PPA signs deal with France's Oberthur to produce IDs beginning 2019

The Police and Border Guard Board (PPA) and French company Oberthur Technologies signed an agreement on Thursday for the production of Estonia's ID cards, permanent resident cards, digital IDs and diplomatic IDs after the current manufacturer agreement expires at the end of 2018.
Oberthur Technologies will be responsible for the manufacture of the card and chip as well as and linking the document to personal data. It will also be responsible for the functioning of the card. The French company will manufacture and personalize the cards in Estonia.
The value of the five-year contract is approximately €40 million. Under the new agreement, the expenses of the PPA for the manufacture of the ID card will remain at the present level.
A tender committee, which in addition to PPA experts included experts from the Estonian Information System Authority, the Ministry of the Interior and the ministry's IT and Development Centre, chose the offer by Oberthur from among three different offers.
The PPA's current agreement with ID card manufacturer Gemalto AG runs through the end of 2018 at the latest.
Editor: Aili Vahtla
Source: BNS