The Romanian Ministry of Economy, Digitalisation, Entrepreneurship, and Tourism (MEDAT) recently announced a more than EUR 170 million procurement procedure for services related to the migration of IT applications to the Romanian Government Private Cloud (CPG) within the framework of the National Recovery and Resilience Plan (PNRR). The contracting authority for this procurement is the Authority for Digitalisation of Romania, an entity operating under the aegis of MEDAT.

The Government Cloud represents the foundational infrastructure for the digitalisation of public administration and is a critical element in Romania’s ongoing digital transformation process, essential to the country’s transition to a secure, dynamic digital economy aligned with the EU’s strategic directives on data governance.

In this context, the procurement initiative entails a strategic investment, exceeding EUR 170 million in PNRR funds, aimed at migrating no fewer than 30 state-run IT applications to a modern third millennium digital infrastructure. The procurement documentation has been prepared in collaboration with experts from the World Bank to ensure compliance with the highest technological standards. Additionally, comprehensive cybersecurity measures will be implemented throughout the migration process, with the objective of updating legacy IT applications to meet the technological requirements set forth for 2025.

The call for tenders has already been published on the Electronic Public Procurement System (SEAP), with a deadline of 12 March 2025 for the submission of bids (unless extended).

The procurement procedure will be conducted by means of an open tender, with the award criterion being the “best value for money”. The procurement is divided into the following two distinct lots:

• Lot 1: Services for the migration of applications to the CPG, for which a framework agreement will be concluded with a maximum of 20 qualified bidders;

• Lot 2: Cybersecurity Assessment Services, for which a framework agreement will be concluded with a maximum of ten qualified bidders.

According to SEAP data, the total estimated value of the procurement for both lots is set between approximately EUR 58 million and EUR 173 million. The objective of each framework agreement is to establish a fast and efficient mechanism for the conclusion of sub-contracts for the provision (i.e. procurement) of Migration of Government Digital Service Applications to IaaS/PaaS solutions in the CPG.

Given the significant number of potentially qualified bidders, coupled with the scale of the project, considerable market interest is expected. Based on previous tenders related to the CPG, however, the process leading to the completion of the tender is likely to present several challenges.

At this stage, it is essential to conduct a thorough and prompt review of the tender requirements to determine if there are any grounds for potential challenges before Romanian courts. Furthermore, at a later stage, participants who are dissatisfied with the award results may file judicial complaints with the aim of overturning the initial evaluation decision.

Consequently, it is crucial to be well-prepared and to carefully assess the legality of the award procedure throughout to ensure a successful outcome.

For more information on this procurement procedure, contact your CMS client partner or these CMS experts: Cristina Popescu. Laura Grigore or Laura Capata.