Judgment_paragraph 60 · Autorità Garante della Concorrenza e del Mercato - Antitrust and Coopservice Soc. coop. arl v Azienda Socio-Sanitaria Territoriale della Vallecamonica - Sebino (ASST) and Others (C-216/17)

60First, it follows from some of the other provisions of Directive 2004/18 that a framework agreement must, at the outset, determine the maximum volume of supplies or services that may form the subject of subsequent contracts. In particular, Article 9(9) of that directive, which sets out, inter alia, the methods for calculating the estimated value of framework agreements, provides that the value to be taken into consideration is the maximum estimated value net of VAT of all the contracts envisaged for the total term of that agreement. Paragraph 6(c), headed ‘Public service contracts’, under the heading ‘Contract Notices’ in Annex VII A to Directive 2004/18 also requires that the contract notice relating to such an agreement specify the estimated total value of the services for the entire duration of the framework agreement and, as far as possible, the value and the frequency of the contracts to be awarded. As the Commission submits, in essence, and as the Advocate General noted in point 78 of his Opinion, although the contracting authority that is an original party to the framework agreement is subject only to a requirement to use best endeavours with regard to the value and frequency of each of the subsequent contracts to be awarded, it is nevertheless imperative that that authority state the total quantity which the subsequent contracts may comprise.