and hold a PIC. An EU Login account is mandatory for access and submission. Only the latest version of a tender counts if multiple are submitted and not withdrawn.

Opening session attendance:To attend the virtual opening, email env-tenders@ec.europa.eu no later than 3 hours before the session, providing representatives’ names and emails, tenderer name, and submission receipt number.

Award and Evaluation

Award criteria and weighting:Best price-quality ratio. Weighting: Price 50%; Quality 50% (maximum 100 quality points) with minimum thresholds per criterion.

• Quality criterion 1: Quality of the proposed methodology (max 40 points; minimum threshold 24).
• Quality criterion 2: Organisation of work and allocation of resources (max 30 points; minimum threshold 18).
• Quality criterion 3: Quality control measures (max 30 points; minimum threshold 18).
• Overall technical sufficiency threshold: at least 65/100 points.

Only tenders meeting all minimum thresholds and the overall technical sufficiency threshold proceed to final ranking. Ties are resolved in favour of lower price if the price-quality ratio is identical.

Selection criteria (ex-ante capacity checks):Economic and financial capacity: Average annual turnover in the last two closed financial years above €286,000 (consolidated across involved entities if joint tender). Evidence: profit and loss accounts and balance sheets for the last two closed years (most recent closed within the last 18 months), or bank statements if accounts unavailable.

• Technical and professional capacity – tenderer-wide (Criteria A):
• A1: At least 2 projects in the last 3 years in EU environmental and public procurement policies, specifically GPP, including knowledge and work with GPP policy, legislation, practices, and implementation at EU level and in at least five EU Member States (regional and local levels included). Each reference minimum value €80,000; provide client statements confirming delivery, value, duration, and satisfactory execution.
• A2: Capacity to work in English demonstrated by at least 2 project references in the last 3 years.
• A3: Capacity to draft English reports: provide at least one document (≥10 pages) drafted in English and delivered in the last 2 years (verification on 5 pages).
• Technical and professional capacity – key team (Criteria B):
• B1: Project Manager with at least 5 years’ project management experience, including similar size projects (≥ €50,000), at least three countries covered, and teams of at least 4 people. Evidence: CV.
• B2: Language: at least 2 team members with English at C1 level (CEFR). Evidence: language certificates or past relevant experience.
• B3: Subject-matter and functional expertise: at minimum, two experts in GPP policies and implementation at different government levels; two experts capable of writing articles and newsletters to native-level English quality; expertise in procurement legislation and its implementation; web design and web content; basic statistical analysis. Evidence: relevant higher education or equivalent professional experience and CVs.
• B4: Team for data collection: at least 2 people collectively covering required EU languages (explicitly includes English) with at least 2 years’ demonstrated experience in data collection techniques. Evidence: CVs and language certificates or experience.

Exclusion and compliance checks:All involved entities must submit a signed Declaration on Honour on exclusion and selection criteria. The Commission may verify via EDES and request supporting evidence from the presumed winner. Entities subject to EU restrictive measures are not eligible. Compliance with environmental, social, and labour law, and data protection obligations is mandatory.

Contract Management, Payments, and Data/Security Requirements

• Payments: No pre-financing. Two interim payments: 25% after each interim report; balance after final acceptance. Standard 60-day payment terms after invoice receipt and approval; interest on late payment may apply. Invoices are submitted through the electronic exchange system when activated.
• Pricing: Lump-sum approach; travel and subsistence are not reimbursed separately and must be included in the total price.
• IPR: Union ownership of results; pre-existing rights licensed to the Union for all stated exploitation modes.
• Data protection: Processing of personal data by the contractor is limited to the EU/EEA; data must be stored and processed only within EU/EEA data centres, notably for webinar organisation. Any transfer outside EU/EEA requires prior written authorisation and compliance with Chapter V of Regulation (EU) 2018/1725.
• Security: Contractor and personnel must comply with Commission security requirements, support incident reporting within 48 hours, and cooperate in security assessments and audits. Specific rules apply to access to Commission premises and IT assets; in this contract, access to Commission communication and information systems is not foreseen.

Who Can Apply and How to Participate

Eligible Applicant Types:Any natural or legal person (economic operator) with access to EU procurement may apply, including but not limited to consulting firms, SMEs, large enterprises, universities, research institutes, non-profits, NGOs, and public bodies, as sole tenderers or as consortia. Subcontracting is permitted. Identified subcontractors providing capacities for selection criteria or with an intended share above 20% must be listed and provide commitment letters.

Consortium Requirement:Not required. Both single tenderers and joint tenders are allowed. In joint tenders, group members are jointly and severally liable and must appoint a group leader with power of attorney to act as the single point of contact and signatory.

Geographic Eligibility (Beneficiary Scope):Participation is open on equal terms to all natural and legal persons within the scope of the EU Treaties and international organisations, as well as to persons established in third countries that have a special public procurement agreement with the EU (e.g., WTO GPA signatories) and to third countries eligible under the LIFE programme. All involved entities and subcontractors must not be subject to EU restrictive measures.

Target Sector:Environment, circular economy, sustainable public procurement, communications and dissemination, training and capacity building, web content and web platform management, public procurement law and practice.

Project Stage:Service delivery and implementation. Activities include content development, website management, editorial production, stakeholder engagement via webinars, and case-study curation and publication.

Application Type and Stages:Open call, single-stage submission through eSubmission. Public opening, followed by administrative, exclusion, selection, and award evaluations. No invitation-only or multi-stage EOI phases apply.

Nature of Support and Co-funding:This is a paid service contract. Beneficiaries receive payments for the services provided under the contract. There is no co-funding requirement; all costs must be covered within the offered total price.

Success Rates:No success rate data is provided for this procedure.

Submission Package and Templates

All documents are uploaded via eSubmission. Key items to include are detailed in Annex 1 of the Tender Specifications. Failure to upload the technical and financial tenders will lead to rejection.

• Administrative identification per entity (sole tenderer, group leader, group members, identified subcontractors, entities relied upon).
• Declaration on Honour on exclusion and selection criteria for each required entity (model in Annex 2).
• Evidence of authorisation to sign by signatories (for Declarations and Power of Attorney).
• Agreement/Power of attorney for joint tenders (Annex 3) signed by all group members, appointing the group leader.
• List of identified subcontractors with roles and proportion of subcontracting (Annex 4).
• Commitment letters: Annex 5.1 for identified subcontractors; Annex 5.2 for entities whose capacities are relied on (and not subcontractors).
• Administrative Information Form (Annex 8) for each relevant entity.
• Evidence of legal capacity: proof of enrolment in a trade/professional register or authorisation to perform the contract in the country of establishment.
• Economic and financial capacity evidence for entities contributing to turnover threshold: P&L and balance sheets for last two closed years (or bank statements).
• Technical and professional capacity evidence: project references and client attestations; English drafting sample; CVs and language evidence; demonstration of expertise coverage per Criteria A and B.
• Technical tender: detailed methodology, work plan, roles and responsibilities, allocation of resources per task and deliverable, quality control approach, and risk management. If any personal data would be processed outside the EU/EEA, explicitly indicate location (otherwise it is presumed EU/EEA only).
• Financial tender: completed Financial Tender Form (Annex 6) with total price and breakdown including all costs (fees, travel, subsistence, consumables, overheads). Prices in EUR, net of all taxes and duties (including VAT).

Formatting and eSubmission notes:Observe system file size and count limits; ensure use of supported browsers and formats per the eSubmission System Requirements. Each organisation in a group must have a PIC and be encoded in the Participant Register. Tenders can be withdrawn or replaced before the deadline. After submission, attachments are encrypted and inaccessible until opening.

Compliance, Legal and Contact Details

• Legal basis: Financial Regulation (EU, Euratom) 2024/2509; open procedure under Article 167(1)(a).
• Data protection: Regulation (EU) 2018/1725. Contractor’s processing limited to EU/EEA; webinar data handling explicitly referenced.
• Confidentiality and security: Commission Decision 2015/443 on security in the Commission; cybersecurity Regulation (EU, Euratom) 2023/2841; 48-hour incident notification; cooperation with assessments/audits.
• Applicable law and jurisdiction: Union law complemented by Belgian law; Brussels courts have exclusive jurisdiction.
• Contact for opening session attendance and post-opening information: env-tenders@ec.europa.eu.
• Contracting authority address: European Commission, DG ENV – Environment, Avenue d’Auderghem 19, BRE2 10/DCS, B-1040 Brussels, Belgium.

Categorisation Answers

Eligible Applicant Types:Economic operators such as consulting firms, SMEs, large enterprises, universities, research institutes, nonprofits/NGOs, public bodies, and international organisations. Sole tenderers or joint tenders are permitted. Subcontractors may be included; entities whose capacities are relied upon are acceptable with commitment letters.

Funding Type:Public procurement service contract; payments for services rendered under a direct contract.

Consortium Requirement:Consortium is optional. Single applicant or joint tender allowed. Joint and several liability applies to group members; group leader acts as single point of contact.

Beneficiary Scope (Geographic Eligibility):Open to entities within EU Treaties’ scope and international organisations; also open to entities established in third countries with special procurement agreements with the EU (e.g., WTO GPA parties) and to third countries eligible under the LIFE programme (associated countries), subject to the association agreement being in force at award. All involved entities must not be under EU restrictive measures.

Target Sector:Environment, circular economy, public procurement, communications and dissemination, digital/web content management, training and events, procurement law implementation.

Mentioned Countries:Belgium (contracting authority address and VAT exemption references). EU Member States are referenced for geographic balance of cases and language coverage.

Project Stage:Implementation and service delivery, including content production, platform maintenance, outreach, and events.

Funding Amount:Maximum contract value €572,000 excluding VAT over up to 48 months; initial 24 months capped at €286,000. No price revision; travel and subsistence must be included in the lump sum.

Application Type:Open call; electronic submission via eSubmission on the EU Funding & Tenders Portal only.

Nature of Support:Monetary payments for contracted services (no grants; no co-funding).

Application Stages:One-stage tender submission followed by evaluation; public opening session; no prior EOI stage.

Success Rates:Not specified by the contracting authority.

Co-funding Requirement:No. This is a fixed-price service contract. The contractor bears all costs within the total offered price; travel/subsistence are not reimbursed separately.

Practical Notes for Applicants

• Register or confirm your organisation’s PIC in the Participant Register and ensure SME status is up to date if relevant.
• Prepare evidence for economic/financial capacity (turnover) and for technical/professional capacity (references, CVs, English drafting sample). Obtain client statements for references.
• Define roles across a multidisciplinary team covering GPP policy and implementation, legal procurement expertise, editorial capacity at native-level English quality, web design/content skills, and basic statistics.
• Plan metadata and database structures for searchable case studies aligned to required filters.
• Align Newsroom updates with editorial standards and plan an annual schedule linked to website activity.
• Ensure webinar platform capacity for up to 150 participants and processes for pre-tests, moderation, and post-event publication.
• Integrate data protection by design: limit personal data processing to EU/EEA, ensure compliant storage, and set up incident response within 48 hours.
• Design a contract-specific quality control plan covering language, factual accuracy, procurement data verification, editorial standards, accessibility/usability of web content, and business continuity for staff absences.
• Use the Financial Tender Form to present comprehensive, realistic pricing inclusive of all costs.

Long Summary

DG Environment seeks a contractor to deliver a comprehensive package of services that promote Green Public Procurement across the European Union. The assignment centres on producing at least 14 high-quality GPP good practice case studies per year, ensuring they are searchable and filterable online; maintaining and improving the Commission’s GPP website; crafting eight structured Newsroom updates annually summarising GPP-related developments; and organising four technically sound and well-attended GPP webinars each year. The work aims to shift markets toward sustainability by helping public authorities adopt circular, environmentally preferable procurement. The contract has an initial budget cap of €286,000 for 24 months and can be renewed once to a 48-month total cap of €572,000. Award is by best price-quality ratio with stringent minimum thresholds for methodology, organisation of work and resources, and quality control. Applicants must demonstrate robust financial standing and strong technical credentials in EU environmental and public procurement policy, with proven experience across at least five Member States and at multiple administrative levels. Teams must combine project management, GPP subject-matter expertise, procurement law implementation, editorial excellence in English at native-level quality, web design/content capabilities, and data collection/statistics skills. Data protection is central: personal data under the contract must remain within EU/EEA and incident response within 48 hours is required. Ownership of results rests with the Union, enabling broad re-use and dissemination. Tenders are submitted electronically only via the EU Funding & Tenders Portal with PIC registration and EU Login, and must include the specified administrative forms, Declarations on Honour, capacity evidence, a detailed technical offer, and a comprehensive financial tender. This opportunity will most suit experienced environmental and procurement consultancies or consortia with integrated communications and digital delivery capabilities, able to validate procurement data, produce compelling editorial content, maintain public-facing EU web content, and convene stakeholder webinars at scale.

Funding Opportunity Overview

This is an open procurement tender from the European Commission's Directorate-General Environment for technical support services related to the promotion and dissemination of Green Public Procurement (GPP) practices across the European Union. The opportunity is published as part of the Commission's commitment under the Circular Economy Action Plan 2020 to support capacity building, guidance development, and dissemination of best practices in sustainable public procurement.

Contracting Authority

European Commission, Directorate-General Environment (DG ENV), Directorate B - Competitive Circular Economy and Clean Industrial Policy, Unit B1 - Bioeconomy and Sustainable Materials. The contracting authority is based in Brussels, Belgium.

Financial Information

Total Budget:€572,000 maximum for the entire contract period, excluding VAT.

Initial Contract Budget:€286,000 for the first 24 months.

Budget Allocation by Task:

• Task 1 - Good practice examples: 40 percent
• Task 2 - Website maintenance and development: 25 percent
• Task 3 - Newsroom updates: 20 percent
• Task 4 - Webinar organisation: 15 percent

Contract Duration and Renewal

Initial Duration:24 months from contract entry into force.

Renewal:The contract is renewable automatically once for an additional 24 months under identical terms, unless either party provides written notification of non-renewal at least three months before the end of the initial period. Maximum total duration is 48 months.

Extension Option:Within three years of contract signature, the Commission may use negotiated procedure to procure additional similar services from the contractor up to a maximum of 50 percent of the initial contract value.

Key Procurement Dates and Deadlines

Scope of Services and Deliverables

Task 1: Drafting and Publication of Green Public Procurement Good Practice Examples

The contractor must prepare and publish at least 14 verified good practice examples per year demonstrating how GPP can be implemented effectively in different European contexts. These examples must include geographical balance across Member States, a representative mix of goods/services/works, different policy areas and environmental themes, and clear descriptions suitable for replication. Contractor must identify potential cases through desk research and stakeholder consultation, prepare case outlines for Commission validation, draft full cases with verified data, conduct DG ENV review, and publish with searchable metadata. By the first year, all good practice examples (new and existing) must be accessible in searchable and filterable format by EU Ecolabel use, environmental award criteria, product groups, sectors, and country. Cases exclusively on socially responsible public procurement are excluded.

Task 2: Maintenance and Development of GPP Website

The contractor provides ongoing maintenance and updates to the EU GPP website hosted at the Green Forum European Commission portal. Responsibilities include identifying and drafting updates to existing pages, ensuring accuracy and relevance of information, coordinating with Commission technical services via standard procedures, proposing usability and structural improvements to enhance accessibility, and supporting integration and regular updating of the searchable database of good practices.

Task 3: Preparation of Periodic Content Updates via Commission Newsroom

This task replaces the former GPP News Alert publication. The contractor must prepare content for eight periodic updates per year summarising new materials on the GPP website including criteria, tools, webinars, case studies, news, and events. Work includes proposing an annual schedule of updates, drafting and formatting content to match Commission Newsroom editorial style, submitting drafts to DG ENV for review and approval, and delivering final content ready for system upload. DG ENV manages distribution of updates.

Task 4: Organisation of Green Public Procurement Webinars

The contractor must organise four webinars per year on GPP-related topics, each approximately 1 to 1.5 hours including presentations and discussions. Responsibilities include proposing topics and speakers for DG ENV approval, managing the technical platform and moderation for up to 150 participants, preparing agendas and invitations, designing visual materials, conducting technical testing, providing short summaries after events, and ensuring presentations are published on the GPP website.

Reporting Requirements

All reports must provide clear overview of progress under each task, outputs achieved, challenges encountered, and recommendations. Contractor must take minutes during all meetings and send to Commission for comments and approval within two weeks. DG ENV may call additional meetings as needed.

Eligibility and Who Can Apply

Procedure Type

Open procedure under the Financial Regulation. Any interested economic operator can submit a tender.

Eligibility to Participate

• Natural or legal persons from EU Member States
• Natural or legal persons from third countries with Government Procurement Agreement with EU (WTO GPA signatories)
• Natural or legal persons from third countries associated with LIFE Programme
• International organisations
• Economic operators must not be subject to EU restrictive measures
• All group members in joint tenders must meet eligibility requirements

Exclusion Criteria

Tenderers are rejected if they or related persons are in exclusion situations as defined in Article 138 of the Financial Regulation. These include conviction for criminal offences affecting professional credibility, breach of professional obligations, insolvency, money laundering, corruption, fraud, tax/social security violations, or grave professional misconduct. Tenderers must submit a Declaration on Honour confirming non-exclusion. The Commission may request supporting evidence.

Selection Criteria and Minimum Requirements

Legal Capacity

Tenderers must prove legal capacity to perform the contract. Evidence required includes proof of enrolment in relevant trade or professional register, or proof of authorisation to perform the contract in the country of establishment. Evidence must be provided with the tender.

Economic and Financial Capacity

The tenderer as a whole (consolidated assessment of all involved entities) must have average yearly turnover exceeding €286,000 for the last two financial years for which accounts have been closed. The most recent year must have closed within the last 18 months. Evidence required includes copy of profit and loss accounts and balance sheets for the last two years from each involved entity, or appropriate bank statements if accounts unavailable. All evidence must be provided with the tender.

Technical and Professional Capacity - Organisational Requirements

Criterion A1:Tenderer must prove experience in EU environmental and public procurement policies, specifically Green Public Procurement. This includes knowledge and work with GPP policies, legislation, practices, and implementation at EU level and in at least five EU Member States including regional and local levels. Evidence: References for 2 projects delivered in these fields in the last three years with minimum value of €80,000 each.

Criterion A2:Tenderer must prove capacity to work in English. Evidence: References for 2 projects delivered in the last three years showing necessary language coverage.

Criterion A3:Tenderer must prove capacity to draft reports in English. Evidence: One document of at least 10 pages (report, study, etc.) drafted and published or delivered to a client in the last two years. Verification will be conducted on 5 pages of the document.

Technical and Professional Capacity - Team Requirements

Criterion B1 - Project Manager:At least 5 years experience in project management including overseeing project delivery, quality control, client orientation, and conflict resolution in similar-sized projects (minimum €50,000) covering at least three countries, with management of teams of at least 4 people. Evidence: CV.

Criterion B2 - Language Expertise:At least 2 team members must have C1 level in the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages in English. Evidence: Language certificate or relevant past professional experience.

Criterion B3 - Green Public Procurement and Environmental Policy Experts:Team must collectively cover GPP policies and implementation at different government levels (minimum 2 persons with 4+ years experience each), writing of articles and newsletters to English mother-tongue quality (minimum 2 persons), expertise in procurement legislation and implementation, webdesign and webcontent, and basic statistical analysis. Relevant higher education degree and equivalent professional experience in the field required. Evidence: CVs.

Criterion B4 - Data Collection Team:Collectively at least 2 people must have knowledge of specified EU languages including English and 2+ years proven experience in data collection techniques. Evidence: CVs and language certificates or past relevant experience.

All technical and professional capacity evidence must be provided with the tender submission.

Submission Requirements and Tender Format

Submission Method

Tenders must be submitted exclusively via eSubmission electronic submission system on the EU Funding and Tenders Portal. No other submission method (email, post, etc.) is accepted. Tenders received after the deadline will be rejected.

Required Registration

Each economic operator (including all members in joint tenders) must be registered in the European Commission's Participant Register to obtain a Participant Identification Code (PIC). Registration is a one-time process; SME status must be registered and kept up to date.

Required Documents

• Declaration on Honour on Exclusion and Selection Criteria (model provided in Annex 2)
• Evidence of authorisation to sign documents (delegation of signing authority)
• In joint tenders: Agreement/Power of Attorney signed by all members (model in Annex 3)
• List of identified subcontractors and proportion of subcontracting (if applicable, model in Annex 4)
• Commitment letters from subcontractors (Annex 5.1) and other entities on whose capacity contractor relies (Annex 5.2)
• Administrative Information Form (Annex 8)
• Technical tender covering all requirements and award criteria (detailed content required)
• Financial tender using Financial Model (Annex 6)
• Evidence of legal capacity
• Evidence of economic and financial capacity (profit/loss accounts and balance sheets)
• Project references demonstrating technical and professional capacity
• CVs of proposed team members

Technical Tender Content Requirements

Technical tender must provide all information needed to assess compliance with minimum requirements and award criteria. It must cover methodology for all tasks, quality approach, organisation of work and resource allocation, quality control measures, and team structure. Mere repetition of mandatory requirements without detail or added value results in low scores. Essential points must be expressly covered or zero marks may be assigned for relevant criteria.

Financial Tender

Complete financial tender using the mandatory Financial Model (Annex 6) must be submitted. Prices must be in euros, free of all duties and taxes including VAT, representing all costs to deliver contract requirements. Travel and subsistence expenses must be included as part of the lump sum and will not be reimbursed separately. Maximum total budget is €572,000. Tenders exceeding this amount will be rejected.

Language Requirements

Tenders may be submitted in any official EU language. All tender documents must be signed by duly authorised representatives. Signatures can be hand-written or, preferably, qualified electronic signatures per eIDAS Regulation.

Evaluation and Award Procedure

Evaluation Stages

1. 1Verification of access to procurement rules compliance
2. 2Check of administrative compliance (language, required documents, signatures)
3. 3Verification of non-exclusion on basis of exclusion criteria
4. 4Assessment of selection criteria
5. 5Evaluation of tender compliance and award criteria
6. 6Verification of EU restrictive measures and other rejection grounds

If any element demonstrates grounds for rejection, the tender is rejected without full evaluation. Rejected tenderers are not given feedback on non-assessed content. The Commission evaluates elements in the order it considers most appropriate.

Award Criteria and Scoring

Methodology quality (40 points) assesses the degree to which proposed methodology demonstrates capacity to analyse, review, and evaluate documents; resolve underlying questions realistically and well-structured; and align with Commission needs. Organisation of work and resources (30 points) assesses distribution of roles and responsibilities, time and resource allocation across tasks, and adequacy for the work. Quality control measures (30 points) assesses the system for ensuring deliverable quality, language quality checks, and service continuity during absences. Specific, task-tailored systems score higher than generic approaches.

Minimum technical sufficiency threshold is 65 points total, with no individual criterion scoring below its minimum. All tenders scoring below stated thresholds are excluded from further consideration. Among technically sufficient tenders, ranking is determined by price-quality ratio: total price divided by total quality points. Lowest ratio wins. In case of ties, the tender with lower price ranks higher.

Abnormally Low Tenders

Tenderers should be aware that abnormally low tenders may be rejected under the Financial Regulation. The Commission may request justification of unusually low prices before making award decisions.

Award and Notifications

The Commission is not bound to award the contract if tender amounts exceed the maximum budget. Ranked (non-rejected) tenderers can request written notification of the successful tenderer's name, characteristics and relative advantages of the successful tender, and its total financial offer, subject to confidentiality protections for commercial information. All notifications are sent by email to addresses provided in eSubmission.

Contract Terms and Conditions

Payment Arrangements

Payment structure consists of two interim payments of €143,000 each (25 percent of maximum budget) and a balance payment. Contractor must submit invoices with required reports within specified timeframes. Contracting authority must approve and pay within 60 days of invoice receipt. Suspension of payment periods is possible if invoices do not comply with contract, required documents are missing, or contracting authority has observations on submitted materials.

Intellectual Property Rights

The Union acquires irrevocable worldwide ownership of all results and intellectual property rights on newly created materials produced specifically for the Union. This includes all deliverables, reports, case studies, website content, and communications. Pre-existing materials and rights are licensed on a royalty-free, non-exclusive, irrevocable basis. Contractor must provide complete list of all pre-existing rights with the final invoice. Payment includes all fees for acquisition of ownership and licensing of pre-existing rights.

Liability and Termination

Contractor performs contract at its own risk and is liable for damages caused, limited to three times the total contract amount unless caused by gross negligence or wilful misconduct. Contracting authority may terminate contract for: material non-performance, failure to meet selection criteria, conflicts of interest, data protection violations, exclusion situations, force majeure, or changes substantially affecting performance conditions. Either party may terminate for convenience with three months written notice, with no compensation beyond payment for services already provided. Contractor must provide assistance for transition at no additional cost unless substantial additional resources are required.

Subcontracting and Joint Tenders

Contractor may subcontract parts of the work but remains fully responsible for performance. Identified subcontractors with shares above 20 percent or on whose capacity contractor relies must provide commitment letters. Joint tenders must include Agreement/Power of Attorney appointing one group leader responsible for contract performance and group communications. All group members are jointly and severally liable.

Data Protection

Processing of personal data for webinar organisation is subject to EU Regulation 2018/1725. Contractor must ensure personal data is processed within EU/EEA territory only and not transferred outside without prior written authorisation. Data centres must be located within EU/EEA. Contractor must notify Commission of data breaches within 48 hours and implement appropriate security measures.

Contextual Information and Strategic Importance

This procurement opportunity is directly linked to the European Commission's Industrial Accelerator Act announced in March 2026, which introduces Made in EU and low-carbon product requirements in public procurement. Public procurement accounts for approximately €2.5 trillion annually (15 percent of EU GDP). Green Public Procurement currently applies to less than 15 percent of EU contracts above threshold, representing significant potential for market transformation. ¹

The Circular Economy Action Plan 2020 established core commitments to make sustainable products the norm, empower consumers, and ensure less waste. GPP is identified as a key strategic tool to drive market demand for sustainable products and support the EU Green Deal objectives. The contract supports implementation of mandatory minimum GPP criteria and targets in sectoral legislation currently under development. ²

Key reform initiatives underway include strengthening green public procurement in EU public procurement directives (revised in 2024), with proposed reforms to make GPP criteria more systematic and mandatory in strategic sectors, enhance monitoring and verification systems, and enable strategic use of procurement to support green transition. This support contract implements the Commission's commitment to continue dissemination and awareness-raising on GPP as essential for circular economy transition.

Key Contacts and Information Sources

All procurement documents, tender specifications, and forms are available on the EU Funding and Tenders Portal (F&T Portal) at the following link: EU Funding and Tenders Portal. TED reference is 54/2026 188432-2026.

For technical questions about tender submission, contact eSubmission Helpdesk via the F&T Portal. For substantive questions about the procurement, submit written questions through the portal by 23 April 2026 23:59 Brussels time. All answers are published on the portal and binding on the Commission.

Tenderers must subscribe to the call on the F&T Portal to receive email notifications of updates and new documents. This is free and involves no commitment to tender.

Applicant Tips and Strategic Considerations

Successful applicants should demonstrate deep knowledge of EU environmental and public procurement policy landscape, with proven ability to distil complex regulations into accessible good practice guidance. Strong experience in creating digestible content for multiple stakeholder levels (local, regional, national authorities) is essential. The balance of price (50 percent) and quality (50 percent) means cost-competitive pricing combined with strong methodology and innovative dissemination approaches are both critical. ¹

The quality evaluation emphasises realistic, well-structured methodologies tailored to specific tasks rather than generic descriptions. Proposing novel engagement and dissemination approaches beyond standard webinar formats, developing interactive database tools, and demonstrating pan-European reach with regional expertise will strengthen bids. The team composition is critical - demonstrating dedicated expertise in GPP policy, procurement law, technical content writing, and webdesign across the proposed team strengthens evaluation. ²

Given that this contract replaces the previous GPP Helpdesk model, the Commission seeks focused technical support rather than broad helpdesk services. Applicants with direct experience supporting EU institutional capacity building, Member State stakeholder networks, and producing published materials in environmental policy are advantaged. Building partnerships with organisations having established networks among public procurement professionals across Member States can enhance delivery capacity and ensure geographic balance in case study identification.

Footnotes

1. 1Based on search results showing that less than 15 percent of EU contracts above thresholds are currently considered green, and public procurement accounts for 14-15 percent of EU GDP with approximately €2.5 trillioneuros spent annually. The Industrial Accelerator Act (March 2026) and ongoing public procurement directive revision are creating strategic opportunity for GPP expansion. See sources [1], [3], [5], [7], [9].
2. 2The Circular Economy Action Plan 2020 identified GPP as essential instrument to drive market sustainability. The proposed reforms under the Public Procurement Directive revision focus on making GPP criteria more systematic and mandatory in strategic sectors, strengthening market signals for sustainable products, and improving governance through harmonised monitoring and verification. This contract implements Commission commitments under these frameworks. See sources [2], [4], [6], [8], [13].