2. Identify economic operators and understand their role

2.1 Private or public operator

The operator is often a private entity, such as a trading company, an association, a craftsman or a liberal profession.

But it can also be a public operator, such as a local authority with its own specific equipment, which it has acquired for its own needs and which it can use to meet the needs of other local authorities.

No text or principle prohibits a public entity, by its very nature, from bidding for the award of a public contract.

Both types of operator - public and private - can therefore legally be in a competitive situation when awarding a public contract.