28.3.2014 Official Journal of the European Union L 94/1 (Legislative acts) | DIRECTIVES DIRECTIVE 2014/23/EU OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL of 26 February 2014 on the award of concession contracts (Text with EEA relevance) THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION, Having regard to the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, and in particular Article 53(1) and Articles 62 and 114 thereof, Having regard to the proposal from the European Commission, After transmission of the draft legislative act to the national parliaments, Having regard to the opinion of the European Economic and Social Committee (1), Having regard to the opinion of the Committee of the Regions (?), Acting in accordance with the ordinary legislative procedure (%), Whereas: (1) The absence of clear rules at Union level governing the award of concession contracts gives rise to legal uncer- tainty and to obstacles to the free provision of services () OJ C 191, 29.6.2012, p. 84. () OJ C 391, 18.12.2012, p. 49. (}) Position of the European Parliament of 15 January 2014 (not yet published in the Official Journal) and decision of the Council of 11 February 2014. and causes distortions in the functioning of the internal market. As a result, economic operators, in particular small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), are being deprived of their rights within the internal market and miss out on important business opportunities, while public authorities may not find the best use of public money so that Union citizens benefit from quality services at best prices. An adequate, balanced and flexible legal framework for the award of concessions would ensure effective and non-discriminatory access to the market to all Union economic operators and legal certainty, favouring public investments in infrastructures and strategic services to the citizen. Such a legal framework would also afford greater legal certainty to economic operators and could be a basis for and means of further opening up international public procurement markets and boosting world trade. Particular importance should be given to improving the access opportunities of SMEs throughout the Union concession markets. The rules of the legislative framework applicable to the award of concessions should be clear and simple. They should duly reflect the specificity of concessions as compared to public contracts and should not create an excessive amount of bureaucracy. Public procurement plays a key role in the Europe 2020 strategy, set out in the Commission Communication of 3 March 2010 entitled ‘Europe 2020, a strategy for smart, sustainable and inclusive growth’ (the ‘Europe 2020 strategy’), as one of the market-based instruments to be used to achieve smart, sustainable and inclusive growth while ensuring the most efficient use of public funds. In this context, concession contracts represent important instruments in the long-term structural devel- opment of infrastructure and strategic  services, contributing to the progress of competition within the internal market, making it possible to benefit from private sector expertise and helping to achieve efficiency and innovation.