Prior Information Notice - EU FAB+ capacity reservation for personal protective equipment (PPE)

HaDEA has published the Prior Information Notice (PIN) HADEA/2026/OP/0020-PIN: EU FAB+ Multiple Sourcing Pilot for Capacity Reservation for Personal Protective Equipment (PPE). 

This upcoming call for tenders aims at enhancing the accessibility and availability of medical countermeasures (MCM) in the EU/EEA.

The purpose of this call is to award contracts for the reservation of manufacturing capacity and vendor-managed stockpiles of nitrile examination gloves (Lot 1) and FFP2 respiratory masks (Lot 2).

The contractor with manufacturing capacity in the EU/EEA will be requested to set up vendor-managed stockpiles, including an associated priority right to purchase. Purchased stocks would have to be either replenished in the stockpile or, alternatively, give rise to an equivalent reservation of manufacturing capacity for the remaining contract duration.

The contracting authority and/or the European Commission must have the right to activate the right to purchase the stockpiled or manufactured MCM when deemed necessary for preparedness or crisis purposes. 

Each lot would be awarded to a maximum of three tenderers with each contract awarded lasting for 3 years (36 months). 

Purchase of the products in scope of this call for tenders shall be done by the contracting authority and/or the European Commission, if needed on behalf of any EU/EEA countries or any EU4Health associated countries, via a separate procedure.

Indicative budget: € 34 000 000 

Interested parties are invited to consult the EU Funding and Tenders Portal for the future publication of the contract notice and tender documents in May 2026.

Background

The COVID-19 pandemic highlighted the European Union's dependencies on non-EU producers of MCM, particularly from Southeast Asia. For many critical MCM, notably personal protective equipment (PPE), EU manufacturing capacities and availability of supply chain materials were not sufficient to meet European demand. 

In view of these challenges related to EU manufacturing capacities, the European Commission, through the Health Emergency Preparedness and Response Authority (HERA), has taken various actions to address dependencies and strengthen EU manufacturing capacities for critical MCMs. One key action has been EU FAB, which aims at reserving manufacturing capacity to produce vaccines in the EU in the case of a public health crisis. 

Inspired by EU FAB, the Commission is now expanding this model towards other MCM of interest. As a first pilot, in this call for tenders HERA is focusing on examination gloves and FFP2 masks. Both product categories experienced significant shortages during COVID-19 and remain essential for protecting healthcare workers and other critical personnel during public health emergencies.

EU4Health is the fourth and largest of the EU health programmes. The EU4Health programme goes beyond an ambitious response to the COVID-19 crisis to address the resilience of European healthcare systems. The programme provides funding to national authorities, health organisations and other bodies through grants and public procurement, contributing to a healthier Europe. 

HaDEA manages the vast majority of the total EU4Health budget and implements the programme by managing calls for proposals and tenders from 2021 to 2027.