A German government is set to accelerate military procurement by streamlining the acquisition process, with a new law expected to be passed on July 16. The bill, a follow-up to a previous one, aims to reduce the time it takes for the Bundeswehr to acquire new equipment and services.
According to Annette Lehnigk-Emden, the president of the Federal Office for Equipment, Information Technology and in-Service Support, the new law will shorten the legal appeal process, allowing for faster procurement. She explained that, in the future, if a court rules in the first instance that the procurement process was fair, the losing bidder will no longer be able to delay the process by appealing.
Furthermore, the new law will introduce simpler and faster procurement rules for the entire Bundeswehr, not just for military equipment, as it is often the case today. This is because the Bundeswehr also purchases civilian goods that are subject to stricter procurement criteria.
Additionally, the new law will eliminate the requirement for the procurement agency to have a specific budget allocation in place before approaching companies for bids. This change is expected to further accelerate the procurement process.
The Bundeswehr has already made progress in streamlining its procurement process, with the average time it takes to close a deal reduced by 30% since the introduction of previous measures. Last year, the office concluded 12,142 new procurement contracts worth a total of 36.7 billion euros, with an average of 33 deals per day.