According to the Government Procurement Law (hereinafter referred to as the “Act”), the lowest tender and the most advantageous tender are both permissible contract awarding methods. Entities conducting procurement for construction work should consider the characteristics of each case to choose an appropriate awarding method. No matter how a contract is awarded, contract inspection and acceptance should be implemented faithfully. The quality of projects should not differ due to awarding methods.
The Act originally stipulated that the most advantageous tender shall only be applied to cases with different qualities and not suitable for the lowest tender. With the changing circumstances, the Act was amended in May 2019, deleting the requirements (with different qualities and not suitable for the lowest tender) of applying the most advantageous tender, to simplify operations and formulate relevant administrative rules and reference principles for all procuring entities. For example, the Act recommends using the most advantageous tender for cases with large value or complicated conditions. Hence, the proportion of the most advantageous tender for large construction procurement (with a value over NT$200 million) has increased from 16% (2016) to 74% (2020).
The PCC will continuously assist entities in choosing contract awarding methods based on different case conditions, including the lowest tender with its score reaching the threshold score or the most advantageous tender. In addition, through the “Performance Records System for Public Construction Contractors” established by the PCC, entities can search the records of contractors (including subcontractors) participating in public construction works during the past five years and take into consideration when scoring. The suppliers with poor records can thus be excluded, while the well-performing construction teams can be selected for national projects.