Commissioning research capability, facilities and specialist analysis
Scientific research is bought in three distinguishable ways and the notices look similar. The first is a commissioned programme: the buyer defines a question and funds a team to investigate it. The second is access to capability -- beam time, vessel time, controlled environment facilities, computing -- where the buyer is purchasing time on an asset it cannot justify owning. The third is routine analytical service, where samples are sent and results returned against a method and a turnaround. Each has different qualification and different economics.
Quality assurance is the recurring requirement. Laboratories are expected to hold accreditation for the specific methods in scope, participate in proficiency testing, maintain traceable calibration and documented chain of custody for samples, and report uncertainty alongside results. For work that may be used in regulation or litigation, those requirements harden further and the reporting format itself becomes specified. An accreditation held for a neighbouring method does not satisfy a requirement written for this one.
Data and publication terms are as commercially significant as the price. Public and donor funders increasingly require research data to be deposited under open conditions with defined metadata, and require resulting publications to be openly accessible, which has cost and timing implications a bid should carry. Ethical approval, biosafety and containment levels, animal research licensing, export and transfer controls on materials, and access and benefit-sharing obligations for genetic resources are conditions precedent with their own lead times, and they are the usual reason an award does not translate into a start.
This section describes how this category is bought generally, across the public buyers that publish it. The figures elsewhere on this page are measured for this market alone.
Who buys scientific research in Estonia?
GlobalGov holds 107 scientific research records from 18 distinct buying organisations in Estonia. The most frequent publishers are Riigi Tugiteenuste Keskus (68 records); Tartu Ülikool (10 records); Eesti Energia AS (5 records); Välisministeerium (4 records); Regionaal- ja Põllumajandusministeerium (2 records); Riigi Infosüsteemi Amet (2 records). Between them the 6 largest account for 85% of everything published, so buying here is concentrated in a few authorities.
| Buying organisation | Records | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Riigi Tugiteenuste Keskus | 68 | 64% |
| Tartu Ülikool | 10 | 9.3% |
| Eesti Energia AS | 5 | 4.7% |
| Välisministeerium | 4 | 3.7% |
| Regionaal- ja Põllumajandusministeerium | 2 | 1.9% |
| Riigi Infosüsteemi Amet | 2 | 1.9% |
What are scientific research contracts worth in Estonia?
69 of the 107 records publish a contract value. The median is $183,600 and the largest single published value is $13.0M. By size, 15 under $100k, 44 between $100k and $1M, 9 between $1M and $10M, 1 above $10M. The remaining 38 publish no value at all, so every figure here describes the priced subset only, and values are as stated by the buyer rather than as finally awarded.
| Contract size | Records | Share of priced |
|---|---|---|
| under $100k | 15 | 22% |
| between $100k and $1M | 44 | 64% |
| between $1M and $10M | 9 | 13% |
| above $10M | 1 | 1.4% |
How long do bidders get to respond to scientific research tenders in Estonia?
Across the 56 Estonia scientific research notices that publish both a publication date and a closing date, the median response window is 32 days. A quarter of them allowed 30 days or fewer and a quarter stayed open for more than 34. Not one of them closed within a fortnight of being published, so the window on this market is consistently workable.
How often are scientific research tenders published in Estonia?
Estonia published 6 notices in this category in the last twelve months. Over the last three years there were 56, spread across 42 separate months of activity since 25 June 2021. January is historically the busiest month. No new notice has been published in this category since 6 February 2026, 237 days ago, so treat the figures above as a record of the market rather than as this week's pipeline.
How does Estonia compare with other scientific research markets?
Among the 21 countries where GlobalGov holds a comparable scientific research market, Estonia ranks 13th by number of records. The largest is Germany (1,240 records against 107 here). Within Estonia itself, scientific research is the 21st largest of the 41 procurement categories tracked here.
Where do the Estonia scientific research records on this page come from?
These 107 records are collected from 1 official source: TED (107). GlobalGov is an independent aggregator and is not affiliated with any of them; each record links back to the notice on its issuing portal. The set is rebuilt nightly, and the counts on this page were taken on 2026-10-01.
Most recent Scientific Research tenders in Estonia
None of these are open for bids now — they are the most recent records GlobalGov holds for this market, kept here so the shape of a typical scientific research notice in Estonia is visible. Set an alert to be told when the next one opens.
Estonia – Research and development consultancy services – Autismispektrihäire- ja kõne hilistumisega lastele ja nende peredele sihitatud sekkumiste teostatavuse uuring Sotsiaalministeeriumile
Estonia – Research laboratory services – Mulla ja taimse materjali keemilise analüüsi tellimine
Estonia – Research and development consultancy services – Maksupoliitika valdkonna uurimistöö ja teaduspartnerlus Rahandusministeeriumile
Estonia – Research and development consultancy services – Riigihalduspoliitika valdkonna uurimistöö ja teadusnõustamise partnerlus Rahandusministeeriumile
Estonia – Research services – Uuringu „Vikerforelli noorkaladele ohtlike bakteriaal- ja parasitaarhaiguste seire Eesti läbivoolsetes kalakasvandustes“ läbiviimine
Estonia – Research laboratory services – Mikroobse DNA shotgun ja amplikonide metagenoomse sekveneerimise teenuste tellimine
Other procurement categories in Estonia
Medical EquipmentSoftware DevelopmentVehicles and FleetWaste ManagementRoads and Highways InfrastructureVehicle MaintenanceLaboratory EquipmentOffice FurnitureArchitecture and EngineeringIct EquipmentManagement ConsultingAgricultural EquipmentHospital ConstructionFuel SupplyFood Aid and NutritionGround TransportPharmaceuticalsCivil ConstructionFreight and LogisticsUniforms ClothingTraining and Capacity BuildingTelecommunicationsStaffing AugmentationOil Gas UpstreamBuilding ConstructionRenovation RehabilitationBuilding MaterialsMaintenance & RepairFinancial AdvisoryMilitary LogisticsCommunications PrCatering ServicesMail CourierRoad & InfrastructureFacilities and CleaningCommunity DevelopmentPrinting PublishingResearch & DevelopmentWeapons SystemsAudit and Accounting
Scientific Research procurement in other markets
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