In autumn 2022, the region entered into an agreement to buy laser printers, which the Swedish Competition Authority now considers to be an unauthorized direct procurement. The region had assessed via a market analysis that only one supplier had suitable printers – and therefore made a purchase without advertising first.
However, the Swedish Competition Authority does not agree that only one supplier could meet the requirements.
“The procurement legislation’s exception to the requirement for advertising for technical reasons must be interpreted restrictively. The main rule is that procurements must be put out to competition so that all suppliers who are interested and have competence will have the opportunity to submit tenders,” says the Swedish Competition Authority’s director general Rikard Jermsten in a press release.