The Finance Ministry is considering reducing median bidding prices for state procurements after statistics showed that bidders have been quoting 17-18% below the expected cost since the introduction of electronic bidding. Finance Minister Apisak Tantivorawong said the government had relied on e-bidding over the past three years. Speaking at the Asean Countries Public Procurement Knowledge Exchange Forum in Bangkok on Wednesday, Mr Apisak said the saving was the result of bidding prices being 17-18% lower than the set median prices. The Comptroller General’s Department may consider cutting the median prices for items where low quotes have been entered on previous consecutive bids. He said the private sector can offer lower prices partly because of the reduced global crude oil price.

Source: Bangkok Post November 15, 2017 09:11 UTC