I-Rome: Operation of scheduled air services

Invitation to tender published by Italy, pursuant to Article 4(1)(d) of Council Regulation (EEC) No 2408/92, for the operation of scheduled air services between Albenga and Rome and vice versa

(2006/C 84/06)

1.   Introduction: Pursuant to Article 4(1)(a) of Council Regulation (EEC) No 2408/92 of 23 July 1992 on access for Community air carriers to intra-Community air routes, in accordance with the decisions taken at the Interdepartmental Conference chaired by the Region of Liguria, the Italian Government — Ministry of Infrastructure and Transport has decided to impose public service obligations (PSO) on scheduled air services between Albenga and Rome and vice versa.

The terms of these public service obligations were published in the Official Journal of the European Union C 83 of 6.4.2006.

Insofar as within 30 days of publication of this invitation no air carrier has commenced or is about to commence scheduled air services on the abovementioned route in accordance with the public service obligations imposed and without requesting financial compensation, the Government has decided, in accordance with the procedure laid down in Article 4(1)(d) of the abovementioned Regulation, to limit access to that route to a single air carrier and to offer by tender the right to operate the service commencing on the fifteenth day following award of the tender.

2.   Subject of the invitation to tender: The operation of scheduled air services on the abovementioned route in accordance with the public service obligations published in Official Journal of the European Union C 83 of 6.4.2006.

3.   Participation and tender procedure: Participation is open to all air carriers holding a valid operating licence issued by a Member State under Council Regulation (EEC) No 2407/92 of 23 July 1992 on the licensing of air carriers.

This invitation to tender is subject to the provisions of Article 4(1)(d), (e), (f), (h) and (i) of Council Regulation (EEC) No 2408/92.

4.   Tender dossier - concession agreement: The conditions for taking part in the tender procedure and the award criteria are set out in the tender dossier, which in all respects constitutes an integral part of this invitation to tender.

The concession of the service will be governed by an agreement based on a model which may be obtained, together with the tender dossier and any other relevant information, from the contracting authority at the following address:

ENAC, Area Trasporto Aereo, Viale del Castro Pretorio 118, I-00185 Rome. Tel. (39-06) 44 59 61.

5.   Financial compensation: Tenders must explicitly state the maximum amount of compensation requested for operating the service for two years from the scheduled starting date, giving an annual breakdown. The exact amount of the compensation granted will be determined retrospectively each year on the basis of the costs actually incurred and the revenue actually generated by the service, on presentation of supporting documents and within the limits of the amount indicated in the tender, as specified in the tender dossier.

The annual payments will be made in the form of instalments and a balance. The balance will be paid only after approval of the carrier's accounts for the route in question and verification that the service has been operated in accordance with the conditions laid down in Section 7 below.

6.   Fares: Tenders must indicate the proposed fare structure in accordance with the public service obligations published in Official Journal of the European Union C 83 of 6.4.2006.

7.   Duration of the agreement: The agreement will run for two years, starting on the date on which the scheduled air service on the route in question commences operation in accordance with the public service obligations imposed.

Proper compliance with the agreement and the carrier's cost accounting will be the subject of an annual examination in cooperation with the carrier. Any changes will require an additional agreement.

8.   Termination and notice: Either party may terminate the agreement before the end of its period of validity by giving six months' formal notice. If the carrier fails to comply with the public service obligations, it will be deemed to have terminated the agreement without notice if it does not resume the service in accordance with the public service obligations within one month of being served notice to comply with the agreement.

If, after the first two seasons of operation, less than 50 % of the capacity offered is used, the Italian National Civil Aviation Authority (ENAC) may reduce the frequency and/or minimum capacity laid down and adjust the financial compensation accordingly.

Failure by the carrier to observe the period of notice specified in the first paragraph of this section will be subject to a penalty calculated on the basis of the number of days of default and the profit or loss recorded on the route over the year in question. In no case will the penalty be greater than the amount of financial compensation referred to in Section 5.

9.   Failure to comply with the agreement: The carrier is responsible for ensuring that the obligations deriving from the agreement are strictly adhered to. Should the carrier fail to fulfil its obligations under the agreement or fail to fulfil them correctly, for reasons other than ‘force majeure’ or abnormal or unforeseeable events beyond the carrier's control, which it could not reasonably avoid, the agreement may be terminated subject to formal notice being given to the carrier within ten days of knowledge of the event.

After receiving formal notice, the carrier is allowed up to seven days to justify itself.

To ensure the continuity and regularity of flights, the carrier which accepts these public service obligations must provide a performance security with a view to guaranteeing the correct performance and continuation of the service. The security shall amount to at least EUR 800 000,00 and must be guaranteed by an insurance surety payable to ENAC (the Italian National Civil Aviation Authority), which may use it to ensure the continuation of the services concerned.

The security will be released if the outcome of the examination referred to in the last paragraph of Section 7, carried out upon completion of the agreement, is favourable.

The number of flights cancelled in any one year may not exceed 2 % of the total annual number of flights, excluding cases of ‘force majeure’.

The carrier must pay the regulatory body a penalty of EUR 3 000,00 for every flight cancelled in excess of this limit.

The agreement will be terminated automatically if the number of flights cancelled for reasons directly attributable to the carrier exceeds 4 % of the number of flights scheduled for the service concerned in any scheduling season. The agreement will also be terminated automatically if the tenderer's operating licence or air operator's certificate (AOC) is suspended or revoked.

If the agreement is terminated, ENAC may require the carrier to continue the service on an interim basis under the same conditions or until a new operator is selected.

Should the carrier be prevented from operating services on the routes in question on account of:

hazardous weather conditions,

closure of one of the airports,

issues of public safety,

industrial action,

security problems,

or ‘force majeure’,

the amount of financial compensation will be reduced in proportion to the number of flights not carried out.

10.   Submission of tenders: Tenders, which in order to be valid must be drawn up in accordance with the provisions of the tender dossier, must reach the following address no later than 60 days after the date of publication of this invitation to tender in the Official Journal of the European Union in a closed and sealed envelope by registered letter with acknowledgement of receipt, or delivered by hand with receipt:

ENAC, direzione generale, viale del Castro Pretorio 118, I-00185 Roma.

The date of receipt will be deemed to be the date of the postmark for registered letters and the date of receipt for hand deliveries.

11.   Validity of the invitation to tender: Pursuant to Article 4(1)(d) of Council Regulation (EEC) No 2408/92, the validity of this invitation to tender is subject to the condition that no Community carrier agrees to operate the route in accordance with the public service obligations published in Official Journal of the European Union C 83 of 6.4.2006 within 30 days of its publication and without requesting any financial compensation.