Research Institute of
Wildlife Ecology
University of Veterinary Medicine Vienna
Univ. Prof. Dr. Chris Walzer
Savoyenstrasse 1
A-1160 Wien
Telephone: +43 1 4890915 - 104
Fax: +43 1 4890915 - 333
E-mail: fiwi@vetmeduni.ac.at
https://www.vu-wien.ac.at/fiwi/
Wien
Vienna, 27 July 2012
Subject:
Ref. no. 22-4-3-AT/Project no. FA28012100
Invitation to tender for transnational project management services for
Alpine region project “recharge.green - Reconciling Renewable
Energy Production and Nature in the Alps”
The Research Institute of Wildlife Ecology of the University of Veterinary Medicine, Vienna
is lead partner of a recently approved EU-financed (under the Alpine Space Programme European Territorial Cooperation 2007 – 2013) multi-country project no. FA28012100
“recharge.green - Reconciling Renewable Energy Production and Nature in the
Alps”, which is scheduled to start in October 2012 and end in June 2015. The project will
be implemented collaboratively by 15 partner institutions from the six Alpine countries.
The complete tender dossier is attached. It includes:
A.
Instructions to tenderers and procurement notice
B.
Draft Contract Agreement and Special Conditions with annexes:
I.
General Conditions for service contracts
II. Terms of Reference
III. Organisation and Methodology (To be submitted by the tenderer according to
the template provided)
IV. Key experts (including templates for the summary list of key experts and their
CVs)
V. Budget: breakdown (To be submitted by the tenderer as the Financial offer
using the template provided)
January 2012
Document1
VI. Forms and other relevant documents
VII. Expenditure verification: Terms of Reference and Report of Factual Findings
C.
Other information:
I.
Administrative compliance grid
II. Evaluation grid
D.
Tender submission form
For full details of the tendering procedures, please refer to the Practical Guide to
contract procedures for EC external actions and its annexes, which may be
downloaded from the following Web site:
http://ec.europa.eu/europeaid/work/procedures/implementation/services/index_en.htm .
We look forward to receiving your tender before the deadline specified in point 8 of the
Instructions to tenderers (i.e. no later than 30 August 2012) to the address above,
Attention: Mrs. Karin Svadlenak-Gomez, MSc. If you decide not to submit a tender, we
would be grateful if you could inform us in writing, indicating the reasons for your decision.
Page 2
TENDER DOSSIER
A. Instructions to tenderers and procurement notice
PUBLICATION REFERENCE: Ref. no. 22-4-3-AT/Project no. FA28012100
Invitation to tender for transnational project
management services for Alpine region project
“recharge.green - Reconciling Renewable Energy
Production and Nature in the Alps”
In submitting their tenders, tenderers must respect all instructions, forms, Terms of
reference, contract provisions and specifications contained in this tender dossier.
Failure to submit a tender containing all the required information and
documentation within the deadline specified may lead to the rejection of the tender.
These Instructions set out the rules for the submission, selection and
implementation of contracts financed under this call for tenders, in conformity with
the provisions of the Practical Guide to contract procedures for EU external
actions, which is applicable to the present call (available on the Internet at this
address: http://ec.europa.eu/europeaid/work/procedures/index_en.htm).
1.
Services to be provided
The services required by the Contracting Authority are described in the Terms of
Reference. These are contained in Annex II of the draft contract, which forms Part B of
this tender dossier.
2.
Timetable
DATE
Site visit (if any)
Not applicable
Information meeting (if any)
Not applicable
Deadline for request for any clarifications
from the Contracting Authority
9 August
2012
Last date on which clarifications are issued by
the Contracting Authority
19 August
2012
Deadline for submission of tenders
30 August
2012
Interviews (if any)
Not applicable
Completion date for evaluation of offers
13 September
2012
Notification of award
14 September
2012
Contract signature
1 October
Page 3
2012 
Commencement date

2 October
2012 
Provisional date
3.
a)
Participation and sub-contracting
Eligibility and candidature
Participation is open to all legal persons which are established in a Member State of
the European Union or in a country or territory of the regions covered and/or
authorised by the specific instruments applicable to the programme under which the
contract is financed. Participation is also open to international organisations. The
participation of natural persons is governed by the specific instruments applicable to
the programme under which the contract is financed. All eligible natural and legal
persons or groupings of such persons (consortia) may apply. A consortium may be
a permanent, legally-established grouping or a grouping which has been constituted
informally for a specific tender procedure. All members of a consortium (ie, the
leader and all other members) are jointly and severally liable to the Contracting
Authority. The participation of an ineligible natural or legal person will result in the
automatic exclusion of that person. In particular, if that ineligible person belongs to a
consortium, the whole consortium will be excluded.
b) Number of applications
No more than one application can be submitted by a natural or legal person
whatever the form of participation (as an individual legal entity or as leader or
member of a consortium submitting an application). In the event that a natural or
legal person submits more than one application, all applications in which that person
has participated will be excluded.
c) Grounds for exclusion
As part of the application form, candidates must submit a signed declaration,
included in the standard application form, to the effect that they are not in any of the
exclusion situations listed in Section 2.3.3 of the Practical Guide to contract
procedures for EU external actions.
d) Subcontracting
Sub-contracting is not allowed. For this purpose individual experts recruited for the
project as key or non key experts are not regarded as subcontractors.
4.
Content of tenders
The offers, all correspondence and documents related to the tender exchanged by the
tenderer and the Contracting Authority must be written in English.
Supporting documents and printed literature furnished by the tenderer may be in another
language, provided they are accompanied by a translation into the language of the
procedure. For the purposes of interpretation of the tender, the language of the procedure
will prevail.
The tender must comprise of a Technical offer and a Financial offer and these must be
submitted in separate envelopes (see clause 8). Each Technical offer and Financial offer
Page 4
must contain one original, clearly marked "Original". Failure to respect the requirements
in clauses 4.1, 4.2 and 8 will constitute a formal error and may result in the rejection of the
tender.
4.1
Technical offer
The Technical offer must include the following documents:
(1)
Tender submission form (see Part D of this tender dossier) including:
a) Signed statements of exclusivity and availability (using the template included with
the tender submission form), one for each key expert, the purpose of which are
as follows:

The key experts proposed in this tender must not be part of any other tender
being submitted for this tender procedure. They must therefore engage
themselves exclusively to the tenderer.

Each key expert must also undertake to be available, able and willing to work
for all the period foreseen for his/her input during the implementation of the
tasks as indicated in the Terms of reference and/or in the Organisation and
methodology.
Note that non-key experts must not be asked to sign statements of exclusivity
and availability.
Any expert who is engaged in an EU/EDF-financed project, where the input from
his/her position in that contract could be required on the same dates as his/her
activities under this contract must not be proposed as a key expert for this
contract under any circumstances. Consequently, the dates included by a key
expert in his/her statement of exclusivity and availability in your tender must not
overlap with dates on which he/she is committed to work as key expert on any
other contract.
The expert may participate in parallel tender procedures but must inform the
Contracting Authority of these in the Statement of Exclusivity and Availability.
Furthermore the expert is expected to notify the tenderer immediately if he/she
will be successful in another tender procedure and he/she is expected to accept
the first engagement which is offered to him/her chronologically.
If a key expert has been proposed as key expert by more than one tenderer with
the agreement of the key expert, the corresponding tenders may be rejected. The
same applies if the key expert proposed has been involved in the preparation of
the project. The expert concerned will be excluded from this tender procedure
and may also be subject to exclusion from other EU/EDF- financed contracts.
Having selected a firm partly on the basis of an evaluation of the key experts
presented in the tender, the Contracting Authority expects the contract to be
executed by these specific experts. However, after the notification of award, the
selected tenderer may propose replacements for the key experts under certain
conditions (for further information see point 14)
The contract between the tenderer/consultant and its key experts shall contain a
provision that it is subject to the approval of the beneficiary country.
b) A signed declaration from each legal entity identified in the tender submission
form, using the format attached to the tender submission form
c) A completed Financial Identification form (see Annex VI of the draft contract)
to nominate the bank account into which payments would be made in the event
that the tender is successful. (Where the tenderer has already signed another
Page 5
contract with the European Commission, it may provide instead of the financial
identification form either its financial identification form number or a copy of the
financial identification form provided on that occasion, unless a change occurred
in the meantime)
d) The legal entity file and the supporting documents (Where the tenderer has
already signed another contract with the European Commission, it may provide
instead of the legal entity file and its supporting documents either its legal entity
number or a copy of the legal entity file provided on that occasion, unless a
change in its legal status occurred in the meantime.)
e) Duly authorised signature: an official document (statutes, power of attorney,
notary statement, etc.) proving that the person who signs on behalf of the
company/joint venture/consortium is duly authorised to do so.
(2)
Organisation and methodology (will become Annex III of the contract), to be
drawn up by the tenderer using the format in Annex III of the draft contract.
The 'Estimated number of working days' worksheet (in the budget breakdown
spreadsheet for Annex V) must be included in the Organisation and methodology.
(3)
Key experts (To become Annex IV of the contract). The key experts are those
whose involvement is considered to be instrumental in the achievement of the
contract objectives. Their positions and responsibilities are defined in the Section 6
of the Terms of reference in Annex II of the draft contract and they are subject to
evaluation according to the evaluation grid in Part C of this tender dossier.
Annex IV of the draft contract contains the templates which must be completed by
the tenderer, including:
a)
a list of the names of the key experts;
b)
the CVs of each of the key experts. Each CV must be confined to 3 pages and
only one CV should be provided for each position identified in the Terms of
Reference. Note that the CV's of non-key experts must not be submitted.
The qualifications and experience of each key expert must clearly match the profiles
indicated in the Terms of reference.
(4)
Tenderers must provide the following documents in the case of the key experts
proposed:
- a copy of the diplomas mentioned in their CVs,
- a copy of the employers' certificates or references proving the professional
experience indicated in their CVs.
Only diplomas and experience-periods with documented proofs will be taken into
account.
(5)
Documentary proof or statements required under the law of the country in which the
company (or each of the companies in case of a consortium) is established, to show
that it does not fall into any of the exclusion situations listed in section 2.3.3 of the
Practical Guide to contract procedures for EU external actions. This evidence or
these documents or statements must carry a date, which cannot be more than 1
year before the date of submission of the tender. In addition, a statement shall be
furnished stating that the situations described in these documents have not changed
since then.
Page 6
If the nature of your entity is such that it cannot fall into one or more of the exclusion
situations and/or cannot provide the documents indicated above (for instance,
national public administrations and international organisations), please provide a
declaration explaining this situation.
The contracting authority may waive the obligation of any candidate or tenderer to
submit the documentary evidence referred to above if such evidence has already
been submitted to it for the purposes of another procurement procedure and
provided that the issuing date of the documents does not exceed one year and that
they are still valid. In such a case, the candidate or tenderer shall declare on his/her
honour that the documentary evidence has already been provided in a previous
procurement procedure and confirm that no changes in his/her situation have
occurred.
(6)
Documentary evidence of the financial and economic capacity as well as the
technical and professional capacity according to the selection criteria specified in the
procurement notice. (see further point 2.4.11 of the Practical Guide).
If the documentary evidence submitted is not written in one of the official languages of the
European Union, a translation into the language of the procedure must be attached.
Where the documents are in an official language of the European Union other than the
one of the procedure or German, it is however strongly recommended to provide a
translation into the language of the procedure, in order to facilitate the evaluation of the
documents. The documentary proof or statements may be in original or copy. If copies are
submitted the originals must be dispatched to the Contracting Authority upon request.
Tenderers are reminded that the provision of false information in this tender procedure
may lead to their exclusion from EU-funded contracts.
After opening the original offers, the Contracting Authority may request digital copies of
the offers by email. Alternatively, tenderers may include the offers on a CD inside the offer
envelope. In case of any discrepancies between the electronic version and the original,
printed version, the latter will prevail.
4.2
Financial offer
The Financial offer must be presented in Euro and must include the following documents
(using the templates included in the fee-based version of Annex V of part B of this tender
dossier. The electronic version of this document "B8 - Budget breakdown for a fee-based
contract"
can
be
found
on
the
Web
site
http://ec.europa.eu/europeaid/work/procedures/index_en.htm ):

Budget breakdown

Working days
To complete the spreadsheet:
1)
Enter the fee rates for each category of expert in the first worksheet ('Budget
breakdown')
2)
Enter the estimated numbers of working days for each category of expert during the
period of implementation of the tasks in the second worksheet ('Working days')
3)
Enter the Provision for incidental expenditure given in Section 6.5 of the Terms of
Reference in the first worksheet ('Budget breakdown')
4)
Enter the Provision for expenditure verification given in Section 6.6 of the Terms of
Reference in the first worksheet (“Budget breakdown”)
The estimated budget for incidental expenditure and expenditure verification are to be prefilled in the template budget breakdown in the tender dossier.
Page 7
After opening the original offers, the Contracting Authority may request digital copies of
the offers by email. Alternatively, tenderers may include the offers on a CD inside the offer
envelope. In case of any discrepancies between the electronic version and the original,
printed version, the latter will prevail. Note that a schedule based on the 'Estimated
number of working days' worksheet within this spreadsheet must be included as part of
the Organisation and Methodology in the technical offer.
Tenderers are reminded that the maximum budget available for this contract, as stated in
the procurement notice, is EUR 180,000. Payments under this contract will be made in
Euro , as specified by the selected tenderer in its Tender submission form.
The applicable tax and customs arrangements are the following:
Exemption of taxes
There is no agreement between the European Commission and Austria by which taxes
are partially or fully exonerated.
Incidental expenditure
Incidental expenditure incurred by the Consultant and approved by the Contracting
Authority shall be reimbursed in full.
5.
Variant solutions
Tenderers are not authorised to tender for a variant in addition to the present tender.
6.
Period during which tenders are binding
Tenderers are bound by their tenders for 90 days after the deadline for the submission of
tenders or until they have been notified of non award. In exceptional cases, before the
period of validity expires, the Contracting Authority may ask tenderers to extend the period
for a specific number of days, which may not exceed 40.
The selected tenderer must maintain its tender for a further 60 days. The further period of
60 days is added to the validity period irrespective of the date of notification.
7.
Additional information before the deadline for submission of tenders
The tender dossier should be clear enough to avoid candidates invited to tender from
having to request additional information during the procedure. If the Contracting Authority,
either on its own initiative or in response to the request of a short-listed candidate,
provides additional information on the tender dossier, it must send such information in
writing to all other short-listed candidates at the same time.
Tenderers may submit questions in writing to the following address up to 21 days before
the deadline for submission of tenders, specifying the publication reference and the
contract title:
Karin Svadlenak-Gomez, MSc
Research Institute of Wildlife Ecology
Savoyenstr. 1, A-1160 Vienna, Austria
E-mail karin.svadlenak-gomez@vetmeduni.ac.at
The Contracting Authority has no obligation to provide clarifications after this date.
Page 8
Any prospective tenderers seeking to arrange individual meetings with the Contracting
Authority and/or the government of the beneficiary country and/or the European
Commission concerning this contract during the tender period may be excluded from the
tender procedure.
Any clarification of the tender dossier will be communicated simultaneously in writing to all
the tenderers at the latest 11 calendar days before the deadline for submission of tenders.
No information meeting is foreseen.
No site visit is foreseen.
Visits by individual prospective tenderers during the tender period cannot be organised.
8.
Submission of tenders
Tenders must be submitted such that they are received on or before 30 August 2012.
They must include the requested documents in clause 4 above and be submitted:

EITHER by recorded delivery (official postal service) to:
Research Institute of Wildlife Ecology
Attention: Ms. Karin Svadlenak-Gomez, MSc
Savoyenstr. 1
A-1160 Vienna, Austria

OR hand delivered (including courier services) directly to the Contracting Authority in
return for a signed and dated receipt to the same address above.
Tenders submitted by any other means will not be considered. Tenders must be
submitted using the double envelope system, i.e., in an outer parcel or envelope
containing two separate, sealed envelopes, one bearing the words "Envelope A Technical offer" and the other "Envelope B - Financial offer". All parts of the tender
other than the financial offer must be submitted in Envelope A (i.e., including the Tender
submission form, statements of exclusivity and availability of the key experts and
declarations). DO NOT INCLUDE FINANCIAL INFORMATION IN THE TECHNICAL
PROPOSAL.
Any infringement of these rules (eg, unsealed envelopes or references to price in
the technical offer) is to be considered a breach of the rules, and will lead to
rejection of the tender.
The outer envelope should carry the following information:
a) the address for submission of tenders indicated above;
b) the reference code of the tender procedure to which the tenderer is responding (ie,
Tender for transnational project management services for Alpine region project
“recharge.green - Reconciling Renewable Energy Production and Nature in the
Alps” );
c) the words "Not to be opened before the tender-opening session" and “Nicht vor
Angebotsöffnungssitzung öffnen”;
d) the name of the tenderer.
Page 9
The pages of the Technical and Financial offers must be numbered.
9.
Alteration or withdrawal of tenders
Tenderers may alter or withdraw their tenders by written notification prior to the deadline
for submission of tenders. No tender may be altered after this deadline.
Any such notification of alteration or withdrawal shall be prepared and submitted in
accordance with Clause 8. The outer envelope (and the relevant inner envelope) must be
marked 'Alteration' or 'Withdrawal' as appropriate.
10. Costs for preparing tenders
No costs incurred by the tenderer in preparing and submitting the tender shall be
reimbursable. All such costs shall be borne by the tenderer. In particular, if proposed
experts were interviewed, all cost shall be borne by the tenderer.
11. Ownership of tenders
The Contracting Authority retains ownership of all tenders received under this tendering
procedure. Consequently, tenderers have no right to have their tenders returned to them.
12. Evaluation of tenders
12.1 Evaluation of technical offers
The quality of each technical offer will be evaluated in accordance with the award criteria
and the associated weighting as detailed in the evaluation grid in Part C of this tender
dossier. No other award criteria will be used. The award criteria will be examined in
accordance with the requirements as indicated in the Terms of Reference.
The evaluation of the technical offers will follow the procedures set out in Section 3.3.10 of
the Practical Guide to contract procedures for EU external actions (available from the
Internet at http://ec.europa.eu/europeaid/work/procedures/index_en.htm ).
For Selection and Award Criteria see REQUIREMENTS – PERSONNEL in the Terms of
Reference.
12.1.1 Interviews
No interviews are foreseen.
12.2 Evaluation of financial offers
Upon completion of the technical evaluation, the envelopes containing the financial offers
for tenders which were not eliminated during the technical evaluation will be opened (ie,
those which have achieved an average score of 80 points or more). Tenders exceeding
the maximum budget available for the contract will be eliminated.
The provision for incidental expenditure and the provision for expenditure verification
stated in the Terms of reference and to be included in the budget breakdown will not be
taken into account in the comparison of the financial offers.
Any arithmetical errors are corrected without penalty to the tenderer such that, where
there is a discrepancy between a fee rate and the total amount derived from the
multiplication of the fee rate by the corresponding number of working days, the fee rate as
quoted shall prevail, unless in the opinion of the Evaluation Committee there is an obvious
error in the fee rate, in which event the total amount as quoted shall prevail and the fee
rate shall be corrected.
Page 10
12.3 Choice of selected tenderer
The best value for money is established by weighing technical quality against price on an
80/20 basis.
12.4 Confidentiality
The entire evaluation procedure is confidential, subject to the Contracting Authority’s
legislation on access to documents. The Evaluation Committee's decisions are collective
and its deliberations are held in closed session. The members of the Evaluation
Committee are bound to secrecy. The evaluation reports and written records, in particular,
are for official use only and may be communicated neither to the tenderers nor to any
party other than the Contracting Authority, the European Commission, the European AntiFraud Office and the European Court of Auditors.
13. Ethics clauses / Corruptive practices
a)
Any attempt by a tenderer to obtain confidential information, enter into unlawful
agreements with competitors or influence the Evaluation Committee or the
Contracting Authority during the process of examining, clarifying, evaluating and
comparing tenders will lead to the rejection of its tender and may result in
administrative penalties.
b)
The tenderer must not be affected by any conflict of interest and shall have no
equivalent relation in that respect with other tenderers or parties involved in the
project.
c)
The European Commission reserves the right to suspend or cancel project financing
if corrupt practices of any kind are discovered at any stage of the award process or
during the execution of a contract and if the Contracting Authority fails to take all
appropriate measures to remedy the situation. For the purposes of this provision,
"corrupt practices" are the offer of a bribe, gift, gratuity or commission to any person
as an inducement or reward for performing or refraining from any act relating to the
award of a contract or execution of a contract already concluded with the
Contracting Authority.
d)
Tenders will be rejected or contracts terminated if it emerges that the award or
execution of a contract has given rise to unusual commercial expenses. Such
unusual commercial expenses are commissions not mentioned in the main contract
or not stemming from a properly concluded contract referring to the main contract,
commissions not paid in return for any actual and legitimate service, commissions
remitted to a tax haven, commissions paid to a payee who is not clearly identified or
commissions paid to a company which has every appearance of being a front
company.
Contractors found to have paid unusual commercial expenses on projects funded by
the European Union are liable, depending on the seriousness of the facts observed,
to have their contracts terminated or to be permanently excluded from receiving EU
funds.
e)
The Contracting Authority reserves the right to suspend or cancel the procedure,
where the award procedure proves to have been subject to substantial errors,
irregularities or fraud. Where such substantial errors, irregularities or fraud are
discovered after the award of the Contract, the Contracting Authority may refrain
from concluding the Contract.
Page 11
14. Signature of contract(s)
14.1 Notification of award
The successful tenderer will be informed in writing that its tender has been accepted.
The successful tenderer shall then confirm availability or unavailability of their key-experts
within 5 days from the date of the notification of award.
In case of unavailability the tenderer will be allowed to propose replacement expert(s).
The successful tenderer shall give due justification for the exchange of expert but the
acceptance will not be limited to specific cases. Several replacement experts may be
proposed but only one time-period of 15 days from the date of the notification of award will
be offered.
The replacement expert's total score must be at least as high as the scores of the expert
proposed in the tender. It must be emphasised that the minimum requirements for each
evaluation criteria must be met by the replacement expert.
If replacement experts are not proposed within the 15 days delay or if the replacement
experts are not sufficiently qualified, or that the proposal of the replacement expert
amends the award conditions which took place, the Contracting Authority may decide to
award the contract to the second best technically compliant tenderer (also giving them a
chance to replace an expert should he/she not be available).
Should the Contracting Authority learn that a tenderer has confirmed the availability of a
key expert and signed the contract although the tenderer has deliberately concealed the
fact that the expert is unavailable from the date specified in the tender dossier for the start
of the assignment, the Contracting Authority may decide to terminate the contract on the
basis of article 36.3 (m) of the General Conditions.
It is reminded that the tenderer/contractor may also be subject to administrative and
financial penalties foreseen in section 2.3.4 of the PRAG and furthermore it may lead .to a
tenderer's /contractor's exclusion from other contracts funded by the European Union.
14.2 Signature of the contract(s)
Within 30 days of receipt of the contract already signed by the Contracting Authority, the
selected tenderer shall sign and date the contract and return it to the Contracting
Authority.
Failure of the selected tenderer to comply with this requirement may constitute grounds for
the annulment of the decision to award the contract. In such a case, the Contracting
Authority may award the tender to another tenderer or cancel the tender procedure.
The other tenderers will, at the same time as the notification of award is submitted, be
informed that their tenders were not accepted, by means of a standard letter, which
includes an indication of the relative weaknesses of their tender by way of a comparative
table of the scores for the winning tender and the ones for the unsuccessful tender. The
second best tenderer is informed of the notification of award to the successful tenderer
with the reservation of the right to send a notification of award to the second best tenderer
in case of inability to sign the contract with the first ranked tenderer. The validity of the
offer of the second best tenderer will be kept.
The Contracting Authority will furthermore, at the same time, also inform the remaining
unsuccessful tenderers and the consequence of these letters will be that the validity of
their offers must not be retained.
The corresponding contract award notice will be published on the Web site
https://webgate.ec.europa.eu/europeaid/online-services/index.cfm?do=publi.welcome.
Page 12
15. Cancellation of the tender procedure
In the event of cancellation of the tender procedure, tenderers will be notified of the
cancellation by the Contracting Authority. If the tender procedure is cancelled before the
outer envelope of any tender has been opened, the unopened and sealed envelopes will
be returned to the tenderers.
Cancellation may occur where:

the tender procedure has been unsuccessful, i.e, no qualitatively or financially
worthwhile tender has been received or there is no valid response at all;

the economic or technical data of the project have been fundamentally altered;

exceptional circumstances or force majeure render normal performance of the contract
impossible;

all technically compliant tenders exceed the financial resources available;

there have been irregularities in the procedure, in particular where these have
prevented fair competition;

the award is not in compliance with sound financial management, i.e. does not
respect the principles of economy, efficiency and effectiveness (e.g. the price
proposed by the tenderer to whom the contract is to be awarded is objectively
disproportionate with regard to the price of the market).
In no event shall the Contracting Authority be liable for any damages whatsoever
including, without limitation, damages for loss of profits, in any way connected with the
cancellation of a tender procedure even if the Contracting Authority has been advised of
the possibility of damages. The publication of a procurement notice does not commit the
Contracting Authority to implement the programme or project announced.
16. Appeals
Tenderers believing that they have been harmed by an error or irregularity during the
award process may file a complaint. See further section 2.4.15 of the Practical Guide.
Page 13
B. Draft Contract Agreement and Special Conditions with annexes
SERVICE CONTRACT NO <Contract number>
FOR
EUROPEAN UNION EXTERNAL ACTIONS
(FINANCED BY THE ERDF – ALPINE SPACE PROGRAMME)
University of Veterinary Medicine, Vienna
Research Institute of Wildlife Ecology
Savoyenstr. 1
A-1160 Vienna
Austria
(“the Contracting Authority”),
of the one part,
and
<Full official Name of the Consultant>
1
<Legal status/title>
2
<Official registration number>
<Full official address>
3
<VAT number> , (“the Consultant”)
of the other part,
have agreed as follows:
Special Conditions
Subject
The subject of this Contract is transnational project management services for Alpine
region project “recharge.green - Reconciling Renewable Energy Production and
Nature in the Alps” done at the Consultant´s home base and as needed in various
countries of the Alpine region (Austria, France, Germany, Italy, Liechstenstein, Slovenia,
Switzerland) where partner institutions are based, with identification number Ref. 22-4-3AT/Project no. FA28012100 (“the services”).
Structure of the contract
The Consultant will carry out the services on the terms and conditions set out in this
contract, which comprises, in order of precedence, these special conditions ("Special
Conditions") and the following annexes:
1
2
3
Where the contracting party is an individual.
Where applicable. For individuals, mention their ID card or passport or equivalent document - number
Except where the contracting party is not VAT registered.
Page 14
Annex I:
General Conditions for service contracts financed by the European Union
Annex II:
Terms of reference
Annex III: Organisation and methodology [including any clarifications from the tenderer
provided during tender evaluation]
Annex IV: Key experts
Annex V:
Budget breakdown
Annex VI: Forms and other relevant documents
Annex VII: Report of factual findings and terms of reference for an expenditure verification
In case of any contradiction between the above documents, their provisions shall be
applied according to the above order of precedence.
Contract value
This contract, established in euro, is a fee-based contract. Based on the maximum fees,
incidental expenditure and expenditure verification provision defined in Annex V, the
maximum contract value is EUR <amount>.
Commencement date
The date for commencing implementation shall be in October 2012
determined by an administrative order issued by the Project Manager.
and shall be
Period of implementation
The period of implementation of the tasks identified in Annexes II & III is 32 months from
the Commencement date.
Reporting
The Consultant shall submit progress reports as specified in the Terms of reference.
Payments and bank account
7.1
Payments will be made in EUR in accordance with Article 29 of the General
Conditions into the bank account notified by the Consultant to the Contracting
Authority in accordance with Articles 7.8 and 20.7 of the General Conditions.
7.2
The payments will be made according to the following schedule, subject to the
provisions of Articles 26 to 33 of the General Conditions:
Month
<EUR/***>
Page 15
1
Pre-financing payment
4
<amount>
x %5
[6monthly]
If applicable: [Interim payments]
[<amount
(balance of
prefinancing
payment
and forecast
balance)>]
<Month
number>
Forecast balance
<60 if
interim
payments
are not
made,
otherwise
10>% of the
maximum
contract
value
<maximum
contract
value>
Total
The actual amounts payable after the pre-financing payment will vary. They must be
based on the consultant’s invoice accompanied by an interim progress report and an
expenditure verification report subject to approval of those reports in accordance with
Article 27 in the General Conditions.
The interim invoices must be paid such that the sum of the payments does not exceed
90% of the maximum contract value stated in Article 3 of the Special Conditions. The
payment of the balance of the final value of the contract, subject to the maximum contract
value stated in Article 3, is made after deduction of the amounts already paid, within 45
days of the Contracting Authority receiving an invoice accompanied by the final progress
report and a final expenditure verification report, and the incidental expenditure and
provision for expenditure verification actually incurred during the period, subject to
approval of those reports.
7.3. Payment and interest on late payment
By derogation from Article 29.3 of the General Conditions, once the deadline referred to
above has expired, the Consultant shall upon demand, submitted within two months of
4
The consultant is not obliged to ask for pre-financing.
5
Maximum of 40 % of the total contract amount if the implementation period of the contract is 12
months or less, 30 % of the total contract amount if the implementation period is between 12 and
24 months, and 20 % of the total contract amount if the implementation period is 24 months or
more
Page 16
receiving late payment., be entitled to late-payment interest in accordance with article
29.3.]
Contact addresses
Any written communication relating to this Contract between the Contracting Authority and
the Consultant must state the Contract title and identification number, and must be sent by
post, fax, e-mail or by hand to the addresses identified in accordance with Articles 5.3 and
7.8 of the General Conditions.
Law and language of the contract
9.1
The law of Austria shall govern all matters not covered by the contract.]
9.2
The language of the contract and of all written communications between the
Consultant and the Contracting Authority and/or the Project Manager shall be
English.
(1)
Subcontracting
Subcontracting is not allowed.
Dispute settlement
11.1 Any disputes arising out of or relating to this contract which cannot be settled
otherwise shall be referred to the exclusive jurisdiction of Austria applying the
national legislation of the Contracting Authority.
Other specific conditions applying to the contract
By derogation from article 28 and 29 the verification will be made by the Contracting
Authority and all references to an expenditure verification report will not be applicable.
The consultant must take the necessary measures to ensure the visibility of the EU
financing
or
co-financing. Such measures must be in accordance with the applicable rules on the
visibility of external action laid down and published by the Commission. These rules are
set out in the Communication and Visibility Manual for External Actions available from the
EuropeAid website at http://ec.europa.eu/europeaid/work/visibility/index_en.htm
Done in English in three originals: one original being for the Contracting Authority, one
original being for the European Commission, and one original being for the Consultant.
For the Consultant
For the Contracting Authority
Name:
Name:
Title:
Title:
Signature:
Signature:
Date:
Date:
Page 17
ANNEX I - General Conditions for service contracts financed by the European Union
(attached as PDF file)
Page 18
ANNEX II: TERMS OF REFERENCE
1.
BACKGROUND INFORMATION .......................................................................... 20
1.1.
1.2.
1.3.
1.4.
1.5.
2.
OBJECTIVE, PURPOSE & EXPECTED RESULTS ............................................. 21
2.1.
2.2.
2.3.
3.
Personnel .................................................................................................... 28
Office accommodation ................................................................................. 31
Facilities to be provided by the Consultant................................................... 32
Equipment ................................................................................................... 32
Incidental expenditure ................................................................................. 32
Expenditure verification ............................................................................... 32
REPORTS ............................................................................................................ 32
7.1.
7.2.
8.
Location ....................................................................................................... 28
Commencement date & Period of implementation ....................................... 28
REQUIREMENTS ................................................................................................. 28
6.1.
6.2.
6.3.
6.4.
6.5.
6.6.
7.
General ....................................................................................................... 22
Specific activities ......................................................................................... 25
Project management ................................................................................... 25
LOGISTICS AND TIMING..................................................................................... 28
5.1.
5.2.
6.
Assumptions underlying the project intervention .......................................... 22
Risks ........................................................................................................... 22
SCOPE OF THE WORK ....................................................................................... 22
4.1.
4.2.
4.3.
5.
Overall objective .......................................................................................... 21
Purpose ....................................................................................................... 21
Results to be achieved by the Consultant .................................................... 21
ASSUMPTIONS & RISKS .................................................................................... 22
3.1.
3.2.
4.
Beneficiary country ...................................................................................... 20
Contracting Authority ................................................................................... 20
Relevant country background ...................................................................... 20
Current state of affairs in the relevant sector ............................................... 20
Related programmes and other donor activities: .......................................... 20
Reporting requirements ............................................................................... 32
Submission & approval of progress reports ................................................. 33
MONITORING AND EVALUATION ...................................................................... 34
8.1.
8.2.
Definition of indicators ................................................................................. 34
Special requirements ................................................................................... 34
Page 19
1.
BACKGROUND INFORMATION
Beneficiary countries
Austria, France, Germany, Italy, Liechtenstein, Slovenia, Switzerland
Contracting Authority
University of Veterinary Medicine, Vienna (Research Institute of Wildlife Ecology)
Relevant country background
The Consultant may obtain any relevant background on country characteristics relevant to
the operation through its own networks and research. Familiarity with the region is a precondition for successful tendering.
Current state of affairs in the relevant sector
The growing demand for renewable energy (RE) will increase the pressure on the Alpine
environment. It will strongly impact land use patterns, ecological connectivity and
biodiversity. Both the demand for renewable energy and the need for the conservation of
biodiversity, soil, and connectivity transcend national borders. A transnational dialogue to
address multiple environmental objectives, interdependences and trade-offs between
various ecosystem services, and conflicting priorities, is urgently needed. The project will
valorise Alpine biodiversity, land use patterns and related ecosystem services, and model
the carrying capacity of the Alpine ecosystems with respect to all aspects of RE
production and consumption.
Related programmes and other donor activities:
The project follows on from the ECONNECT project, which dealt with ecological
connectivity in the Alps (see http://www.econnectproject.eu/cms/). Project partners have
participated in other relevant EU projects, including:
•
•
•
•
•
FIWI: ECONNECT, 2008-2001, LP - CIPRA: Adaptalp, 2007-2011, PP - UIBK:
TUSEC-IP, 2003-2006, PP
SFS: KnowForAlp, 2004-2007; PP, MANFRED, 2009-2012, PP - UL: ECALP,
2003-2005, PP
TNP: ALPENCOM, 2005-2008, PP - IM: Alp-Water-Scarce; 2008-2011, LP;
ClimAlpTour, 2008-2011, PP; C3-Alps, 2012-2014, PP - regio-v: NENA, 2006 –
2008; ENERBUILD, 2009 – 2012, LP; COMUNIS, 2009 – 2012, PP
PNAM: ECONNECT, 2008-2011, PP
AIS: ECALP, 2003-2005; TUSEC-IP, 2003-2006; Urban SMS, 2008-2012, PP
recharge.green will strongly build on results and experiences achieved by previous and
ongoing Alpine Space projects, in particular by ECONNECT, SHARE, Alps-Water Scarce,
DIAMONT, TUSEC-IP, CLISP, Alpine Windharvest, and
•
•
•
ETC Central Europe: 4BIOMASS, Urban-SMS, TransEcoNet, and
from regional ERDF funds: Renefor, Biomass Futures, Alcotra PIT
UIBK: TUSEC-IP - Implementation in Planning Procedures
The partnership of recharge.green involves several Lead & key partners of these projects.
recharge.green will also co-operate with existing or future relevant projects, such as:
Page 20
•
•
•
•
C3Alps (PP EAA, IM): exchange on capacity building and capitalization of results
from previous projects and climate change
ALPSTAR (PP EURAC, CIPRA): exchange on options for climate protection and
climate neutrality in the Alps as well as on implementation and governance models
in pilot areas; invitation to the project to exchange information on the methodology
to evaluate strategies on climate neutrality (in recharge.green a similar
methodology as for the Strategic Environmental Assessment will be applied).
ETC South-East Europe: BioRegio, DanubeParks - exchange on biodiversity
topics, involvement of stakeholders and RE development in the neighbouring cooperation space (link also by potential impact of RE expansion on migration
corridors from Carpathians to the Alps)
WiREAlps, Uni Salzburg: exchange on current settings and potential for wind
energy in the Alps
The partnership of recharge.green has been in exchange with the project application
WiREAlps on the potential of wind energy production in the Alps.
The project recharge.green will make use of another very interesting option to disseminate
its results and to cross-fertilize activities by co-operating with the research center alpS (at
University of Innsbruck): cooperation is possible with the most recent project ‘G08
EneRAlp’ (EnergieRaum Alpen) – which develops innovative technologies/strategies,
ready for the market, for a sustainable adaptation to climate change. Other ongoing
projects on land use, water and forest management can be addressed, too.
The concept of alpS involves both private companies and municipalities which will create
considerable potential for synergies and concrete implementation.
recharge.green is in line with the goals of the European Strategy for Sustainable,
Competitive and Secure Energy and the European Biodiversity Strategy.
2.
OBJECTIVE, PURPOSE & EXPECTED RESULTS
Overall objective
The overall objective of the project of which this contract will be a part is as follows:
To develop tools and an integrated strategy for renewable energy production, sustainable
land use systems as well as the conservation of biodiversity and soil across the Alpine
region, so as to support the implementation of relevant EU Directives.
Purpose
The purposes of this contract are as follows:
 Administrative/managerial, co-ordination, communication, and all types of reporting
(including financial reporting) support to the Project Leader
Results to be achieved by the Consultant
The External Consultant (hereinafter – Subcontractor) is invited to develop and present
the most appropriate tools and ways to deliver the support needed and to guarantee a
smooth implementation of the project until the end of the project in the fall of 2015. The
services are thus process-oriented as well as results-oriented, as described in the specific
Page 21
activites section below. All project results depend critically on the efficient and effective
provision of services by the Subcontractor.
3.
ASSUMPTIONS & RISKS
Assumptions underlying the project intervention
The project structure explicitly wants to achieve a wide dissemination of its results by
involving a big number of observers from the administrative sector, covering all relevant
technical sectors (spatial planning, agriculture, water management, nature conservation,
energy planning, municipalities).
The participation of the association 'Alpenstadt des Jahres' is important to act as multiplier
for the communication on Sustainable Energy Action Plans (SEAP) of municipalities.
It is assumed that all project partners will actively participate and deliver their inputs, and
that pilot communities will co-operate with the project.
Risks
During implementation: Effective collaboration of different interest groups (RE,
environment) and internal, transnational, trans-sectoral communication is needed to
reconcile different points of view. If this is not forthcoming, it could delay or jeopardise
project activities and results.
After project completion: External risks relate to political and economic pressures
potentially overriding conservation concerns. Depending on the number, quality and
scales of data available from the PP involved data gaps may occur which could impede
tasks of WP4&5. The communication and cooperation channels developed during project
implementation will have to be kept open to continue dealing with conflicts of interest.
4.
SCOPE OF THE WORK
General
Within the scope of the above mentioned INTERREG IVB project “recharge.green Reconciling Renewable Energy Production and Nature in the Alps” the Lead Partner (LP),
the Research Institute of Wildlife Ecology of the University of Veterinary Medicine, Vienna,
requires management support for all tasks of the overall transnational project
administration, co-ordination and financial management.
Project description
The project was approved for financing under the Alpine Space Programme (European
Territorial Cooperation 2007 – 2013).
Transnational problem to be addressed
Due to the great variety of ecosystems and land use patterns, the Alps are one of the
most biodiverse regions in Europe. In order to realize a sustainable network of renewable
energy (RE) sources within the macro-regional area of the Alps, it is essential to consider
the needs of the alpine population, the energy export potentials, the ecological needs and
the full social costs of production. The following key questions will be addressed:
Page 22
1. How large is the potential of the Alps to produce RE while respecting national, EU and
international biodiversity and sustainability targets?
2. What are the main risks and conflicts of interest concerning the production of RE?
3. Assuming that the Alpine region produces energy for export to the entire macroregion, what are the consequences for biodiversity, various ecosystem services and
land use patterns?
4. How can social and environmental costs of renewable energy production be
determined and monitored?
Project objective
The project´s core objective is to develop tools & an integrated strategy for renewable
energy (RE) production, sustainable land use systems as well as the conservation of
biodiversity & soil across the Alpine region. This strategy will support the implementation
of EU policy instruments (Renewables Directive, Europe 2020, Habitat & Bird Directive,
Biodiversity & Soil Thematic Strategies) & the Alpine Convention and will increase the
resource efficiency with respect to water, energy, land use & biodiversity.
Project results
• RE production carrying capacity for the Alpine region defined with perspective for the
macro-region.
• Effective analytical & planning tool developed to address links between RE
production/consumption and conservation of biodiversity, soil, ecological functioning
and provision of multiple ecosystem services (ESS).
• Scenarios developed, with focus on ESS &biodiversity concerns: Trade-offs between
RE production, biodiversity conservation & ecological connectivity; opportunities to
turn them into co-benefits identified.
• Investigation on ideas for a compensation scheme for ESS delivered by the Alps (at
macro-region level)
• Proposal for natural resource governance model, including integrated planning
approach for sustainable RE production; stakeholders trained in its use. Well informed
stakeholders (municipalities, RE producers, regions) who use new planning approach
and are able to optimise RE production facilities (e.g. to integrate biodiversity aspects
in SEAP & facilities management).
• Support of long-term implementation for EU-policies by regular round tables with
stakeholders (with durability beyond lifetime of the project) at regional level
• Demands of RE integrated in land use planning to achieve measurable & sustainable
results
• Increased capacity of national & regional policy makers /public authorities by providing
a handbook on tailor-made implementation strategies, guidelines & instructions at
regional & local level
Project activities (work packages)
Obligatory work packages (WPs) 1-3 include 1) project preparation, 2) project
management and 3) information and publicity.and 4 further WPs.
WP3: Information and Publicity
•
•
Elaborate project CD (website, final booklet, flyer, newsletter), organise kick-off&final
conference
Produce promotional video clips on sustainable use of wind, hydropower, forest
biomass to be used in trainings (WP7) and to address the wider public
Page 23
•
Develop a blog on RE, biodiversity, land use and soils for each pilot region (also for
roundtables)
WP4: Analysis on conflicting priorities
•
•
•
•
•
•
Analyse current situation of RE in Alpine space & pilot regions incl. legal & policy
frameworks
Analyse biodiversity & sustainability strategies/targets at all policy levels
Identify&analyse potentially conflicting energy, biodiversity & sustainable land use
targets
Identify&analyse key stakeholders, institutions, processes, instruments, including
avenues of cooperation .
Develop framework to evaluate the use of different sources of RE and define
scenarios of RE energy mix over time
Define potential strengths, weaknesses, conflicts and tradeoffs
WP5: Economic and spatial dimension of RE production
•
•
•
•
•
Map RE potentials with key information on biodiversity and land use patterns using
JECAMI software from ASP project ECONNECT
Intersect scenarios from RE plans with biodiversity and land use scenarios
Develop GIS based governance model and large-scale forest planning system for
optimizing production of RE by reducing the environmental impacts
Valorise the functions of biodiversity and soils in terms of energy production by using
the ecosystem services approach
Model the carrying capacity of the Alps for RE production, based on scenarios
developed; in case of conflicting goals, develop solutions to overcome those.
WP6: Implementation in selected pilot regions
The approach to transfer and test the applicability of strategic results in pilot regions will
be applied in Rheintal-Vorarlberg, Sajvinja, Triglav, Piemont, province of Bolzano.
•
•
•
•
Develop an evaluation methodology for energy plans of pilot regions (link to SEAP)
and provide alternative strategies for these plans if needed
Test and implement methodologies from WP4+5
Produce sets of information for investors/stakeholders on biodiversity issues
Analyse the forest biomass market in Alpine region at macro level (supply and
demand) and in detail in the pilot study areas (North-Eastern Italy and Western
Slovenia)
Page 24
Geographical area to be covered
Alpine region, see countries above. In addition, the increasing demand for RE is not only
relevant for the Alps, but also for other mountainous regions. Existing, well-functioning
links to the Carpathians and the Pyrenees will be an added value to the project and
assure the knowledge transfer between different ET cooperation spaces. Therefore,
experts from both mountain ranges will be invited to the Mid-Term-Conference, and at the
end of the project a workshop will be organized in Budapest and Barcelona to reach the
actors of these regions.
Target groups
recharge.green supports the implementation of EU policy instruments for sustainable land
use with a specific focus on renewable energy and biodiversity, taking into account food
production, land take, soil protection and nature conservation.
The main target groups are therefore key stakeholders who have decision competence in
land use planning and/or have the strength to influence decision-makers:
 Policy makers at national or regional level (ministries, authorised bodies) who are
responsible for implementing EU policy instruments and/or develop policies and
strategies for sustainable land use at national& regional levels (project involvement as
partners/observers or as experts in workshops and training courses).
 Decision makers at regional and local level (Regional Developing Agencies,
Municipalities, Public Authorities) who are responsible for implementing national,
regional and local policy instruments in their respective regions (project involvement
as partners/observers, as responsible partner for pilot regions or as experts in
workshops and training courses).
 Stakeholders who are directly or indirectly affected by EU policy measures
(enterprises in energy or food sectors) (project involvement as partners/observers or
as experts in workshops and training courses).
 NGOs, experts, consultants involved in sustainable land use planning (project
involvement as observers or as experts in workshops and training courses).
Specific activities under the contract
The contractor will be responsible for the following tasks:
1. Co-ordination of the transnational management team and communication with project
partners (PP)
1. Internal co-ordination of the management team (financial manager,
communication manager, project/communication assistant, management staff
for reporting).
2. Introduction and support for administrative questions of the LP (advice on
procedural aspects, gathering of information, etc.)
3. Facilitation of the process of developing a common understanding of the
project goals and activities to achieve the common goals jointly with all PP
4. Elaboration of a customized project implementation handbook in co-operation
with the LP, the work package leaders and relevant key experts
5. Elaboration of a project work plan with time schedule, including milestones
(benchmarks) to guarantee a results-oriented implementation of individual
Page 25
project activities, meetings and delivery of outputs of the recharge.green
project
6. Co-ordination between LP and the complete management team
7. Internal co-ordination with PP via e-mail/internet messages and via telephone
(administration and information hotline for the project)
8. Coaching of and advice to team members and observers as needed
2. Project reporting: Oversee the overall project progress and anticipate upcoming
problems in order to provide proactive solutions
1. Timely and high-quality reporting: Setting up and establishing reporting
routines
2. Introduction, set-up and establishment of a monitoring system for project
outputs/results
3. Through that system, keeping track of benchmarks and project outputs,
including reaction to delays and problems
4. Development and circulation of compact quarterly status-quo reports and
strategic feedback to the PP
5. Proactive communication on required inputs for reporting with partners as
needed
3. Project communication: Using project events as communication platform for key
management issues
1. Regular and proactive communication on project implementation and
communication processes with LP and PPs to ensure smooth running of
project
2. Active input through moderation and agenda development
3. Conceptual and organizational preparation and moderation of regular Project
Steering Group (PSG) meetings and kick-off meetings, including preparation of
documentation, minutes and monitoring of follow-up processes
4. Presence at and moderation of regional and transnational project events at
steering group level and plenary partner sessions
5. Annual meeting with JTS together with LP (or report to LP)
6. Development and co-ordination of meeting agenda with PP
4. Adaptive management: Ensure smooth and transparent project implementation, with
transparent communication of current problems and needs for adaptation of project
activities and outputs if needed
1. Adaptive management as needed: preparation of project changes (written
procedures) with all PP, delivery of final documents to the LP for submission to
the programme bodies
2. Provide active inputs to solve conflicts through mediation or the co-ordination
of bilateral agreements
3. Provide expertise on formal requirements in case of necessary project changes
in compliance with EU programme requirements
5. Transnational financial management
1. Regular monitoring and controlling of Certificates of Expenditure and financial
reporting of the LP and the PP
2. Compiling of overall transnational financial report (based on PP reports)
3. Monitoring of budget flow according to spending forecast of the Application
Form (AF)
Page 26
4. Communication and preparation of budgetary changes with all involved parties
5. Preparation of documentation for budget shifts for the LP and the programme
bodies
6. Optimizing project spending in order to achieve the spending forecast
The Consultant must also observe the latest Communication and Visibility Manual for EU
External Actions concerning acknowledgement of EU financing of the project (see
http://ec.europa.eu/europeaid/work/visibility/index_en.htm.
Overall project management

Responsible body
Research Institute of Wildlife Ecology of the University of Veterinary Medicine, Vienna

Management structure
The project will be led substantively by the Contracting Authority. As it is a multi-country
project, multiple project partners (18) are engaged in different aspects of implementation.
The Consultant must refer decisions to the Contracting Authority, but will have to consult
with all partners on a regular basis. The project consortium consists of the LP and some
PP from the ETC AS project ECONNECT and of new PP from relevant renewable energy
producing sector or important research and administration branches in that field. The
partners are (in alphabetical order):


















Agric. Inst. of Slovenia, Ljubljana, Slovenia
Agricultural Research Council - Forest Monitoring and Mgt Research Unit, Trento,
Italy
Bayerische Elektrizitätswerke GmbH, Gersthofen, Germany
CIPRA, Eching, Germany
Department of Forest Management Planning, Slovenia Forest Service, Ljubljana,
Slovenia
Dev. Agency Savinja, Zalec, Slovenia
Dipartimento all'urbanistica, ambiente ed energia, Bolzano, Italy
Environment Agency Austria – EAA, Vienna, Austria
EURAC Institute for Renewable Energy, Bolzano, Italy
Federal Research Station Agroscope, Ettenhausen, Switzerland
International Institute for Applied System Analysis (IIASA) Ecosystems Services
and Management Program (ESM), Laxenburg, Austria
LAMORO Local Dev. Agency, Asti, Italy
Parco Naturale Alpe Marittime, Valdieri, Italy
Triglav National Park, Bled, Slovenia
Université de Savoie, EDYTEM, Pole Montagne, Le Bourget du Lac Cedex,
France
University of Innsbruck, Institute of Geography, Austria
University of Ljubljana, Department of Forestry and Renewable Forest Resources,
Slovenia
University of Trento, Forest Ecology and Ecological Planning Department, Trento,
Italy
Page 27
The selection of PP has been done by considering the establishment and expansion of
various forms of partnership (cross-sectoral and cross-jurisdictional) heading for a
stronger system of multilevel governance and entailing varied interactions and
relationships between and across levels of government. This approach is considered
crucial for promoting the exchange of knowledge and good practices, empowering actors
and administration to perform the services needed for sustainable renewable energy
production and consumption. The cross-sectoral approach chosen enhances the
possibilities for networking and mutual learning between partners from the same country,
as well as between Member States, at all levels of governance.
In addition to the project partners, there are also Observers (in alphabetical order):

Bavarian State Ministry for Environment and Health, presidency of the Platform
Ecological Network of the Alpine Convention

Permanent Secretariat of the Alpine Convention

Regional governm. office of the Land Lower Austria, Department of Rural
Development

Regional governm. Office of the Land Salzburg, Department of Agriculture,
Forestry, Water Management and Energy

5.
Regional governm. Office of the Land Salzburg, Department of Spatial Planning
LOGISTICS AND TIMING
Location
The Consultant´s home base will constitute the principal location from which the
Consultant shall carry out the work. The Team Leader (Lead Parter) is based in Vienna,
Austria. Travel throughout the Alpine region (all participating countries), and possible to
other countries, will be required during the implementation of the Contract (for meetings
with project partners).
Commencement date & Period of implementation
The intended commencement date is 2 October 2012 and the period of implementation of
the contract will be 32 months from this date. The time frame for the sub-contract to be
concluded will go up to June 2015 (official project end) plus about 3 months (up to
September 2015) after the project closure for reporting.
6.
REQUIREMENTS
Personnel
Key experts
All experts who have a crucial role in implementing the contract are referred to as key
experts. The profiles of the key experts for this contract are as follows:
Project Co-ordinator
Key expert 1: Project Co-ordinator
Qualifications and skills
Page 28


Master’s Degree or equivalent, preferably with specialization in environmental natural
sciences, environmental planning, economics, social sciences, management,
administration or related field, preferably with professional exposure to natural
resource management, renewable energy, and biodiversity conservation issues.
Certification in Programme/Project Management is an added advantage.
General professional experience






Minimum of 10 years of general professional experience, of which 5 should be at a
managerial level
Minimum 5 years´ experience in international project management (with multi-country
global or regional projects) based on Results-Based Programme Development and
Management principles, using project management tools and innovative methods as
appropriate
Adept at building strategic partnerships (effective networking with partners seizing
opportunities to build strategic alliances)
Client Orientation: Contributing to positive outcomes for the client (creating an
enabling environment for a smooth relationships, demonstrating an understanding of
client’s perspective, soliciting feedback on service provision and quality, creating and
promoting enabling environment for open communication)
Experience with the organisation and implementation of training sessions and
workshops at different administrative levels
Language Requirements: Fluency in English and German with excellent verbal and
written skills. Knowledge of other Alpine region languages a definitive asset.
Specific professional experience







At least 10 years´ experience in implementation and management of nature
conservation/ environmental projects at transnational, regional and local levels (Natura
2000, water management etc.)
Familiarity with EU project management and financial procedures and rules is key
A good understanding and knowledge of the subject-matter (renewable energy and
environment, nature conservation, landscape ecology, and other related topics) with a
specific focus on the Alpine environment)
Comprehensive understanding and knowledge of the current EU and Alpine Space
Programme guidelines and utilizes these regularly in work assignments
Experiencing working with government authorities (national, regional) and national and
regional civil society organization(s) or network(s), and international organizations,
with a particular focus on the Alpine region (e.g. Alpine Convention).
Extensive experience in relevant fields of policy development and European Territorial
Cooperation (ETC)
A thorough understanding of political processes related to environment decision
making and land use planning in the Alpine region.
Key expert 2: Communications Manager
Qualifications and skills

Master’s Degree or equivalent, preferably with specialization in communications,
journalism or a related social science discipline
General professional experience
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

Good understanding of communications and outreach at the international/regional
level
Experience in advocacy/advancing a policy-oriented agenda: Analysis and creation of
messages and strategies, proven ability to position issues effectively, both orally and
in writing; ability to communicate sensitively, effectively and creatively across different
constituencies
Demonstrated ability to build and nurture strong relations with the media (national and
international)
Proven ability to develop and implement effective communications strategies

Outstanding writing and editing skills, with proven ability to meet tight deadlines

Developing tools and mechanisms for information sharing


Proven networking skills
Demonstrates comprehensive knowledge of information technology and applies it in
work assignments
Multimedia skills (social media, audiovisual) an advantage
Language Requirements: Fluency in English and German with excellent verbal and
written skills. Knowledge of other Alpine region languages a definitive asset.




Specific professional experience


An understanding of and familiarity with the current EU and Alpine Space, as well as
other project-relevant communication platforms, particularly on energy and
environment
Knowledge of environmental issues, particularly in the Alpine Space, a definitive asset
Key expert 3: Financial Manager
Qualifications and skills

University degree, preferably with specialization in economics, finance, accounting,
business administration or public administration, or a related discipline
General professional experience





Experience in the administration and implementation of programme/operations and
financial management
Experience with the implementation of effective internal controls and the proper
functioning of a client-oriented financial resources management system
Demonstrating good knowledge of information technology and applying it in work
assignments
Maintaining effective client relationships (reporting in a timely and appropriate fashion,
meeting reporting deadlines)
Language requirements: Fluency in English and German
Specific professional experience


Experience in the administration and implementation of programme/operations and
financial management in an EU regional project
Knowledge of EU/INTERREG rules and regulations and other relevant policies on
financial recording/reporting and audit systems
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
Experience within the Alpine Space Programme context a definitive asset
Guidance note on expert inputs:
Working days: The Consultant will only be paid for days actually worked on the basis of
the daily fee rate contained in the budget breakdown (annex V). Tenderers must annex
the 'Estimated number of working days' worksheet contained in the spreadsheet for Annex
V to their Organisation and Methodology (Annex III) to demonstrate the correspondence
between the proposed methodology and the expert inputs.
It is understood that actual days worked each month for each category of experts may
differ from the number of working days estimated for each month in the organisation and
methodology and the budget breakdown. The actual input required for the tasks specified
in the Terms of Reference can only be determined in the course of the contract.
Note that civil servants and other staff of the public administration of the beneficiary
country cannot be recruited as experts, unless prior written approval has been obtained
from the European Commission.
Other experts
CVs for experts other than the key experts are not examined prior to the signature of the
contract. They should not be included in tenders.
The Consultant shall select and hire other experts as required according to the profiles
identified in the Organisation & Methodology and/or these Terms of Reference. They must
indicate clearly which profile they have so it is clear which fee rate in the budget
breakdown will apply. All experts must be independent and free from conflicts of interest
in the responsibilities accorded to them.
The selection procedures used by the Consultant to select these other experts shall be
transparent, and shall be based on pre-defined criteria, including professional
qualifications, language skills and work experience. The findings of the selection panel
shall be recorded. The selected experts shall be subject to approval by the Contracting
Authority.
Note that civil servants and other staff of the public administration of the beneficiary
country cannot be recruited as experts, unless prior written approval has been obtained
from the European Commission.
Support staff & backstopping
Backstopping and support staff costs must be included in the fee rates of the experts.
Office accommodation
Office accommodation of a reasonable standard and of approximately 10 square metres
for each expert working on the contract is to be provided by the Consultant.
The costs of the office accommodation are to be covered by the fee rates of the experts.
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Facilities to be provided by the Consultant
The Consultant shall ensure that experts are adequately supported and equipped. In
particular it shall ensure that there is sufficient administrative, secretarial and interpreting
provision to enable experts to concentrate on their primary responsibilities. It must also
transfer funds as necessary to support its activities under the contract and to ensure that
its employees are paid regularly and in a timely fashion.
If the Consultant is a consortium, the arrangements should allow for the maximum
flexibility in project implementation. Arrangements offering each consortium member a
fixed percentage of the work to be undertaken under the contract should be avoided.
Equipment
No equipment is to be purchased on behalf of the Contracting Authority / beneficiary
country as part of this service contract or transferred to the Contracting Authority /
beneficiary country at the end of this contract. Any equipment related to this contract
which is to be acquired by the beneficiary country must be purchased by means of a
separate supply tender procedure.
Incidental expenditure
The Provision for incidental expenditure covers the ancillary and exceptional eligible
expenditure incurred under this contract. It cannot be used for costs which should be
covered by the Consultant as part of its fee rates, as defined above. Its use is governed by
the provisions in the General Conditions and the notes in Annex V of the contract. It
covers:
 Travel costs and subsistence allowances for missions, outside the normal place of
posting, to be undertaken as part of this contract. If applicable, indicate if the provision
includes costs for environmental measures, for example C02 offsetting.
 < Item 2, etc>
A provision for incidental expenditure for this contract should be included without
modification in the Budget breakdown.
Any subsistence allowances to be paid for missions undertaken as part of this contract
must not exceed the per diem rates published on the Web site:
http://ec.europa.eu/europeaid/work/procedures/index_en.htm at the start of each such
mission.
Expenditure verification
Any provision for expenditure verification for this contract must be included without
modification in the Budget breakdown.
7.
REPORTS
Reporting requirements
Please refer to Article 26 of the General Conditions. Interim reports must be prepared
every six months during the period of implementation of the tasks. They must be provided
along with the corresponding invoice, the financial report and an expenditure verification
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report defined in Article 28 of the General Conditions. There must be a final report, a final
invoice and the financial report accompanied by an expenditure verification report at the
end of the period of implementation of the tasks. The draft final report must be submitted
at least one month before the end of the period of implementation of the tasks. Note that
these interim and final reports are additional to any required in Section 0 of these Terms of
Reference.
Each report shall consist of a narrative section and a financial section. The financial
section must contain details of the time inputs of the experts, of the incidental expenditure
and of the provision for expenditure verification.
To summarise, in addition to the documents, reports and output which could be specified
under the duties and responsibilities of each key expert above the Consultant shall
provide the following reports:
Name of report
Content
Time of submission
Inception Report
Analysis of existing situation No later than 1 month after
and plan of work for the the
start
of
the
project
implementation
6 month Progress Report
Short
description
of No later than 1 month after
progress (technical and the end of each 6 month
financial) including problems implementation period
encountered;
planned
activities for the ensuing 6
months accompanied by an
invoice and the expenditure
verification report.
Draft Final Report
Short
description
of No later than 1 month
achievements
including before the end of the
problems encountered and implementation period.
recommendations
Final Report
Short
description
of
achievements
including
problems encountered and
recommendations; a final
invoice and the financial
report accompanied by the
expenditure
verification
report.
Within 1 month of receiving
comments on the draft final
report from the Project
Manager identified in the
contract.
Submission & approval of reports
Electronic copies of the reports referred to above must be submitted to the Project
Manager identified in the contract. The reports must be written in English. The Project
Manager is responsible for approving the reports.
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8.
MONITORING AND EVALUATION
Definition of indicators






Project results attained
Co-ordination, administration and financial management tasks implemented
efficiently, smoothly, and timely (any challenges and difficulties tackled promptly to
the extent possible)
Transparency and accountability to all stake-holders maintained
Partner networks maintained and expanded
Stakeholders and partners satisfied with management and results (to be
ascertained through feedback tools)
All reports to partners and EU prepared and delivered on time
Special requirements
None.
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ANNEX III: ORGANISATION & METHODOLOGY
To be completed by the tenderer
RATIONALE
Any comments on the Terms of reference of importance for the successful execution of
activities, in particular its objectives and expected results, thus demonstrating the degree
of understanding of the contract. An opinion on the key issues related to the achievement
of the contract objectives and expected results.
An explanation of the risks and assumptions affecting the execution of the contract.
STRATEGY
An outline of the approach proposed for contract implementation.
A list of the proposed activities considered to be necessary to achieve the contract
objectives.
The related inputs and outputs.
In the case of a tender being submitted by a consortium, a description of the input from
each of the consortium members and the distribution and interaction of tasks and
responsibilities between them.
A description of the support facilities (back-stopping) that the team of experts will have
from the contractor during the execution of the contract.
A description of sub-contracting arrangements foreseen, if any and within the limit
indicated in clause 3 of the Instructions to tenderers, with a clear indication of the tasks
that will be entrusted to a sub-contractor and a statement by the tenderer guaranteeing
the eligibility of any sub-contractor.
TIMETABLE OF ACTIVITIES
The timing, sequence and duration of the proposed activities, taking into account
mobilisation time.
The identification and timing of major milestones in execution of the contract, including an
indication of how the achievement of these would be reflected in any reports, particularly
those stipulated in the Terms of reference.
The methodologies contained in the offer should include a workplan indicating the
envisaged resources to be mobilised.
The expected number of working days required from each category of expert each month
during the period of execution of the contract (using the Excel spreadsheet linked to the
Budget breakdown).
LOG FRAME
A Logical framework reflecting the considerations described in items 1 - 3 (see the Project
Cycle Management Manual available from the PCM Home page:
http://ec.europa.eu/europeaid/multimedia/publications/publications/manualstools/t101_en.htm).
Page 35
ANNEX IV: KEY EXPERTS
Name of
expert
Proposed
position
Years
of
experience
Age
Educational
background
Page 36
Specialist
areas of
knowledge
Experience
in
beneficiary
country
Languages
and
degree of
fluency
(VG, G, W)
Curriculum vitae (insert for each expert)
Proposed role in the project:
Family name:
First names:
Date of birth:
Nationality:
Civil status:
Education:
Institution
Degree(s) or Diploma(s) obtained:
(Date from - Date to)
Language skills: Indicate competence on a scale of 1 to 5 (1 - excellent; 5 - basic)
Language
Reading
Speaking
Membership of professional bodies:
Other skills: (e.g. Computer literacy, etc.)
Present position:
Years within the firm:
Key qualifications: (Relevant to the project)
Specific experience in the region:
Country
Date from - Date to
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Writing
Professional experience
Date from - Date to
Location
Company&
reference
person6 (name
& contact
details)
Position
Description
Other relevant information (e.g., Publications)
6
The Contracting Authority reserves the right to contact the reference persons. If you cannot provide a reference,
please provide a justification.
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C. Other information
III. Administrative Compliance Grid (form included separately in Tender Dossier
Download Area) or available for download directly from the EU website here:
http://ec.europa.eu/europeaid/prag/annexes.do?group=B
IV. Evaluation grid (attached)
EVALUATION GRID
Ref. no. 22-4-3-AT/Project no. FA28012100
Tender for transnational project management services for Alpine region project
“recharge.green - Reconciling Renewable Energy Production and Nature in the Alps”
Maximum
Organisation and methodology
Rationale
Strategy
Timetable of activities
20
20
10
Total score for Organisation and
methodology
50
Key experts
Key expert 1: Project co-ordinator (Max 24
points)
Qualifications and skills
General professional experience
Specific professional experience
4
5
15
Key expert 2: Communications manager (Max
13 points)
Qualifications and skills
General professional experience
Specific professional experience
2
3
8
Key expert 3: Financial manager (Max 13
points)
Qualifications and skills
General professional experience
Specific professional experience
2
3
8
Total score for Key experts
50
Overall total score
100
NB Only tenders with average scores of at least 80 points qualify for the financial evaluation
Page 39
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D. Service tender submission form
Ref: Tender for transnational project management services for Alpine region project
“recharge.green - Reconciling Renewable Energy Production and Nature in the
Alps”
Contract title: Contract for transnational project management services for Alpine region
project “recharge.green - Reconciling Renewable Energy Production and Nature in the
Alps”
One signed original of this tender submission form (including signed statements of exclusivity
and availability from all key experts proposed), a completed financial identification form and a
completed legal entity file (only for the Leader) as well as declarations from the Leader and all
members (in the case of a consortium) must be supplied, together with three copies. The
attachments to this submission form (i.e. declarations, statements, proofs) may be in original or
copy. If copies are submitted the originals must be dispatched to the Contracting Authority
upon request. For economical and ecological reasons, we strongly recommend that you submit
your files on paper-based materials (no plastic folder or divider). We also suggest you use
double-sided print-outs as much as possible.
1
SUBMITTED by (i.e. the identity of the Tenderer)
Name(s) and address(es) of legal
entity or entities submitting this
tender
Nationality i
Leader ii
Member 2
Etc …
2
CONTACT PERSON (for this tender)
Name
Organisation
Address
Telephone
Fax
E-mail
i
Country in which the legal entity is registered.
ii
Add / delete additional lines for consortium members as appropriate. Note that a subcontractor is not considered to be a consortium member for the purposes of this application
form. Subsequently, the data of the subcontractor must not appear in the data related to the
economic, financial and professional capacity. If this application is being submitted by an
individual legal entity, the name of that legal entity should be entered as 'Leader' (and all
other lines should be deleted).
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