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EU MOLDALIGN  ·  COMPONENT 2  ·  TERMS OF REFERENCE

Public-private partnership and concessions expert: support file on the legal framework

Activity 2.3.5 (support to the finalisation and implementation of the legal framework on public-private partnerships and concessions)

Version 2 of 4 November 2026 · Individual expert service contract (CPS EI), intermittent assignment

1. Background

The EU MoldAlign project supports the Republic of Moldova in its integration into the EU Single Market. Its Component 2, implemented by Expertise France, supports the reform of State-owned enterprises and the management of State assets, as technical assistance to the MEDD and the PPA. Its third output concerns transparent, predictable and efficient management of public assets: privatisation, restructuring, public-private partnerships and concessions.

A draft law on public-private partnerships has been prepared by the MEDD and submitted for consultation. It aims to modernise the framework in force and align it with the EU acquis, in particular Directive 2014/23/EU on the award of concession contracts. The consultation produced comments from national authorities and stakeholders, and from EU representatives.

In its action plan of October 2026, the MEDD listed this activity among its priorities for December 2026. The Component 2 roadmap therefore provides for a support file focused on the law and its implementing acts, to be handed to the MEDD on 18 December 2026, followed by support for the implementing acts in 2027, depending on the parliamentary calendar. The practical implementation framework (guidelines, procedures, standard contracts) belongs to a later stage.

Policy choices and the final drafting of the texts rest with the Moldovan authorities. The project provides them with technical support.

2. Purpose of the assignment and expected results

• Lot A, support file on the draft law (18 December 2026): the MEDD has a consolidated table of the consultation comments, with a proposed treatment for each; an alignment review of the draft law against Directive 2014/23/EU and the other relevant parts of the acquis; drafting proposals ready to be included in the draft; a short explanatory note for the rest of the adoption procedure.
• Lot B, implementing acts (2027, optional tranche): the MEDD has the list of implementing acts to be adopted, prioritised and scheduled, and the drafts of the priority acts, with their explanatory notes.

The file focuses on the texts. It covers neither the assessment of individual PPP projects nor the preparation of contracts.

3. Texts and documents to be reviewed

The expert works on the latest version of the draft law and on the consolidated versions of the texts in force published in the State Register of Legal Acts (legis.md), together with the documents provided by the MEDD and the PPA. The project provides working English translations of the Romanian texts.

The list may be extended at the request of the MEDD, the PPA or the Head of Component.

4. Activities

Lot A · Support file on the draft law (2.3.5) · 14 days

• Inception, within five working days of notification: review of the draft law and of the comments received, inception meeting with the MEDD (directorate in charge of PPPs) and the PPA (PPP and investment projects directorate), list of open issues and work plan until 18 December.
• Consolidated table of comments: for each consultation comment, its author, the article concerned, the proposed treatment (accepted, partly accepted, not accepted) and the reasons. Comments from EU representatives are addressed explicitly.
• Alignment review: concordance table between the draft law and Directive 2014/23/EU (scope, thresholds, definition of operating risk, duration, award procedures, publication, award criteria, modification and termination of contracts, remedies) and, for PPPs that are public contracts, Directive 2014/24/EU. The review also covers points the directives do not regulate but which determine the quality of the framework: feasibility study and value-for-money assessment, prior approval of the Ministry of Finance and monitoring of budget commitments, unsolicited proposals, transparency and publication of contracts, respective roles of the MEDD, the PPA and local public authorities.
• Drafting proposals and explanatory note: proposed amendments, article by article, ready to be included in the draft law; short explanatory note setting out the proposed choices and the points left to the MEDD's decision; presentation to the MEDD during the week of 14 December.

Lot B · Implementing acts (2.3.5) · 6 days · optional tranche

• Roadmap for the implementing acts: list of the implementing acts provided for by the draft law, level of the act, competent authority, order of priority and timetable, in line with the adoption procedure of the law.
• Drafts of the priority acts: drafts of the two implementing acts considered as priorities by the MEDD (for example the award procedure, or the feasibility study and prior assessment), with their explanatory notes and, where relevant, the concordance table with the acquis.

Expertise France confirms lot B in writing, in the light of progress in the adoption procedure of the law, by 31 March 2027 at the latest. If lot B has not been confirmed by that date, it is not carried out and gives rise to no payment. No work on lot B starts before it is confirmed.

5. Deliverables, timetable and days

Pace. The assignment is intermittent: about 14 days between notification and 18 December 2026, then 6 days in 2027 if lot B is confirmed. If the adoption of the law is delayed, Expertise France may, by written notification, postpone the deadline of deliverable B2 and extend the period of performance to 31 December 2027, within the number of days and the price set in the contract. The expert organises his or her time freely; no full-time presence is required.

Technical requirements. Deliverables are written in English and submitted in editable Word format. The drafting proposals of deliverable A4 are presented alongside the text of the draft law; their Romanian version is prepared by the project, with the Moldovan-law legal expert. Each finding refers to the relevant article of the draft law and of the directive.

Approval. The Head of Component 2 sends comments within five working days of receipt of each deliverable. To meet the 18 December deadline, this period is reduced to two working days for deliverables A2 and A3. Transmission to the MEDD and the PPA is made by the project.

6. Organisation of the assignment

• The expert carries out the assignment autonomously. The Head of Component 2 provides technical guidance and approves the deliverables; there is no relationship of subordination.
• The expert does not represent Expertise France, makes no commitment and signs no document on its behalf, and does not manage any team.
• The expert works with the Moldovan-law legal expert mobilised by the project (call 16455). The division of work is as follows: the expert drafts the support file (table of comments, alignment review, drafting proposals, explanatory note) and, if lot B is confirmed, the draft implementing acts; the legal expert checks its compliance with Moldovan law, its consistency with the texts in force and the legal terminology of the Romanian version, without producing separate drafting proposals. The MEDD receives a single file, handed over by the project. The expert sends the legal expert a working version of the drafting proposals by 11 December 2026 at the latest; both experts agree on the timetable of this review at the inception stage.
• Meetings with the Moldovan authorities (MEDD, PPA, Ministry of Finance, Public Procurement Agency) are organised by the project and held in the presence of the Head of Component or a member of the project team.
• Place of performance: Chișinău for the inception meeting, if possible, and for the presentation to the MEDD; the rest of the work may be done remotely. Practical arrangements for any travel are specified at the contracting stage.
• Communication: the expert makes no public statement on the assignment; all communication is handled by the project and follows its approval process.

7. Required profile

Minimum requirements (eliminatory)

• Master's degree in law, economics, finance or public policy.
• At least ten years of professional experience in public-private partnerships or concessions.
• At least two references in drafting, reviewing or transposing a law or regulation on PPPs or concessions for a public administration.
• Practical knowledge of Directive 2014/23/EU and of its transposition in at least one EU Member State or candidate country.
• Professional English, at least level C1.
• Be a natural person able to receive fees paid by Expertise France.
• Availability of about 14 days between mid-November and 18 December 2026.

Assets

• Command of Romanian, allowing direct work on the draft law.
• Experience in the Republic of Moldova, in an Eastern Partnership country or in an EU candidate country.
• Experience in managing PPP-related fiscal risks (Ministry of Finance approval, monitoring of commitments, statistical treatment).
• Experience of projects funded by the European Union or other international donors; command of French.

Independence

During the assignment, the expert may not hold a position at the MEDD or the PPA, nor advise a candidate, bidder, lender or private partner in a PPP or concession project in the Republic of Moldova. The expert signs a declaration of absence of conflict of interest and reports any new situation during the assignment.

Public officials. A candidate who is a serving Moldovan public official certifies that the assignment is compatible with his or her status (suspension of employment during the assignment, or an activity unrelated to current duties) and provides, where applicable, the agreement of the supervising authority. A candidate who has held a position subject to the declaration of assets and interests under Moldovan law certifies compliance with the restrictions applicable after leaving office.

8. Selection procedure and award criteria

The call for applications is published on the Expertise France GEX platform and circulated in the relevant professional networks. Candidates submit a CV, the application form and the sworn statement required for Expertise France individual expert contracts, certifying in particular that their tax and social security situation is in order. A shortlist of no more than three candidates is drawn up on the basis of the minimum requirements and assets. Each shortlisted candidate submits, by the same deadline, a methodological note of no more than two pages, focused on lot A, and a lump-sum price offer for each of the six deliverables. An interview may be held. Given the 18 December deadline, submission periods are short.

These criteria are communicated to candidates in the call for applications. Price is scored on the sum of the prices of the deliverables of lot A (firm tranche). The prices of lot B (optional tranche) are binding on the candidate and apply if lot B is confirmed; a lot B price that is abnormally low compared with lot A may be rejected or require justification.

9. Financial conditions, delays and non-compliance

• The price is a lump sum per deliverable; each deliverable is paid after approval.
• The number of days is binding on Expertise France. Additional days may only be added on the initiative of Expertise France.
• A deliverable that does not comply with these terms of reference is reworked by the expert, at no additional cost, within five working days of the request. Payment is suspended until a compliant version is submitted.
• Any unjustified delay may give rise to the penalties provided for in the contract. No amendment may compensate for a delay attributable to the expert. Repeated delays or persistent non-compliance may lead to termination of the contract.
• A delay attributable to the beneficiary, for example late transmission of the draft law or of the consultation comments, extends the deadline accordingly, after written agreement of the Head of Component.

10. Confidentiality and ownership of work

The documents provided and the work produced are confidential. They are the property of the project and may be used by the Moldovan authorities.