Repealed by Rule No. 1395

Rule No. 1333 of 29 June 2011 on the procurement procedures of the Council of Europe

The Secretary General of the Council of Europe,

HAVING REGARD to the Financial Regulations and Supplementary Provisions of the Council of Europe, adopted by the Committee of Ministers on 29 June 2011 at the 1117th meeting of the Ministers’ Deputies (hereinafter referred to as ''Financial Regulations''), in particular Articles 40 – 42 thereof;

HAVING REGARD to Rule No. 481 of 27 February 1976 laying down the arbitration procedure for disputes between the Council and private persons concerning goods provided, services rendered or purchases of immovable property on behalf of the Council;

HAVING REGARD to Rule No. 1282 of 18 October 2007 on the declaration of interests in the context of procurement;

HAVING REGARD to Rule No. 1334 of 29 June 2011 on the terms of reference of the Tenders Board;

HAVING REGARD to Rule No. 1296 of 18 December 2008 on the acceptance of fees, gifts, decorations or honours, invitations and other advantages from third parties;

HAVING REGARD to Instruction No. 59 of 21 December 2007 on consultants’ contracts;

HAVING REGARD to Instruction No. 60 of 21 December 2007 on outsourcing contracts;

HAVING REGARD to the underlying principles of all procurement procedures, which are objectivity, openness, non-exclusivity, equal treatment and non-discrimination;

WHEREAS Article 75, paragraph 2, of the Financial Regulations repeals directives issued for the implementation of the preceding financial regulations ;

CONSIDERING that, as a consequence, Rule No. 1312 of 6 May 2010 on the procurement procedures of the Council of Europe needs to be replaced by a new rule of the same subject-matter;

CONSIDERING that a Rule should lay down in detail the procurement procedures of the Council of Europe;

EMPHASISING that this Rule should strive to combine the principles underlying all procurement procedures with the flexibility needed for the special legal framework in which the Council of Europe operates;

BEARING IN MIND that in order to make the most efficient use of the Organisation’s budget and to obtain best value for money, clear rules on procurement procedures are necessary;

D E C I D E S:

Part I – General Provisions

Article 1 – Aim of the Rule

1.       This Rule lays down the details relating to the procurement procedures foreseen in Articles 40 and following of the Financial Regulations.

2.       It also prescribes the duties and obligations of Secretariat members^[1] involved in these procedures.

3.       This Rule is adopted in the interest of the efficient use of resources of the Organisation.

Article 2 – General Principles

1.       Procurement procedures in the Council of Europe shall be based on the principles of objectivity, transparency, non-exclusivity, equal treatment and non-discrimination.

2.       The Council of Europe’s policy on non-discrimination on grounds of gender, disability, age, marital or parental status, “race”, colour, ethnic origin, religion, belief, citizenship/nationality and sexual orientation shall be respected.

Article 3 – Guide to Good Practice - Purchasing

1.       A guide containing practical information on the procedures of this Rule shall be regularly updated by the Directorate General of Administration and published on the Organisation’s intranet website.

2.       The guide is intended to supplement this Rule and shall conform to the terms of this Rule.

Article 4 – Procurement Procedures

1.       Contracts for the supply of goods, services or works to the Organisation, framework agreements and partnership agreements, shall be subject to one of the following procedures:

-        International public call for tenders^[2]: where the total expenditure foreseen with regard to the contract exceeds 55 000 EUR, excluding VAT, or any amount fixed by the Secretary General under Article 40, paragraph 4, of the Financial Regulations.

-        Restricted-consultation procedure^[3]: where the total expenditure foreseen with regard to the contract does not exceed 55 000 EUR, excluding VAT, or any amount fixed by the Secretary General under Article 40, paragraph 4, of the Financial Regulations.

-              Direct-negotiation procedure^[4]: under the special conditions of Article 18 of this Rule.

 

2.       For the purposes of this Rule:

-        The term “Framework agreement” shall be used to mean an agreement between the Organisation and one or more suppliers, the purpose of which is to establish the terms governing contracts for the supply of goods, services or works to be awarded during a given period, in particular, with regard to the price and, where appropriate, the quantity envisaged.

-          The term “Partnership agreement” shall be used to mean an agreement under which the Organisation entrusts to a third party for a period set according to        investment amortisation or agreed financing terms, a comprehensive task relating to the financing of intangible assets, works or equipment necessary to the Organisation, to construction or conversion of works or equipment, to maintenance, operation or management thereof, and, if need be, to provision of    other services necessary for the exercise by the Organisation of its mission.

Article 5 - Consultants and outsourcing contracts

The procedures for the selection of consultants under Instruction No. 59 of 21 December 2007 on consultants’ contracts and for resorting to outsourcing under Instruction No. 60 of 21 December 2007 on outsourcing contracts shall be carried out in conformity with this Rule.

Article 6 - Commitments officers’ responsibility

1.       For the purposes of this Rule, it is understood that the buyer administrative entity always acts under the responsibility of its commitments officer.

2.       A commitments officer may, as necessary, delegate in writing authority to another commitments officer or to a cost centre manager in his/her Major Administrative Entity.

Article 7 – General Obligations

1.       Secretariat members involved in procurement procedures shall act objectively and impartially and shall treat all potential suppliers and bidders equally.

2.       They shall not disclose any information other than that intended to be made available to potential suppliers or bidders involved in negotiations.  

3.       Moreover, they shall protect the confidentiality of the information imparted by the potential suppliers and bidders.

Part II – Specification

Article 8

1.       All procurement procedures shall be conducted on the basis of a specification to be prepared by the buyer administrative entity.

2.       The specification shall contain:

-        a description of the goods and/or services and/or works to be procured (technical specification), the level of detail to be included therein depending on the complexity of the purchase,

-        the date(s) of delivery of the goods and/or services and/or works (duration of the contract),

-        any preconditions (eligibility criteria), additional to the general exclusion criteria^[5], as may be appropriate given the nature of the contract to be awarded,

-        the award criteria (which may be related to cost, quality and other relevant factors), it being understood that this part of the specification shall stipulate how the bids are to be weighted,

-        the financial guarantee that the Organisation may require,

-        any clauses, additional to the Organisation’s general conditions of purchase^[6], that may be required,

-        in the case of a project, the timetable for its implementation.

3.       The criteria shall be objective, in the sense that they shall not confer any unfair advantage to a potential supplier and shall not constitute an unjustified obstacle to competition.

4.       Social and environmental criteria may be also taken into account. In this respect, particular attention shall be paid to the need to offer contracts, wherever possible, to persons with disabilities or to bodies with a high percentage of disabled people in their employment.

5.       The criteria, once made public according to the conditions of each procurement procedure, shall not be changed.

Part III – International Public Call for Tenders

Article 9 – Permission to Launch the Procedure

1.       Permission to launch the procedure shall be requested in a memorandum to the Tenders Board, signed by the relevant Commitments Officer, which shall contain the specification, the estimated total cost of the contract, proposals on how to invite potential suppliers to submit a bid, a timetable for the procurement procedure and, if applicable, the cost of the previous contract (see also Article 10, paragraph 3).

2.       The buyer administrative entity may propose either to publish an open call for tenders or directly to invite tenders from identified potential suppliers figuring on a list or both. To make an invitation to tender international in nature, at least six potential suppliers in at least two member states of the Organisation shall be identified. Where this proves impossible, the reasons shall be stated in the memorandum.

3.       In the case of a particularly complex purchase, when it is difficult to define in advance (a) the technical means by which the needs of the Organisation shall be met or (b) the legal and financial conditions of the purchase, the buyer administrative entity may also propose to have recourse to competitive dialogue, in accordance with Article 15. 

4.       The buyer administrative entity’s memorandum shall be sent to the Secretary of the Tenders Board by e-mail at least three working days before the Tenders Board meeting. Complex files comprising a large number of documents shall be sent at least five working days before the meeting of the Tenders Board. The Secretary of the Tenders Board shall decide whether a file is considered complex or not.

5.       The Chair of the Tenders Board may reject any files not submitted within the deadline.

6.       The Secretary of the Tenders Board shall allocate a serial number to the file, which shall serve as an identifier throughout the procedure. This number shall consist of:

-        four figures corresponding to the year when the file was first submitted,

-        the initials “AO” and

-        a number reflecting the order in which the file was received by the Tenders Board in the particular year.

7.       The Tenders Board shall examine the file and decide whether and where an open call for tenders shall be published and/or, by establishing a list of potential suppliers, decide how widely the invitations to tender shall be diffused. International public call for tenders where the total expenditure foreseen with regard to the contract exceeds 500 000 EUR, excluding VAT, shall be published on the website of the Organisation.

8.       The Tenders Board may also accede to a request under paragraph 3 for having recourse to competitive dialogue.

9.       The Tenders Board may make recommendations on the specification and the deadline (see also Article 10, paragraph 3).

Article 10 – Open Call for Tenders / Invitation to Tender

1.       According to the decision of the Tenders Board, an open call for tenders may be published by the buyer administrative entity, on the website of the Organisation and/or in newspapers or periodicals; notification of the tender may also be sent to member States’ permanent representations. It may be summary in nature, simply inviting potential suppliers to obtain the complete tender-file with the specification, general exclusion criteria and general conditions of purchase, before a certain date. It shall nevertheless contain a brief description of the goods and/or services and/or works to be procured, the date(s) of delivery and the deadline for submitting the bid.   

2.       Alternatively or in addition - depending on the decision of the Tenders Board - the buyer administrative entity shall issue invitations to tender to all potential suppliers included in the Tenders Board’s list established under Article 9, paragraph 7. The invitations may be issued on paper form or electronically, on the understanding that the same medium shall be used for all potential suppliers. The invitations to tender shall include the complete tender file with the specification, the general exclusion criteria, the general conditions of purchase and the deadline for submitting a bid.

3.       In both cases, the deadline for submitting the bids shall reflect the complexity of the file.

4.       In both cases, it shall be specified, in accordance with Article 14, paragraph 5, that, pursuant to an award, unsuccessful bidders shall be informed in writing by the buyer administrative entity.

5.       In both cases, a Secretariat member shall be designated by the Commitments Officer^[7] from whom potential suppliers may request, in writing, supplementary information. In the case of an open call for tenders published in summary form, a Secretariat member – the same as above or another - shall be designated for providing the complete file to potential suppliers.

6.       When a decision to have recourse to competitive dialogue has been taken, the specification shall be accompanied by the clause in Appendix III.

Article 11 – Submission

1.       Whenever potential suppliers request, during the submission period, supplementary information in writing from the Secretariat member designated for these purposes, the latter shall transmit the information provided to all potential suppliers simultaneously, together with the content of the request.

2.       In the case of an open call for tenders, the supplementary information shall be published in the same manner as the call for tenders.

3.       Bidders shall send their offers under sealed cover to the Secretary of the Tenders Board. They may, in addition, send their offers by e-mail to the Secretary of the Tenders Board.

4.       Bids submitted after the deadline shall automatically be excluded from the procedure, unless the bidder proves that his/her bid could not be submitted in time because of force majeure. The Tenders Board shall decide whether there has been a situation of force majeure or not.

5.       In addition, bids submitted directly to the buyer administrative entity shall be excluded from the procedure.

6.       In the case of an invitation to tender, bids received from potential suppliers not on the Tenders Board’s list shall be excluded from the procedure, unless the Tenders Board, on the buyer administrative entity’s proposal, decides otherwise.

Article 12 – Opening of Bids

1.       Bids may only be opened after the submission deadline. They shall be opened by authorised Secretariat members of the buyer administrative entity. The opening of bids shall be supervised by a Secretariat member of the Directorate of Internal Oversight. Price proposals shall be recorded. The records shall be signed by those present.

2.       The bids shall then be handed over to the buyer administrative entity for analysis.

Article 13 – Analysis of Bids

1.       Authorised Secretariat members of the buyer administrative entity shall analyse the bids against the exclusion, eligibility and award criteria.

2.       A summary report shall be drawn up, with a comparative table of prices and other relevant elements. It shall be submitted to the Tenders Board together with a recommendation as to which supplier should be awarded the contract. The recommendation shall contain reasons.

3.       The summary report and recommendation shall be sent to the Secretary of the Tenders Board by e-mail at least three working days before the Tenders Board meeting. Complex files comprising a large number of documents shall be sent at least five working days before the meeting of the Tenders Board. The Secretary of the Tenders Board shall decide whether a file is considered complex or not.

Article 14 - Award

1.       The Tenders Board, in accordance with the Rule on its terms of reference, shall scrutinise the analysis of the bids and the proposal of the buyer administrative entity received and shall decide which bid should be chosen on the basis of the exclusion, eligibility and award criteria.

2.       If the international public call for tenders has elicited no offers or failed to produce acceptable prices or if no offer meets the minimum required standards, the Tenders Board may decide that the purchase shall not be effected or that the buyer administrative entity should be authorised to negotiate directly with a potential supplier or that a new international competitive-tender procedure should be launched.

3.       The results of the tender procedure shall not be published, unless the Tenders Board decides otherwise.

4.       The buyer administrative entity shall inform the successful bidder of the award in writing.

5.       Unsuccessful bidders shall be informed in writing by the buyer administrative entity after the contract has been awarded. Their ranking and the reasons for the award may be disclosed on request.

Article 15 – Competitive Dialogue

1.       Having recourse to competitive dialogue shall only be possible when the buyer administrative entity has requested it under Article 9, paragraph 3.

2.       When the Tenders Board, pursuant to Article 9, paragraph 8, has acceded to a request for having recourse to competitive dialogue, the following paragraphs shall apply.

3.       The call/invitation for tenders, submission and opening of bids shall be governed by Articles 10 to 12.

4.       After a first analysis of bids against the exclusion, eligibility and award criteria by authorised Secretariat members of the buyer administrative entity, the buyer administrative entity shall present the results to the Tenders Board and request its authorisation to enter into talks with those bidders that have submitted the offers closest to the specification.

5.       A Secretariat member of the Directorate of Internal Oversight may take part in the negotiations in an observer capacity to ensure the equality of treatment of bidders, that the outcome of the talks will not lead to a significant deviation from the specification and the confidentiality of information submitted by the bidders. Talks shall be documented in full.

6.       Following the talks, the bidders shall be invited to submit their final bids. Submission and opening of bids shall be governed by Article 11, paragraphs 3 to 5 and Article 12.

7.       The analysis of the final bids and award shall be governed by Articles 13 and 14. Buyer administrative entities may, with the authorisation of the Tenders Board, ask for the final bids to be clarified. However, these clarifications cannot change the principal features of the final bids. This phase of the procedure shall be again documented in full.

Article 16 – Publication in the Official Journal of the European Union

Nothing in this Rule shall be interpreted as excluding the publication of a tender in the Official Journal of the European Union.

Part IV – Other Procedures

Article 17 – Restricted-Consultation Procedure

1.       A contract can be awarded without an international public call for tenders only where its real total cost does not exceed 55 000 EUR, excluding VAT, or any amount fixed by the Secretary General under Article 40, paragraph 4, of the Financial Regulations.

2.       Where the total expenditure foreseen with regard to the contract is between 2 000 EUR and 25 000 EUR, excluding VAT, the buyer administrative entity shall take care to obtain the best terms by consulting at least three potential suppliers, when possible. It shall keep written records that it has done so. Where it proves impossible to consult at least three suppliers, the reasons shall be recorded.

3.       Where the total expenditure foreseen with regard to the contract is between 25 000 EUR and 55 000 EUR, excluding VAT, a restricted-consultation procedure shall be performed as follows:

a.       The buyer administrative entity shall issue invitations to tender to at least three potential suppliers, when possible. Where it proves impossible to consult at least three suppliers, the reasons shall be recorded.

b.       The invitations may be issued on paper form or electronically, on the    understanding that the same medium shall be used for all potential suppliers. The invitations to tender shall include the complete tender file with the specification, the exclusion criteria, the general conditions of purchase and the deadline for submitting a bid.

c.       The deadline for submitting the bids shall reflect the complexity of the file.

d.       A Secretariat member shall be designated from whom potential suppliers may request, in writing, supplementary information.

e.       Bidders shall send their offers to a designated Secretariat member.

f.       The buyer administrative entity shall be responsible for opening the bids. Bids may only be opened after the submission date. They shall be opened by at least two authorised Secretariat members of the buyer administrative entity. Price         proposals shall be recorded. The records shall be signed by those present.

g.       The authorised Secretariat members of the buyer administrative entity shall analyse the bids against the exclusion, eligibility and award criteria. A summary report shall be drawn up, with a comparative table of prices and other relevant elements. It shall be submitted to the Commitments Officer together with a recommendation as to which supplier should be awarded the contract. The recommendation shall contain reasons. The Commitments Officer shall decide which bid should be accepted.

h.       The buyer administrative entity shall inform the successful bidder as well as unsuccessful bidders of the award in writing. Their ranking and the reasons for the award may be disclosed on request.

Article 18 – Direct-Negotiation Procedure

1.       In addition to the cases under Article 14, paragraph 2, and Article 17, paragraphs 2 and 3, contracts can be awarded directly:

a.       where, in the opinion of the Tenders Board for unforeseen reasons of urgency not attributable to the buyer administrative entity, the international public call for tenders cannot be followed or technical imperatives or considerations of fact or law require that a particular supplier be chosen;

b.       where they deal with the acquisition of intellectual services for an amount less than 5 000 EUR, excluding VAT, when the basic criterion of choice is the technical expertise of the supplier;

c.       where the expenditure concerns a purchase for an amount less than 2 000 EUR, excluding VAT.

2.       Whenever recourse is had to the direct-negotiation procedure in accordance with paragraph 1 above, the buyer administrative entity shall take care to obtain the best possible technical and financial terms.

3a.     The Commitments Officer shall designate a Secretariat member responsible for the procedure under paragraph 1a.

3b.     For the purposes of this procedure, the buyer administrative entity shall submit a memorandum, signed by the relevant Commitments Officer, to the Tenders Board, which shall contain the specification, the estimated total cost of the contract, an explanation of the unforeseen reasons of urgency or the technical imperatives or considerations of fact or law and the proposed supplier.

3c.      The Secretary of the Tenders Board shall allocate a serial number to the file, which shall serve as an identifier throughout the procedure. This number shall consist of:

-        four figures corresponding to the year when the file was first submitted,

-        the initials “ND” and

-        a number reflecting the order in which the file was received by the Tenders Board in the particular year.

3d.     On the basis of the memorandum, the Tenders Board shall decide whether the direct-negotiation procedure can be followed.

3e.     The contract shall be awarded by the Commitments Officer.

4.       In the case of the procedure under paragraph 1b, the Commitments Officer shall award the contract on the basis of a memorandum drafted by a designated Secretariat member.

Part V – Record Keeping

Article 19

1.       The buyer administrative entity shall establish a file in respect of each procurement procedure in which it shall store all documents mentioned in this Rule, the decision of the Commitments Officer designating the Secretariat members who shall carry out the tasks in Article 10, paragraph 5, Article 12, paragraph 1, Article 13, paragraph 1, Article 15, paragraph 4, Article 17, paragraph 3, indents d-g and Article 18, paragraphs 3a and 3b, the contract concluded at the end of the procurement procedure and the relevant invoice(s).

2.       Upon request the buyer administrative entity shall transmit to the Secretary of the Tenders Board an electronic version of each contract it has concluded further to a procurement procedure brought to the attention of the Board.

3.       The Secretary of the Tenders Board shall keep full records of the examination of each file submitted to the Board and update the Board’s electronic database.

4.       The buyer administrative entity and the Secretary of the Tenders Board shall each keep their accounting records for a minimum of ten years. They shall each keep their other records for a minimum of five years.

Part VI - Final Provisions

Article 20 – Entry into Force

1.       This Rule replaces Rule No. 1312 of 6 May 2010 on the procurement procedures of the Council of Europe. It shall enter into force on the day of its signature by the Secretary General .

2.       It shall apply to procurement procedures launched after its entry into force.

Strasbourg, 29 June 2011

The Secretary General

Thorbjørn JAGLAND

Appendix I to Rule No. 1333 – General exclusion criteria

“Potential suppliers or bidders shall be excluded from participating in the tender procedure where they:

a.       have been sentenced by final judgment on one or more of the following charges: participation in a criminal organisation, corruption, fraud, money laundering;

b.       are in a situation of bankruptcy, liquidation, termination of activity, insolvency or arrangement with creditors or any like situation arising from a procedure of the same kind, or are subject to a procedure of the same kind;

c.       have received a judgment with res judicata force, finding an offence that affects their professional integrity or serious professional misconduct;

d.       do not comply with their obligations as regards payment of social security contributions, taxes and dues, according to the statutory provisions of their country of incorporation;

All bidders shall deliver, when submitting their tender, a declaration on their honour certifying that they are not in any of the above-mentioned situations.

The Council of Europe reserves the right to ask successful bidders to supply the following supporting documents:

a.       for the items in a), b) and c), produce an extract from the record of convictions or failing that an equivalent document issued by the competent judicial or administrative authority of the country of incorporation, indicating that these requirements are met;

b.       for the items in d), a certificate issued by the competent authority of the country of incorporation.”

Appendix II to Rule No. 1333 - General Purchasing Conditions of the Council of Europe[8]

Preamble

Application of the General Purchasing Conditions

The provisions of these General Purchasing Conditions shall apply to all contracts for the supply of goods, services or works, as well as framework agreements and partnership agreements entered into by the Council of Europe. They may, however, be supplemented or modified by special conditions accepted in writing by both parties.

Precedence clause

Any general purchasing terms and conditions of the supplier shall never prevail over these General Purchasing conditions. Any provision proffered by the supplier in its documents (general purchasing conditions or correspondence) conflicting with the clauses of these General Purchasing Conditions shall be deemed void, except for the suppliers’ general conditions which are more favourable to the Council.

Definitions

For the purposes of these General Purchasing Conditions:

a. "contract" shall mean the present General Purchasing Conditions and the order, contract or agreement to which they are appended, the two documents together forming the contract;

b. "Council" shall mean the Council of Europe;

c. "supplier" shall mean the person or legal entity executing works and/or supplying the goods and/or providing services to the Council of Europe under the contract or the partner under the partnership agreement. .

1.         Loyalty of the supplier

In the performance of the present contract, the supplier will not seek or accept instructions from any government or any authority external to the Council. The supplier undertakes to comply with the Council’s directives for the completion of the work, to observe absolute discretion regarding all service matters and to refrain from any word or act that may be construed as committing the Council.

2.         Confidentiality

The supplier shall observe the utmost discretion in all matters concerning the contract, and particularly any service matters or data that have been or are to be recorded that come to the supplier's attention in the performance of the contract. Unless obliged to do so under the terms of the contract, or expressly authorised to do so by the Secretary General of the Council of Europe, the supplier shall refrain at all times from communicating to any person, legal entity, government or authority external to the Council any information which has not been made public and which has come to the supplier's notice as a result of dealings with the Council. Nor shall the supplier seek to gain private benefit from such information. Neither the expiry of the contract nor its termination by the Council shall lift these obligations.

3.         Disclosure of the terms of the contract

a.       The supplier is informed and gives an authorisation of disclosure of all relevant terms of the contract, including identity, for the sole purposes of internal and external audit and to the Committee of Ministers and to the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council with a view to these latter discharging their statutory functions.

b.       Whenever appropriate, specific confidentiality measures shall be taken by the Council to preserve the vital interests of the supplier.

4.         Use of the Council of Europe's name

The supplier shall not use the Council's name, flag or logo without prior authorisation of the Secretary General of the Council of Europe.

5.         Fiscal obligations of the supplier

The supplier undertakes to observe any applicable law and to comply with his/her fiscal obligations in conformity with the legislation of the supplier's country of fiscal residence.

6.         Price

The price shall be stated in euros and without tax.

7.         Amendments

The provisions of the contract cannot be modified without the written agreement of both parties.

8.         Transfer of contract

The contract may not be transferred, in full or in part, for money or free of charge, without the Council's prior authorisation in writing. 

9.         Case of force majeure

1.       In the event of a force majeure, the parties shall be released from the application of this contract without any financial compensation. Force majeure is defined as including the following: major weather problems, earthquake, strikes affecting air travel, attacks, a state of war, health risks or events that would require the Council to cancel the contract.

2.       In the event of such circumstances each party shall be required to notify the other party accordingly in writing, within a period of 5 days.

10.      Disputes

In accordance with the provisions of Article 21 of the General Agreement on privileges and immunities of the Council of Europe, all disputes between the Council and the supplier as regards the application of this contract shall be submitted, if a mutual agreement cannot be reached between the parties, to arbitration as laid down in Rule No 481 of the Secretary General (attached).

Rule No. 481 of 27 February 1976 laying down the arbitration procedure for disputes between the Council and private persons concerning goods provided, services rendered or purchases of immovable property on behalf of the Council

The Secretary General of the Council of Europe,

Having regard to the Statute of the Council of Europe, of 5 May 1949, and in particular its Articles 11 and 40,

Having regard to the General Agreement on Privileges and Immunities of the Council of Europe signed on 2 September 1949, and in particular its Articles 1, 3, 4 and 21, as well as the Special Agreement relating to the seat of the Council of Europe signed on 2 September 1949,

Considering that it is appropriate to determine the arbitration procedures for any disputes between the Council and private persons regarding supplies furnished, services rendered or immovable property purchased on behalf of the Council,

Having regard to the decision of the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe at the 253rd meeting of the Deputies,

DECIDES:

Article 1

Any dispute relating to the execution or application of a contract covered by Article 21 of the General Agreement on Privileges and Immunities of the Council of Europe shall be submitted, failing a friendly settlement between the parties, for decision to an Arbitration Board composed of two arbitrators each selected by one of the parties, and of a presiding arbitrator, appointed by the other two arbitrators; in the event of no presiding arbitrator being appointed under the above conditions within a period of six months, the President of the Tribunal de Grande Instance of Strasbourg shall make the appointment.

Article 2

However, the parties may submit the dispute for decision to a single arbitrator selected by them by common agreement or, failing such agreement, by the President of the Tribunal de Grande Instance of Strasbourg.

Article 3

The Board referred to in Article 1 or, where appropriate, the arbitrator referred to in Article 2 shall determine the procedure to be followed.

Article 4

If the parties do not agree upon the law applicable the Board or, where appropriate, the arbitrator shall decide ex aequo et bono having regard to the general principles of law and to commercial usage.

Article 5

The arbitral decision shall be binding upon the parties and there shall be no appeal from it.

Strasbourg, 27 February 1976

Georg KAHN‑ACKERMANN

Secretary General

Appendix III to Rule No. 1333 – Clause to be added for competitive dialogue

“Having regard to the complexity of the contract, and upon the recommendation of the Tenders Board, the Council of Europe will make a selection from among the [XX] bidders who have best responded to the call for tenders according to the analytical criteria set out in the specification, in order to discuss all points of the contract and settle methods such as will best fulfil their needs. The dialogue may be conducted under the supervision of Internal Oversight which will take care that the outcome of the talks will not lead to a significant deviation from the specification, and ensure equal treatment of all bidders and observance of the confidentiality of the information transmitted by each potential supplier.

At the conclusion of the dialogue, and on the basis of the solutions put forward during it, participants will be invited to submit their final bids. These shall comprise all the required elements necessary for carrying out the project. At the request of the Council of Europe, the bids may be clarified, but the clarifications may not have the effect of changing the fundamental features of the bids.

Bids received shall be analysed against the award criteria laid down in the specification.”