EU proposes new public procurement regulation and BIM mandates

The European Commission has proposed a new regulation to overhaul public procurement across the European Union, aiming to replace three existing directives with a single ‘Public Procurement Act’. The initiative targets a market representing approximately 15% of the EU's GDP and is estimated to save €649 million in annual administrative costs.

Key changes include lowering the threshold for financial eligibility; the minimum annual turnover requirement for candidates could be reduced to 50% of the estimated annual contract value, down from current levels that can be double that amount. This change is expected to allow more businesses, including smaller firms in markets like Greece, to compete for larger projects.

Additionally, the proposal mandates the use of Building Information Modelling (BIM) for public works projects valued at €25 million or more during the execution stage. The regulation also seeks to simplify procurement processes by reducing the number of procedures from five to three: open, dynamic, and innovation processes. Requirements for specific prior experience in public contracts will also be limited, becoming mandatory only when justified by the complexity of the project.