Court overturns Helsinki Port tunnel contract decision

The Market Court has annulled Helsinki Port’s decision to award the construction contract for a new port tunnel, Yle reported. The contract is valued at 200 million to 300 million euros.

Construction company YIT appealed the decision, under which Skanska was selected as the winning bidder.

The case concerned whether Skanska could have gained access to information in YIT’s bid before the deadline for final tenders. Disclosing the contents of a bid to a competitor can seriously undermine equal treatment in a tendering process.

As part of the bidding process, both companies took part in workshops held at Helsinki’s Olympic Stadium. During the workshops, the companies worked on tasks assigned by Helsinki Port.

YIT argued that Skanska gained an advantage because Helsinki Port had poorly arranged the workshop. According to YIT’s appeal, a Skanska employee walking past the meeting room used by YIT could have seen its plans through a glass wall.

Skanska was holding a rehearsal for its own workshop at the Olympic Stadium at the same time as YIT was conducting its actual workshop for the bid comparison.

The Market Court said that after the port and the bidders became aware that both parties were present at the same time, Helsinki Port did not require Skanska’s staff to leave. Instead, it only agreed on arrangements concerning the schedule and movement during the workshop.

The court found that there was at least a credible possibility that Skanska had obtained confidential information from YIT’s workshop and therefore from its bid. It concluded that Helsinki Port had acted contrary to the Public Procurement Act and annulled the contract award decision.

The ruling is not final and can be appealed.