The Finnish Environment Institute (SYKE) is responsible for organizing water management in Finland. As part of water management, SYKE organizes the monitoring of the status of inland and coastal waters and groundwater in Finland in accordance with the Water Management Act, to the extent that it is the responsibility of the state environmental administration. Procuring the processing and species determination of water biological samples from companies in the field is part of the task of organizing the monitoring of the ecological status of waters.
In 2026-2027, sampling services for monitoring will be provided to SYKE by two consortia of water research companies (four different companies). Sampling services will be produced in seven so-called procurement areas, which consist of combinations of provinces (former operational areas of the ELY Centers' environmental responsibilities). A map of the procurement areas is attached to this notice.
The Finnish Environment Institute plans to procure the water biological determinations for 2026-2027 by competitively tendering the services it needs in late 2026. The contracts are planned to be 1+1 years, with the actual contract period being the year 2027, during which determination services will be provided for samples taken in 2026. The year 2028 would be an option year, during which samples from 2027 would be processed and determined. The estimated value of the procurement exceeds the threshold for EU tendering.
The work would be divided into parts (sub-areas) by sample type and by forming "packages" of samples from the sampling procurement areas. The sizes and exact contents of the packages would be defined in the request for proposals, utilizing the results of this survey. Service providers would be selected based on price and quality criteria. A key contract condition would also be the delivery schedule of the results: suppliers in different sub-areas would be selected to guarantee the completion of the results within 12 months of sample delivery. SYKE's goal is to obtain determination results concerning ecological status faster than before, so that up-to-date information on water status is available more comprehensively than before.
The work would follow the method guidelines issued by the environmental administration for water status monitoring, which are attached to the end of this prior notice.
The procurement would possibly be carried out in two separate tenders, one concerning diatoms and phytoplankton samples, the other benthic samples.
This market survey aims to gather the views of service providers in the field on the planned procurement, particularly regarding the procurement criteria, the scope of the planned sub-areas, and the delivery time.
This notice is not a request for proposals, but a market survey to prepare for the procurement. The information provided in this prior notice does not bind the contracting authority in the tender phase., Diatom samples The planned part would include surface samples (diatoms) from river rapids and stony shores of lakes. The total number of samples in Finland is an average of 260 samples per year. The estimated number of samples nationwide for 2026 is 244 units.
The "Diatom samples" part would be further divided into parts according to sampling procurement areas (HA) in the actual request for proposals, according to the preliminary plan. The number of samples (per year) in these parts would preliminarily be as follows:
HA1: 68 samples
HA2+HA4: 56 samples
HA3+HA5: 51 samples
HA6+HA7: 69 samples, Phytoplankton samples, lakes The planned part would include phytoplankton samples from lakes. The total number of samples in Finland is an average of 565 samples per year. The estimated number of samples nationwide for 2026 is 579 units.
The "Phytoplankton samples, lakes" part would be further divided into parts according to sampling procurement areas (HA) in the actual request for proposals, according to the preliminary plan. The number of samples (per year) in these parts would preliminarily be as follows:
HA1: 183 samples
HA2+HA4: 152 samples
HA3+HA5: 130 samples
HA6+HA7: 114 samples, Phytoplankton samples, sea The planned part would include phytoplankton samples from coastal waters. The total number of samples in Finland is an average of 205 samples per year. The estimated number of samples nationwide for 2026 is 201 units.
The "Phytoplankton samples, sea" part would be further divided into parts according to sampling procurement areas (HA) in the actual request for proposals, according to the preliminary plan. The number of samples (per year) in these parts would preliminarily be as follows:
HA2+HA4: 122 samples
HA5, HA6 and HA7: 79 samples, Benthic samples, rivers The planned part would include benthic samples from stony substrates of rivers. The total number of samples in Finland is an average of 486 samples per year. The estimated number of samples nationwide for 2026 is 493 units.
The "Benthic samples, rivers" part would be further divided into parts according to sampling procurement areas (HA) in the actual request for proposals, according to the preliminary plan. The number of samples (per year) in these parts would preliminarily be as follows:
HA1: 89 samples
HA2+HA4: 124 samples
HA3+HA5: 128 samples
HA6+HA7: 152 samples, Benthic samples, lake stony shores The planned part would include benthic samples from the stony shores of lakes. The total number of samples in Finland is an average of 264 samples per year. The estimated number of samples nationwide for 2026 is 204 units.
The "Benthic samples, lake stony shores" part would be further divided into parts according to sampling procurement areas (HA) in the actual request for proposals, according to the preliminary plan. The number of samples (per year) in these parts would preliminarily be as follows:
HA1: 72 samples
HA2+HA4: 36 samples
HA3+HA5: 40 samples
HA6+HA7: 56 samples, Benthic samples, lake profundal zones The planned part would include benthic samples from the profundal zones of lakes. The total number of samples in Finland is an average of 662 samples per year. The estimated number of samples nationwide for 2026 is 660 units.
The "Benthic samples, lake profundal zones" part would be further divided into parts according to sampling procurement areas (HA) in the actual request for proposals, according to the preliminary plan. The number of samples (per year) in these parts would preliminarily be as follows:
HA1: 204 samples
HA2+HA4: 168 samples
HA3...
