Electronic auctions are a popular way to resolve various issues regarding public procurement or the acquisition of goods or services by various companies. The procedure is considered simple and operational, and does not require the investment of a significant amount of funds. An electronic auction allows numerous performers and producers to take part in it, which ensures freedom of competition in the country. The bidding process is regulated by Federal Law No. 44.
The concept of electronic auctions
This procedure consists in bidding using special trading platforms, abbreviated as ETP. This method of choosing a manufacturer or contractor is considered beneficial for each company and the entire state.
Process features include:
- on the online auction, all suppliers who canprovide the necessary goods or services;
- information about this process is published in the Unified Information System;
- participate in such an auction can be any interested person that meets the requirements of the customer represented by the initiator of the auction.
To participate in these auctions, you only need to competently submit an appropriate application at a pre-selected site. The selection of the winner is based only on the price offered, therefore only the company or individual that offers the lowest price for their services or products wins the auction.
Types of auctions
There are several varieties of such trades. An auction in electronic form can be represented by the following types:
- Basic or simple. It is carried out only after all available applications from performers or manufacturers have been studied. To participate in such auctions, all participants must submit applications, to which their documents are attached. The documentation should contain information that the performers meet the requirements of the customer. Be sure to indicate here the description of the subject of procurement, represented by a service, product or work. Additionally, there is information about the performer himself, so copies of constituent documents, permits and other papers are transmitted. As soon as all performers that are suitable for the existing conditions are selected, a decision is made on who is allowed to bid. A special protocol is published by the customer after summarizing the results, in whichpurchase regulations are written. On the appointed day, auctions are held. The winner is the participant who offers the lowest0 price. Federal Law No. 233 indicates that it is allowed to reduce the cost to zero, and then go up.
- A complex auction in which applications for participation in an electronic auction are submitted in two stages. It is considered specific, but more transparent, therefore it is highly efficient in use. Such auctions are held on the basis of the provisions of Federal Law No. 94. The essence of holding open auctions in electronic form under such conditions is that all participants submit an application in two parts. The content of each part is determined by the direct customer. Such auctions are held exclusively in electronic form, since only such conditions guarantee the anonymity of participants. After the decision is made, tenders are held. All companies participate in the auction in electronic form under certain numbers, so it is impossible to know their name. The winner is selected at the lowest bid. Further, the second parts of the applications are considered, where there is information about the participants, presented by their charters, permits, certificates and other papers. Some participants may deviate at this stage. The winner is the company that is allowed to participate in both parts and offers the lowest price.
Thus, each type of online auction has its own rules and features. Simple bidding is most commonly used, but large state-owned companies prefer to use transparent andefficient sophisticated auctions.
What is the auction step?
When drawing up the provisions on the purchase, the customer must indicate what the step of the auction will be. It can be presented in several variants:
- fixed, assuming installation of approximately 5% of the minimum initial price;
- floating, at which certain percentage frames are set;
- with a decrease in the step if there are no suitable offers, for example, if the rate is set at 5%, then if there are no offers, it is reduced by several percent;
- arbitrary number suggests the ability to reduce the price even by 1 kopeck, but this option is used extremely rarely, as this often leads to an artificial delay in trading.
Open auction in electronic form is most often carried out with a floating step, as such a solution is considered effective. The limit in this case can be not only in percentage, but even in the amount.
Trading time
The customer independently decides how long the auction will be held. There are two options for holding a trading auction:
- fixed time is set during which trading will be conducted, for example, the procedure starts at 10:00 and ends at 15:00, but this option is considered not very effective, since it is not always possible to get the desired result by the end of the process;
- an auction with an extension until the momentuntil the last bet is received, for example, the process starts at 10:00 and ends when the last bet is placed.
The selected option must be indicated in the provisions for the purchase. Additionally, it is indicated whether the auction will be regular or electronic.
Open or closed?
The electronic auction can be open or closed. Each option has its own nuances. In the first case, information about the auction is published on the official website of the enterprise, as well as on the selected electronic platform where the auction will be held. Under these conditions, each company can submit an application for participation in an open auction in electronic form.
If there is no publication of the auction in open sources and on the official website of the customer, then the company may choose to hold a closed auction. Under such conditions, the procurement plan is not included in the auction, and only persons who are specially invited by the buyer are participants.
Even when using an open auction, it is not allowed to publish in different sources information that is a state secret or included in information about purchases that have been decided by the Government. All this information is listed in Federal Law No. 223
Additionally, each customer has the right not to publish information about purchases if they spend no more than 500 thousand rubles.
Pros of open auctions
The organization of an auction in electronic form has many undeniablebenefits. The advantages of open trading include:
- even organizations located at a considerable distance from the location of the customer can participate in the auction;
- even foreign companies are allowed to participate;
- ensures a good level of competition;
- reduced opportunity for corruption;
- holding an auction based on electronic platforms does not require spending a lot of time or money on placing an application or bidding;
- even small companies can win big government orders;
- the possibility of using non-price methods of competition is prevented;
- all procedures are carried out in a short period of time;
- processes are open and transparent;
- all bids are confidential and the auction is highly secure;
- all participants have equal rights.
For many businesses, this way of participating in the auction is still considered unusual. Therefore, some firms are wary of the electronic form of participation in the auction. But usually, business leaders are aware of the convenience and attractiveness of this process.
When is it held?
All the nuances of this auction must be guided by the requirements of the law. According to Federal Law No. 44, an electronic auction is held by the customer if he needs different works, services or goods, and it does not matter which product classifier is installed. But atthis is subject to the limitations of this law.
There are some situations where you absolutely need to use electronic auction sites for purchases. These include:
- purchase of agricultural products;
- provision of services related to agriculture;
- execution of works related to the mining sector;
- purchasing food or drink;
- buying paper or computer equipment;
- construction works;
- purchasing medicines.
Each region may establish its own list of purchases or works for which it is mandatory to conduct electronic bidding. Even in the above list, according to Federal Law No. 44, an electronic auction is not always held. For example, it is not required to carry out it if it is planned to perform construction work under difficult or specific conditions. Additionally, this includes the purchase of food products for various educational institutions, since the management of such institutions may decide to hold tenders in which a limited number of companies will participate.
According to Federal Law No. 44 (Article 59), an auction in electronic form may provide for the possibility of applying various relaxations in relation to the obligations of bidding. For example, if a price is initially set that does not exceed 500 thousand rubles, then the customer can request quotations even if the auction being held is not included in the mandatory list.
Nuancesbidding on government orders
The state effectively uses various auctions to provide companies with government orders. Such activities are considered effective and beneficial for companies, and it even equates to various benefits or subsidies offered to businesses.
By law, customers represented by the state or municipalities are required to provide up to 20% of supplies to small businesses. This is because small firms can focus on specialized and narrow products and offerings, so they can deliver really high quality products.
Government orders can be placed by different methods, which include:
- trading represented by electronic auctions;
- quote request;
- purchasing goods from a single supplier or performing work by a single contractor.
The request for quotations is rarely used, since in this case the cost of the lot itself should not exceed 500 thousand rubles. For government orders, this price is considered too low. Tenders are held in the presence of specific purchases, for which it is required to evaluate not only the cost, but also other significant factors.
Therefore, affordable and easy-to-use electronic auctions are most commonly used. Not only do they save a lot of time and money, but they are also an effective method of fighting corruption schemes. Due to their use, high transparency of transactions is guaranteed.
Processholding an auction
The procedure is divided into several stages, each of which has its own nuances and peculiarities.
The companies themselves need to know how to follow the process to get a lucrative contract.
Auction search
Initially, firms must find the best options for applying. To do this, you need to go to the Official All-Russian website, where you can submit applications a week or 20 days before the start of trading.
An auction is selected taking into account the specifics of the company's activities, and the initial maximum price of participation is also taken into account. There are 5 electronic platforms in Russia: Sberbank AST, RTS-tender, MICEX State Purchases OJSC, State Unitary Enterprise Agency for State Order, Investment Activity and Interregional Relations of the Republic of Tatarstan.
Each site has its own list of auctions and the ability to search for suitable auctions.
EDS registration
To participate in electronic trading, a company must have an electronic digital signature. It is purchased at certification centers accredited to a specific electronic site where it is planned to participate in the auction.
Issuing an EDS is not considered a very complicated process, but it takes about three days. It is on the basis of such a signature that each electronic document can be assigned a legal status. Due to this, each participant has a financial responsibility for all decisions made during the auction.
Accreditation
The next step involves accreditation at the selected site. To do this, fill out the appropriate form on the website of the site.
The constituent documents of the company, the minutes of the decision and other papers are attached to the application. All requirements of the organization are pre-evaluated. Additionally, the browser is configured correctly.
Consideration of the application for an electronic auction is carried out within five days, after which access to participate in the auction is confirmed. If there is a negative decision, then it must be due to good reasons, therefore obstacles and errors are necessarily listed. There are no restrictions on the number of accreditation attempts.
After accreditation, access to the user's personal account is provided, with the help of which applications for participation in the auction are submitted.
Money transfer
To participate in the auction, the required amount of money in the account is required.
If small businesses are involved, transferring approximately 2% of the initial order price is required. In other situations, the payment is 5% of this value. Only if you have the required amount of funds, you can send an application.
Formation of an application
To participate in the auction, it is important to correctly form an application. To do this, all official documents on the site are preliminarily studied. The application consists of two parts:
- the first anonymous part includes the firm's consent to supply goods orprovision of services, as well as their characteristics;
- the second part includes information about the participant himself, so documents confirming the company's compliance with the buyer's requirements are attached to it.
As soon as the deadline for applications ends, an electronic auction protocol is created, which contains information about who is eligible to participate.
Direct auction
Bidders in the bidding process should consider how much time is left until the end of the auction, as well as what its step is. Each participant has only 10 minutes to decide on a price reduction.
Bidding will end if there is no better offer from other companies within 10 minutes. Further, a protocol is automatically compiled containing data on the best rates. All participants are represented by numbers, so it is impossible to understand which firm won.
At the end of the auction, customers receive information about the performer, for which the content of the second part of the bids is disclosed. The contract is sent to the winner. In this case, a guarantee equal to 30% of the initial maximum cost is provided.
Thus, electronic auctions are considered to be a profitable, efficient and reliable way to select a contractor for different orders. They are held only at a limited number of venues. To participate in the auction requires accreditation at the site. The process of participation in the auction involves the implementation of several successive stages. Bidding ensures fair and free competition betweendifferent companies.
