The public tender for purchasing 300 buses for GSP Belgrade (130 articulated and 170 solo buses) has been extended for the sixth time, now until June 9, following a request from the company Higer to secure bank guarantees.
Originally launched in February, the tender deadlines have been repeatedly postponed: the initial deadline was March 25, then extended multiple times — for articulated buses to March 31, April 22, May 19, and for solo buses to April 17, April 22, and May 19. The most recent extension before this was to June 2 and June 3 for solo and articulated buses, respectively.
Delays have been linked to leasing companies’ reluctance to finance the purchase due to the unstable economic and political situation, poor creditworthiness of GSP, outstanding debts, and late payments. To address this, the city has started guaranteeing GSP’s current operations with blank promissory notes, as allowed by amendments to the city transport service contract.
In addition to deadline changes, tender documentation has been updated. For articulated buses, some disqualifying criteria related to previous contract violations and false data were removed. Contractual terms about leasing maintenance, penalties for delayed delivery, and financial guarantees were also revised. For solo buses, technical specifications and delivery deadlines were updated accordingly.
