Change the rules for non-EU companies bidding on EU public contracts

Change the rules for non-EU companies bidding on EU public contracts

Europe's severely out of date Public Procurement Directives are up for review, at a time when the European Rail Supply Industry faces increasingly unfair competition from companies in non-EU countries.

Currently, companies in non-EU countries are allowed to bid on EU public contracts, even if that country does not allow and actively prevents EU companies from bidding on public contracts in their jurisdiction. This practice is unfair, not in good faith, and does not allow a level-playing field.

UNIFE Director General Enno Wiebe today called on the European Commission to embrace the opportunity to protect the integrity of global trade and create predictability for industry within the EU by revamping and streamlining rules.

As part of the upcoming Public Procurement Directive review, UNIFE calls on the European Commission to:

• Deter bidders from non-EU countries bidding for public contracts in the EU if their country of origin does not have an agreement on public procurement with the EU, which provides the same market access for EU bidders on public contracts
• Ensure European preference for strategic industries such as rail supply, especially for projects using EU funding
• Ending the 'aim for lowest price' criteria for public contracts, which may compromise quality, safety and security, and moving towards a mandatory Most Economically Advantageous Tender (MEAT) approach for rail projects
• Ensure future directives or regulations no longer represent a significant bureaucratic burden for European bidders, in particular for SMEs which have limited resources to address tenders
• Consider a range of other reforms around flexibility and improved terms and conditions in contracts, such as 'inflation adjustments'

By undertaking these reforms, it would reinforce the idea of fair global trade, which UNIFE continues to defend and support, as it remains central to the success of the European Rail Supply Industry.

Furthermore, the review of the Foreign Subsidies Regulation is also underway. While acknowledging the deterrent effect of the instrument, UNIFE calls for a strengthening of the rules in order to close existing loopholes (e.g. in the urban transport field).

The EU's Public Procurement directives were established in 2014, when there was a completely different geopolitical context and operation for trade, competition and markets.

According to the 2024 World Rail Market Study, accessibility to global markets for EU rail suppliers on average fell from 60% to 59% for the 2021-2023 period, meaning that now key countries assessed across the world, actively prevent full access to their markets. This represents billions of euros of lost market opportunities every year.

The European Parliament earlier in September adopted a report regarding policy suggestions for Public Procurement, which signalled to the European Commission a large majority of the Parliament supports reforms. The European Commission will use the remaining part of this year and the beginning of 2026 to undertake its review and suggest amendments to the directive.

You can read UNIFE's full position on the review of Public Procurement Directives here.

Quotes attributable to UNIFE Director General Enno Wiebe

"Against the background of increasing unfair competition from abroad, we call the European Commission to create a level-playing field for EU industry on public procurement. This will help protect the integrity of global trade and markets through promoting 'good faith' practices, especially at a time when it is being challenged."

"Europe's future depends on backing strategic and critical industries such as rail supply, and we call on policymakers to undertake these reforms to keep it competitive and strong."

"The European Rail Supply Industry is responsible for 650,000 jobs, including construction, and leads the world in innovation and quality being at the heart of many EU communities and economies."