French Trade Minister Franck Riester will travel to Brussels to participate in what could be the last inter-institutional negotiation meeting (‘trilogue’) on the International Procurement Instrument (IPI). This regulation should enable the EU to retaliate against countries that discriminate against European companies in their public procurement.
The meeting on 1 March had not closed off all the remaining discussion points, but had seen positions come closer together (see EUROPE 12902/28). The following questions were still open: - the thresholds above which public procurement is covered; - anti-circumvention provisions ; - exemptions for certain countries; - exceptions where the Regulation might not be applied; - the modalities for adjusting the score of candidates for public procurement; - the role of the European Parliament in launching an investigation.
Technical meetings have been held over the last few days to resolve these various issues and to announce an agreement on Monday 14 March. However, some highly sensitive issues are likely to be agreed at the last minute, including at the trilogue on Monday, according to an EU source.
For the French Presidency of the EU Council, it is very important to conclude these negotiations. The text has been blocked in the EU Council for several years. The Commission’s proposal for a regulation dates back to 2012; the institution having also proposed an amendment in 2016. (Original version in French by Léa Marchal)