Before You Start: What You Need
Before publishing a contract notice on eTenders, you need: a confirmed and approved requirement (with estimated value and specification); a verified procedure selection decision with justification; the tender documents in final approved form; and the evaluation criteria, weightings and scoring methodology finalised. Publishing a notice with placeholder or provisional documents is poor practice and generates queries from tenderers.
You also need an active eTenders account with the appropriate buyer role. New accounts require verification by the OGP. Allow at least 10 working days for account activation if your organisation is not already registered.
Creating the Notice
eTenders uses a structured notice form aligned to the EU standard procurement forms (SPF). Key fields include: the contracting authority's name and CPB details; the contract title and reference; CPV codes (one primary CPV and up to 10 secondary codes); the contract type (works, services or supplies); the procedure type; the estimated contract value (VAT exclusive); and the deadline for tender submission.
The contract description field is critical for tenderer identification. It should accurately describe the scope of work, the location, the duration and any specific requirements. Vague descriptions lead to inappropriate tenderers investing time in irrelevant procurements.
Timelines and Deadlines
Once published, the minimum tender period for an open above-threshold procedure is 35 days from the date of dispatch of the notice. This period can be reduced to 30 days where electronic submission is required, and to 25 days where a Prior Information Notice was published at least 35 days and no more than 12 months before the contract notice.
Set a submission deadline that allows adequate time for evaluation, standstill (where applicable) and contract signature before the required start-on-site date. A common error is setting deadlines that work backwards from a desired award date without allowing sufficient evaluation time, forcing rushed evaluation that creates compliance risk.
After Publication: Managing the Notice
Clarification questions from tenderers must be answered via eTenders and published to all registered tenderers — not just the questioner. Set a clarification deadline at least 10 days before the submission deadline. All clarifications, the questions and answers, form part of the tender documents and must be retained in the procurement file.
If amendments to the tender documents are required after publication, publish a corrigendum notice through eTenders. Do not communicate changes by email to individual tenderers. After contract award, publish a Contract Award Notice within 30 days of signature — this is a legal obligation under S.I. 284/2016.
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