2.9 The advertisement that the Agency published in February 1996 in the Official Journal of the European Communities generated 56 expressions of interest. From the 22 that replied to a follow-up questionnaire, the Agency selected a long list of 12 potential bidders.
2.10 When the Agency issued the outline specification in August 1996 to these 12 potential bidders the Agency provided them with the full details of the proposed order and scope of the transfer of IT services to the partner. In September 1996 six responded to the document. One proposed that the order be reversed. The other five had concerns about the uncertain scope of the IT services that the Agency would transfer.
2.11 We approached the potential bidders who did not respond to the outline specification for their views on the competition. Three told us that the Agency's proposed implementation of the partnership created considerable uncertainty about the scope of the services that would be supplied and said that the level of uncertainty did not seem compatible with the concept of partnership. Another potential bidder withdrew solely because it did not have the ability to exploit the Agency's expertise. One party withdrew because it had acquired one of the parties that responded to the outline specification.
2.9 The Agency's proposals for a joint venture company reduced competition and increased the procurement costs