Regulation 160. Admissibility of tenders

(1) A tender shall be considered admissible where it has been submitted by a tenderer, who has not been excluded pursuant to regulations 164(1) or 165(1) and who meets the selection criteria, and whose tender is in conformity with the technical specifications without being irregular or unacceptable or unsuitable.

(2) In particular, tenders which do not comply with the procurement documents, which were received late, where there is evidence of collusion or corruption, or which have been found by the contracting entity to be abnormally low, shall be considered as being irregular. In particular tenders submitted by tenderers that do not have the required qualifications, and tenders whose price exceeds the contracting entity’s budget as determined and documented prior to the launching of the procurement procedure shall be considered as unacceptable.

(3) A tender shall be considered not to be suitable where it is irrelevant to the contract, being manifestly incapable, without substantial changes, of meeting the contracting entity’s needs and requirements as specified in the procurement documents. A request for participation shall be considered not to be suitable where the economic operator concerned is to be or may be excluded pursuant to regulations 164(1) or 165(1) or does not meet the selection criteria set out by the contracting entity.