Key points — for anyone with 30 seconds
- 01A sustainability declaration up front is barely verifiable; a requirement on the evidence during the works is.
- 02Write it functionally and supplier-neutral ("demonstrable origin of the energy used, per delivery"), not around a brand or a technique.
- 03Ask for an evidence file per delivery with origin, quantity and use; that lets you enforce on data instead of on spot checks.
- 04Start small: one project or concession with chain evidence as a desirable criterion shows what the market can already do.
§ 01Why a declaration up front isn't enough
Most tenders ask bidders to declare that they work sustainably: HVO in the machinery, renewable electricity on site, a low-emission method statement. That declaration is assessed up front and rarely checked again afterwards. What actually goes into the tank or the installation during the works stays out of sight. Awarding on a declaration is awarding on trust.
That's fine as long as everyone sticks to the declaration. It becomes a problem once the ambition in the policy is firmer than what you can show afterwards: then a fossil-free construction site appears in the annual report with no evidence file behind it.
§ 02What makes a requirement checkable
The difference isn't in the ambition but in the timing and the form of the evidence. Three features make a sustainability requirement checkable:
- Evidence during the work, not only up front. Ask for a record per delivery: what was delivered, where it came from, where it was used.
- Worded functionally. "Demonstrable origin of the energy used" instead of a brand, a fuel or a technology. That keeps the requirement supplier-neutral and proportionate, and within the framework of the Dutch Public Procurement Act (Aanbestedingswet) and the European directive. [1] [2]
- Testable against data. An evidence file per delivery makes it possible to enforce on what was actually used, instead of on a sample or a statement.
PIANOo's criteria tool for socially responsible procurement (MVI-criteriatool) contains example wordings for environmental requirements per product group and helps you word a requirement so that it relates to the subject-matter of the contract. [3]
§ 03From ambition to award criterion in four steps
- An exploration with procurement, sustainability and project management. Where in your tenders and concessions can proof of origin play a role: road maintenance, temporary accommodation, events, your own infrastructure projects?
- Word the criterion functionally. As a requirement, as an award criterion or as a contract performance condition, depending on how much weight you want it to carry. The final check is with your own lawyer.
- Let the market demonstrate instead of promise. Tenderers who genuinely deliver sustainably can show it with an evidence file. Those who can't, drop out before award instead of after.
- Checks through the evidence file during the project. For each delivery you can see what was actually used.
The difference between a statement and a requirement is what you have in hand afterwards.
Core of this article§ 04Starting small
A requirement the whole market has to meet at once often holds more back than it delivers. One project or one concession with proof of origin as a preference (not as a requirement) shows what the market can already do, without putting the schedule at risk. After that you know how much weight the criterion can carry in the next round.
Municipal depots, temporary accommodation and your own infrastructure projects are the places to set the example yourself: the same requirement, the same evidence file, on your own sites.
§ 05What this means for the Powercrumbs chain
This article is about the requirement, not about a supplier. The Powercrumbs chain is set up for exactly this question: an origin marker per delivery, a delivery log and metered consumption on site, bundled into an evidence file the client can read without explanation. How that file is built up is on the proof page; how the chain works is on How it works.
§ 06References
- Aanbestedingswet 2012 — The Dutch legal framework for setting requirements, award criteria and contract performance conditions in public contracts, including the scope for environmental requirements that relate to the subject-matter of the contract.Legislation and regulation · primaryPrimary
- Directive 2014/24/EU — The European public procurement directive: technical specifications, labels and contract performance conditions may relate to the production process and the life cycle, provided they are linked to the subject-matter of the contract and proportionate.Regulation · primaryPrimary
- PIANOo — The Dutch public procurement expertise centre of the Ministry of Economic Affairs: guidance and the criteria tool for socially responsible procurement (MVI-criteriatool), with example requirements and award criteria per product group.Expertise centre · nlHigh
Full references (titles, dates, links) to follow.
About the author
Arjen Market and regulation
Arjen works on market and regulation at Powercrumbs: tenders, RED III and CSRD, and what of that ends up in a contract.
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