Posti floats tender for mail delivery services

The national postal and logistic services operator Posti has floated a tender for mail delivery services.

Through this tender Posti is going to initiate its first sourcing procedure for the five-day delivery of universal service letters in the areas that are not covered by its early-morning newspaper delivery service.

Interested companies can sign up for the competitive tendering process by using the registration link on Posti’s website from January 22, 2018 onwards, said a press release.

The amended Postal Act, which will enter into force at the start of July, requires Posti to put out to tender the five-day delivery of universal service letters—i.e., letters and postcards equipped with a stamp or other cash payment method—in areas not covered by early-morning newspaper delivery that has been agreed upon commercially.

The aim of the sourcing is to introduce new delivery activities in sparsely populated areas. In Posti’s view, increased cooperation in sparsely populated areas will be extremely positive.

“This is the first time we are organising a competitive tendering on the delivery of universal service letters under the Postal Act. The sourcing procedure has been assigned to Posti, and we want to perform this task transparently and impartially. We will develop the process further in the future based on the lessons we learn and experiences we gain now,” said Kaj Kulp, the Posti vice president responsible for the procedure.

The sourcing will not affect the basic delivery of newspapers in the sparsely populated areas. Newspaper delivery will continue according to the existing contracts.

Posti already employs more than 600 subcontractors in mail delivery and transport services. Most of these are small companies. Posti’s annual outsourcing volume is approximately EUR 200 million.

The areas subject to the tendering procedure are based on a decision issued by the Finnish Communications Regulatory Authority. The tendering covers more than 1,700 areas.

Companies willing to take part in the tender are requested to register between January 22 and February 8, 2018, using the registration link on Posti’s website.

After the registration period, Posti’s sourcing department will invite the companies to register with Posti’s sourcing portal, if the company is not already registered. The companies must register in the sourcing portal by February 28, 2018.

After this, Posti’s sourcing department will send a request for proposal to the companies registered with the sourcing portal. The request for proposal includes information on the areas and requirements.

At the end of the tendering procedure, Posti’s sourcing department will compare the tenders and award the contract to the most economically advantageous bid based on an overall assessment. Operations under the contract will begin on July 1, 2018.