What does ex-ante notice mean?
An ex-ante notice (Ex-ante Ausschreibung), often also called a prior information notice or advance notice, is a notice in which a public contracting authority announces planned procurement projects before the actual procurement procedure is initiated. The term ex ante (Latin for beforehand) makes clear that this publication takes place before the actual competition. The aim is to inform the market early about upcoming tenders and give companies enough time to prepare.
In EU-wide procurement law, the prior information notice is provided for in Article 48 of EU Procurement Directive 2014/24/EU. It is published on TED (Tenders Electronic Daily) and contains basic information about the planned subject matter of the contract, the expected timeline and the estimated contract volume. The prior information notice is not mandatory, but it gives the contracting authority the advantage of being able to shorten the bid deadline in the later procedure, provided the prior information notice was published at least 35 days and no more than 12 months before the notice is sent.
A special form of ex-ante notice is the advance notice for direct awards, the so-called voluntary ex-ante transparency notice. It is used when a contracting authority intends to award a contract without first publishing a contract notice, and it serves voluntary transparency. After this notice is published and a waiting period of at least 10 calendar days has been observed, the contract is protected against being declared ineffective later.
Relevance for bidders
For bidders, ex-ante notices are a valuable tool for early market monitoring and strategic planning. By systematically monitoring prior information notices, companies can prepare for upcoming tenders, plan capacities, identify cooperation partners and compile the necessary suitability evidence before the formal procedure begins.
Bidders should follow prior information notices on TED and relevant tender portals regularly. Even if a prior information notice does not yet entitle you to submit a bid, it can be a reason for market research or for contacting potential partners for bidding consortia or capacity reliance. The voluntary ex-ante transparency notice deserves bidders' particular attention, because it points to an intended award without competition.
Legal framework
The prior information notice is governed by Section 38 VgV (Public Procurement Ordinance) and Article 48 of EU Procurement Directive 2014/24/EU. The option to shorten the deadline after a prior information notice is in Section 15(3) VgV. The voluntary ex-ante transparency notice is provided for in Section 135(3) GWB (German Act against Restraints of Competition) and protects the contracting authority against the contract being ineffective when awarded without a notice. The notice formats follow the eForms regulation.