In Gaspésie, public calls for tenders draw fewer bidders
Fewer bidders per call than elsewhere in Quebec, and more calls with a single bid: what the review measures in Gaspésie–Îles-de-la-Madeleine.
By Philippe Dallaire, founder ·
The public procurement review counts, region by region, how many firms answer public calls for tenders. In 2024 and 2025, Gaspésie–Îles-de-la-Madeleine was, with the Côte-Nord and Abitibi-Témiscamingue, one of the regions where they were fewest.
Fewer bidders per call
Of the 497 public calls that closed in 2024 and 2025 on notices naming only the region, 32% drew a single bid. For all of Quebec, it is 18%. A call there draws 2.7 bidders on average, against 4.0 across Quebec.
What the review does not say
The review counts bids; it does not say why there are few. A single bid says nothing about how a contract was awarded: it says how many firms answered. In a large, thinly populated region, two things likely weigh: how many firms are based there for each kind of work, and distance, which a firm from outside has to price in.
Otherwise, a market like the others
The share of awarded processes given by gré à gré is 61%, close to all of Quebec (62%). A gré à gré contract awarded below the public-tender threshold is lawful. The median contract is smaller: $57K, against $69K for Quebec.
For a bidder
Where competitors are scarce, a firm that bids is more likely to find itself alone, or nearly, on a call. It is also a market where a firm from outside has a place, if it prices the travel from the start rather than finding it after the award.