Considering the current circumstances, and in order to ensure adequate application of the Public Procurement Law and implementation of procedures prescribed by the Law, and due to the obligation to respect the principles of public procurement and the intention to ensure competition and transparency in the procedures, the Ministry of Finance informs participants in public procurement procedures about the following:

• Contracting authorities and bidders are obliged to strictly comply with the interim measures and recommendations of the National Coordination Team for Contagious Diseases (NCT) (http://www.gov.me/naslovna/mjere_i_preporuke/), as well as the decisions adopted by the Government of Montenegro;
• Regarding a number of doubts in the current circumstances and difficulties we are facing, we instruct participants in public procurement procedures (contracting authorities and bidders) to comply with the measures and recommendations of the NCT in the implementation of procedures related to the public bid opening procedure, and in this sense we emphasize the following:
• The provisions of Article 98, paragraph 2 of the Public Procurement Law prescribe the possibility, and not the obligation, of the presence of authorized representatives of bidders to the public opening of bids. The same article of the Law defines that a copy of the minutes, after they are signed, is delivered to all present authorized representatives of bidders, while the contracting authority is obliged to submit the minutes to the bidders who did not attend the public opening of bids no later than three days after the public opening of bids. The above is confirmed in Form 10 (Minutes on Public Opening of Bids/Applications), which is an integral part of the Rulebook on Forms in Public Procurement Procedures (Official Gazette of Montenegro, 48/17). The form of the minutes on the public opening of bids prescribes the obligation to state the data on the authorized representatives of the bidders who attend the public opening of bids, as well as to state the data on those who are not present thereon.
• In case there is an interest of authorized representatives of bidders to attend the public opening of bids, it is necessary, if possible, to ensure conditions in accordance with the measures and recommendations of the NCT, or if there are necessary technical conditions, to organize access to public opening of bids by using technologies for holding remote meetings (video conferencing via available applications).
• We hereby note that, during the duration of the interim measures and recommendations of the NCT, the presence of all members of the Commission for Opening and Evaluation of Bids is not obligatory. In the mentioned case, it is only necessary to state the reasons for the justified absence of the member of the Commission who is not present at the public opening of bids.

Contracting authorities in public procurement procedures are obliged, in accordance with the assessment of the current situation, to determine the possibilities of realization of the initiated public procurement procedures in accordance with the provisions of the Law.

The provisions of Article 55 of the Public Procurement Law prescribe the possibility of amending and/or supplementing the tender documentation, and the contracting authority, if it deems it necessary and taking into account the requirements of potential bidders, may extend the deadline for submission of bids and postpone public opening of bids. The above is due to the difficult circumstances for bids preparation and providing the necessary documentation in accordance with the Law.

Also, we note that in case the contracting authoritiy suspends the initiated public procurement procedure, it is obliged to respect the provisions of Article 105 of the Public Procurement Law.

We are at your disposal for additional questions.

Contact:

Gorana Mrvaljević, Head of the Department, e-mail: gorana.mrvaljevic@mif.gov.me,

Phone: 069/459-483;

Farisa Kurpejović, Head of the Department, e-mail: farisa.kurpejovic@mif.gov.me,

Phone: 069/180-226;

With respect,

Directorate for Public Procurement Policy