Works 'near a river' are not similar to riverside wall construction — not even if the stakeholders and water management are identical
The Council of State rejects the suspension: SPI was entitled to consider that sinking shafts beneath the Ourthe are not 'similar works' to the construction of a quayside wall along a watercourse, even though both sites involved the same type of river environment.
What happened?
SPI, the development agency for the Province of Liège, launched a works contract on 27 February 2024 for rebuilding the banks of the Vesdre basin in Theux — a 'Quick-Win' from the 2021 flood recovery programme. The selection criterion required at least one similar works reference of ≥€900,000 excl. VAT from the past five years. The consortium TEGEC-R.G.-TRAGECO submitted a reference for replacing water pipelines beneath the Ourthe via horizontal boring shafts. SPI rejected the reference, stating that those works mainly consisted of sinking shafts located outside the river bed and concerned natural banks, not the construction of a quay wall. A second reference for ongoing works at Quai Borguet was rejected for lack of a completion certificate. The contract was awarded to SM N.F.-COMUREX, which had references for urgent riverbank securing works with 2.50 m walls on submerged concrete footings. The Council of State rejected the suspension application: 'similar works' means similar by characteristics of execution, not by geographical environment or shared stakeholders. The contracting authority enjoys broad discretion and made no manifest error.
Why does this matter?
The 'similar works' criterion is one of the most contested selection points in works procurement. Bid managers often stretch references based on superficial similarity — 'we worked by a river too', 'we used concrete too'. This judgment confirms that the contracting authority may focus on the nature and characteristics of the works themselves, not on the environment or organisational context.
The lesson
When submitting a reference for a 'similar works' criterion, check whether the CHARACTERISTICS of execution match what the specifications describe — not whether the environment, stakeholders or materials look similar. And never refer to ongoing works without a completion certificate, even if the contracting authority is its own client.
Ask yourself
Can you list, on a blank sheet, three to five characteristics of each of your reference works that are identical or highly similar to the required works — and do these concern the technical nature of execution, not the environment? If not, find a better reference or explain the parallel explicitly before the contracting authority asks.
About this database
The Council of State (Raad van State / Conseil d'État) is Belgium's supreme administrative court. In disputes over public procurement — from contract awards to tenderer exclusions — the Council of State is the final arbiter. The rulings in this database are summarised by TenderWolf in plain language, with practical lessons for tenderers and contracting authorities. View all rulings →