THE SLOVAK Defense Ministry has signed a contract with BAE Systems, the winner of an international tender for a mobile communications system (MOKYS) for the Slovak army, the SITA news agency wrote.
The ministry has not disclosed the value of the contract, which is believed to be around Sk7 billion.
The bid from BAE Systems wasa chosen ocver that of the French Thales Communications in the final round of an international tender. The criteria included price and the logistical support offered for the system over its lifetime.
Thales challenged the terms of the final round of the tender. The Pravda daily reported recently that the Fench company criticized the Defense Ministry for changing the evaluation criteria during the tender. The company said that the main criterion for evaluating bids was originally price, but that the ministry subsequently added more points for logistics support such as services and employee training.
The French company argued that if the ministry had accepted its offer, it would have saved Sk1 billion. The ministry rejects the accusations.
