The Commission on Elections said Thursday that bid documents for the provision of an Online Voting and Counting System, or OVCS, for the 2025 midterm elections had been acquired by a company.

Comelec spokesperson John Rex Laudiangco identified SMS Global Technologies Inc. as the firm that bought the documents last Tuesday.

“As of now, there is a lone purchaser of the bid documents. Bid documents may be purchased until 8 February, the deadline for bid submission, which will be followed by the bid opening,” Laudiangco said.

“So far only one company has purchased bid documents. Several potential bidders are present here at the pre-bid conference which is being live streamed on the Comelec Facebook and YouTube Channels, plus on hybrid mode through MS Teams for the benefit of interested bidders who cannot physically attend,” he said.

The approved budget for the contract, or ABC, for the online voting system is P465.8 million.

Among those who attended the pre-bid conference at the Bureau of the Treasury in Intramuros, Manila on Thursday were representatives of prospective bidders Scytl, Makopa, Edge Com, SMSGT, Sisco, AMA group, Vohtz, Indra and Tambuli Labs.