A. The public entity desiring to let a public contract shall, in the advertisement for bids, designate the time and place that the bids will be received and shall at that time and place publicly open the bids and read them aloud; …

Based on the language of the statute, it appears that the bids must be opened and read aloud at the time and place advertised for the deadline for submission of bids. However, as there does not appear to be any court decisions or Attorney General (AG) discussing this issue, the public entity may consider requesting an AG opinion for formal guidance.