Correos starts the process again from scratch, but with many months of delay. The public postal company starts a new tender to deliver the large telecommunications contract after it decided to annul ‘in extremis’ the award to Telefónica after Orange’s appeal, in a particularly controversial decision. The expulsion of the French operator did not correspond, but the process was not restarted but rather cancelled. The new specifications are relatively similar: a duration of four years, but with fewer batches to be delivered and with a lower overall starting price than the previous one.
The telecommunications subsidiary of the postal company launched the tender for the telecommunications service and integrated data support center for all the holding’s headquarters in the middle of last year. In December, and against all odds, the contracting table notified Orange of the decision to eliminate it from the two lots (of the five) to which it aspired due to “scope changes in the offer presented and breaches of requirements.” The French company resorted to understanding that this decision was not sustained. While deciding on this procedure, it was decided not to wait for the decision of the administrative court and award Telefónica as the only one left in the process.
This decision led to another even more striking one: canceling the award to Telefónica. They argued that there was no possibility of going back to the moment before the award, since both parties knew of their rival’s offers. And this led to a cancellation of the contract that was made in the form of not formalizing the contract, an option that is contemplated in the Public Sector Contracts Law. It undertakes to pay compensation for the expenses incurred.
Barely a month and a half after this administrative shock, Correos Telecom has launched the process again. Specifically, as La Información has been able to verify in the tender announcement, a process was started with a formula identical to the previous one: a tender with negotiation. It was done last Thursday, July 20, just three days before the general elections. Only one week has been given to submit applications by telecommunications operators.
The new contract has fewer lots and a significantly lower starting price, standing at 43 million
There are some differences between the two contracts. The duration is apparently the same: 48 months. But the configuration of the tenders remains, as reflected in the specifications and the announcement, it is different in the distribution. The canceled had five lots that have been reduced to just three this time: connectivity centers, support center and services; fixed telephony, smart network, contact center and business SMS messages, and lastly mobile telephony. The starting price without taxes also differs, which goes from 48.9 to 43.4 million.
This restart of the Correos Telecom procedure and the decision not to maintain the previous one with Telefónica and Orange will cause a significant delay. The cancellation led to an extension with the owner of Movistar and O2 based on the preconditions signed in the current agreement -which were superior to those of the new contract-. If the deadlines similar to those of the 2022 process are met, it would take between six and eight more months, which could extend the final award until 2024.
Other controversial contracts
This is one of the relevant public contracts in the telecommunications sector in Spain. In total, Correos Telecom -as a technology division- provides service to some 3,430 active branches throughout Spain. It must be taken into account that since mid-2020, the group assigned this subsidiary, as a specialized company, the competence to manage needs in the field of telecommunications. It is in charge of network management and corporate services. It does not have its own infrastructure sufficient to provide service. In fact, its infrastructure is limited to several hundred cell towers and 3,000 kilometers of fiber.
This is not the only controversial award process in the telecommunications sector that has taken place in recent months. Vodafone announced a month ago now that it will demand an appeal before the Contentious Chamber of the National Court to request the review of the contracting procedure in which the Ministry of Defense awarded Telefónica for almost 34 million euros the creation of the Center for Development, Training and Testing for military operations in cyber defense with 5G. The subsidiary of the British operator was expelled and its appeal was not admitted, alleging the Court that Vodafone gave Indra access to classified information.
