Procurement procedures: Water, energy, transport, telecommunications The Council of the European Communities adopted on 17 September 1990, Directive 90/531/EEC on the procurement procedures of entities operating in the water, energy, transport and telecommunications sectors. The Directive applies to contracting entities which are public authori... The Council of the European Communities adopted on 17 September 1990, Directive 90/531/EEC on the procurement procedures of entities operating in the water, energy, transport and telecommunications sectors. The Directive applies to contracting entities which are public authorities or public undertakings and deal with the provision of operation of fixed networks intended to provide a service to the public in those sectors, the exploitation of geographical areas, the provision or operation of public telecommunications networks or the provision of one or more telecommunications services. By "public telecommunications networks" is meant the public telecommunications infrastructure which enables information to be conveyed between defined network termination points by wire, microwave, optical means or by other electromagnetic means. "Public telecommunications services" are the telecommunications services the provision of which the Member States have specifically assigned notably to one or more telecommunications entities. The Directive deals furthermore with technical specifications and standards, the procedures for the award of contracts, and the qualification, selection and award criteria.
