NCBR supports officials in ordering technologies that do not exist yet

• The "Innovative Public Procurement" project will last until 2029.
• Pre-commercial procurement, unlike classic tenders, is not subject to the provisions of the Public Procurement Law.
• This model also assumes full financing of the research and development phase by NCBR, which means no financial risk on the part of the public institution.

In the traditional public procurement model, institutions announce tenders for specific, existing products or services. Innovative procurement reverses this logic: you don't order a ready-made solution, but the service of developing it. This approach, although still rarely used in Poland, is becoming crucial in the context of challenges such as energy transformation or the digitalization of public services.

Innovative public procurement is an approach in which we order a solution that is not yet available on the market or the development of such a solution or technology - explains Katarzyna Lenart from the National Centre for Research and Development (NCBR).

As he adds, among the innovative modes of public procurement, it is worth paying attention to two modes of implementation: innovation partnership and pre-commercial procurement. The latter, although present in the European legal system since 2007, are still niche in Poland.

PCP - a new tool in the hands of the administration

Pre-commercial procurement, unlike classic tenders, is not subject to the provisions of the Public Procurement Law. It is carried out in several stages, starting from the development of the concept and documentation, up to the prototype and demonstration. After each stage, the number of contractors decreases - those who have demonstrated the best results remain.

This approach not only promotes competitiveness, but also allows for the selection of the most promising solutions. In the next stages, only the best contractors work - emphasizes Lenart.

The NCBR support model also assumes full financing of the research and development phase by the agency, which means no financial risk on the part of the public institution.

NCBR will help with difficult beginnings

In Poland, the barrier to wider use of innovative procurement is often the lack of knowledge and experience. Institutions do not know how to properly describe their needs or conduct the entire process.

- Institutions can of course seek assistance in Europe, for example by using the European Assistance for Innovation Procurement or the Spin4EIC program, but we as NCBR also want to actively support Polish ordering parties. We have experience that we can share - Lenart points out.

Therefore, as part of the European Funds for Modern Economy programme , the "Innovative Public Procurement" project was created, which will last until 2029. Its aim is to implement at least 15 projects based on the PCP model - always in cooperation with specific public sector institutions.

The conversation was conducted during the 17th European Economic Congress .