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Preparing and promoting innovation procurement for resource efficiency

 

Specific Challenge:Through innovation-oriented public procurement, the public sector can foster lead markets and generate critical mass of demand for eco-innovative solutions, thus providing an important boost to resource efficiency and to waste prevention, reuse and recycling. Public purchasing of innovative solutions for resource efficiency and waste management and prevention has not yet been deployed on a large scale. It can lead to a sharing of the additional risks and costs involved in buying and using eco-innovative solutions and to a more rapid market uptake of such solutions. Barriers to public procurement of innovative solutions include the absence of cross-border coordination and lack of access to best practices and to knowledge of close-to-market innovative solutions. 

Scope:Proposals should lead to the establishment of a buyers' group of public procurers to overcome the fragmentation of demand for eco-innovative solutions for resource efficiency and waste management and prevention in the EU and to reinforce their early deployment. The buyers' group will be responsible for drawing common specifications (including needs assessment, financial modelling of different approaches market consultation involving the supply chain, drafting of specifications, risk management plan), and should prepare for a joint or coordinated procurement. The feasibility of launching a joint or coordinatedpublic procurement of innovation (PPI) should be assessed and tested. Preparation activities for the joint or coordinated PPI will be supported, not the costs of the procurement resulting from any PPI procedures.

Expected impact:Creation of a critical mass of procurers of eco-innovative solutions that would not otherwise be able to penetrate the market. Leverage of additional investment in research and innovation. Demonstrable contribution of public sector innovation and increased mobilisation of SMEs and industrial partners to promoting resource efficient products and services. Creation of new markets in the area of resource efficiency in the short and medium term. Movement from product purchase to service delivery.

Type of action: Coordination and support actions