Stadler takes Tallinn streetcar tender debate to Estonia's top court

Photo: Arvo Meeks / Lõuna-Eesti Postimees

The Swiss train and streetcar manufacturer Stadler Bussnang lodged this week with the Estonian Supreme Court an appeal against the Tallinn Circuit Court ruling which denied its plea for its offer in the Tallinn city transport company's public procurement for new streetcars to be declared consistent with the tender conditions.

The top court will decide in about two weeks whether or not to accept the appeal, a representative of Stadler told BNS.

The Tallinn Circuit Court ruled on February 18 not to satisfy Stadler's complaint against the Tallinn streetcar tender and upheld the rulings made by the Tallinn Administrative Court at the end of last year and on January 8 this year.

The capital city's public transport company, Tallinna Linnatranspordi AS, announced last summer an international tender to buy streetcars for route No 4 of the Tallinn streetcar system at an estimated cost of 44.25 million euros. The city wanted to buy at least 15 new streetcars and auxiliary equipment together with software. The transport company later declared the Spanish manufacturer Construcciones y Auxiliar de Ferrocarriles S.A (CAF) winner of the tender, rejecting Stadler's offer as not consistent with the terms of the tender.

Stadler challenged the decision with the public procurement dispute settlement committee in mid-November. The committee declared invalid the decision that awarded victory to the Spanish manufacturer along with the decision finding the CAF offer to be consistent with the terms of the tender, but did not change the decision of the transport company that found the Stadler offer to be not consistent with tender conditions. The committee's decision was upheld by the Tallinn Administrative Court at the end of December.