This article examines the relationship between circular economy and public procurement by regarding green procurement as an enabler for the transition from sustainable to circular public procurement. Considering the different green procurement uptakes under the common legal framework of the European Union, and particularly, the contrasting practice results of Spain and Sweden and the opposed legal configuration of their procurement Acts, a comparative law study of the exclusion of suppliers, awarding criteria and special conditions of performance’s Articles is conducted.
The public sector is a key economic player in society with a significant purchasing power and therefore has the potential to promote societal change while maintaining a degree of control over use of public funds, transparency and fairness. However, current public procurement processes largely result in purchasing products and services through a generally more pre-planned and rigid type of process. In this paper we argue that the current public procurement process is not “fit for purpose” for a transition to large-scale circular public procurement which aims to optimise value retention. In order to overcome this, we propose a conceptual framework that could support public organisations in aligning the procurement processes and structures with the value propositions of their own operations. We suggest that intermediation is the key enabler for a transition to a more circular economy by stimulating innovation in public procurement and with an ecosystem perspective.
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