Today we have reached another milestone for the European Defence Agency with the launch of the second phase of the European Bulletin Board portal, which will extend the benefits of a more open Defence Equipment Market to businesses across Europe.
Since the new regime was introduced last July, we have seen more than 6.5 billion Euros of contract opportunities advertised on the EBB across the full range of defence equipment – the first time such contracts have been systematically opened up to cross-border bidding. But only the major defence equipment suppliers can serve as prime contractors for big orders.
The Code of Best Practice in the Supply Chain, which drives the principles of competition enshrined in the Code of Conduct, is a vital element of the regime on defence procurement. It encourages prime contractors to advertise sub-contracting opportunities openly and to consider bids from companies in all 22 subscribing Member States equally and according to objective criteria.
Small- and medium-sized enterprises, in particular, will now be able to look at business opportunities with major contractors in one place – on the EDA’s Electronic Bulletin Board. This will be a real benefit for them, addressing one of the main issues faced by smaller companies, and it will bring benefits for the prime contractors too by broadening their supplier base.
We are very grateful to the AeroSpace and Defence Industries Association of Europe for its cooperation in launching this initiative and for the support of industry, without which it cannot succeed. I was very pleased to welcome the ASD President, Mr Charles Edelstenne, to talk to the Steering Board about the project and to attend the launch and this press conference.
I would also like to thank Nick Witney and his staff at the Agency for bringing this project to fruition.
Because of the long lead times in defence contracting, we have not yet seen a big increase in cross-border contracts as a result of the EBB and the Code of Conduct. But the initial progress report for the first eight months is very encouraging. The launch of phase two, and the refinements to the regime agreed by Member States, make us even more confident that we will achieve our goal of strengthening the European defence industry by creating a transparent, open and competitive defence equipment market with increased opportunities for all.