Instituto Puerto Autonomo de Puerto Cabello Edificio Sede, Final Calle Puerto Cabello, Piso 9 Puerto Cabello, Estado Carabobo, Venezuela. Tel: (58-42) 61-85-92; Fax: (58-42) 61-84-96.

B -- PUERTO CABELLO EXPANSION POC Carol Stillwell, USTDA, Room 309, SA-16, Washington, D.C. 20523-1602, Tel: (703) 875-4357, Fax No.: (703) 875-4009 The President of the Instituto Puerto Autonomo de Puerto Cabello, Venezuela invites the submission of qualifications and experience statements and a proposal (collectively called ''Proposal'') from interested U.S. firms which are qualified on the basis of past experience and current capabilities to perform a feasibility study for the Containerized Cargo Terminal at Puerto Cabello, Venezuela. The objectives of the study are to evaluate the economic, financial and engineering feasibility of developing a port terminal for the import and export of containerized cargo; such study shall be of sufficient detail to be acceptable to financial institutions for the purpose of granting funds for the development of the terminal and for evaluation by potential investors for participating in the development of said terminal. Specific segments of the assignment will include the following: (i) Commodity forecast and demand analysis; (ii) Transportation analysis; (iii) Operations planning for the terminal; (iv) Preliminary engineering for new facilities; (v) Project phasing and optimization, funding requirements; (vi) Environmental analysis; (vii) Financial analysis. After completion of each segment of the assignment, eight (8) copies of the draft report shall be submitted to the Port for review and comment. Eight (8) copies and one reproducible master of the entire report shall be submitted upon completion. Three (3) copies of the Final Report shall be submitted to TDA in English for public distribution. The evaluation criteria for selection of the successful firm for performance of the assignment will consist of the following: (1) Past experience and capabilities of the firm and subcontractors, including a demonstrated ability to perform large multi-disciplinary port related feasibility studies and design; containerized cargo handling terminal experience; overseas experience with special emphasis on Venezuela or countries with similar socio-economic background; demonstrated ability to complete the study on time to parameters required by traditional lending agencies. (2) Special experience in cargo demand forecasting including assessment of macro economic influences and commodity supply and demand; strategic analysis; distribution patterns and related transportation analysis. (3) Special experience in port traffic studies; port master planning; shipping analyses; terminal; operations planning and management; institutional organization; tariff structures; environmental assessments; site selections; navigational issues; economic, financial and engineering feasibility analyses of port developments. (4) Professional staff qualifications and capability including experience directly related to the project scope; relevant experience in Venezuela or countries with similar socio-economic background. (5) Demonstration of the level of the problem(s) and responsiveness of the proposal to the technical scope and requirements of the project. Price will not be a significant factor in contractor selection except to the extent that it demonstrates an understanding of project scope and requirements. The Port reserves the right to reject any or all Proposals. The Port also reserves the right to contract with the selected firm for subsequent work related to the project. The Port is not bound to pay for any costs associated with the preparation and submission of the proposals or costs related to any interview during the selection process. Firms agree by their response to this announcement to abide by the procedures established for the procurement. The U.S. firm selected will be paid in U.S. dollars from a $460,000 grant to the Grantee from the U.S. Trade and Development Agency (TDA). A detailed Request for Proposals (RFP), which includes requirements for the Proposal, the Terms of Reference, and a background definitional mission report are available from TDA, at Room 309, SA-16, Washington, D.C. 20523-1621. Requests for the RFP should be faxed to the IRC, TDA at 703-875-4009. In the fax, please include your firm's name, contact person, address, and telephone number. Some firms have found that RFP materials sent by U.S. mail do not reach them in time for preparation of an adequate response. Firms that want TDA to use an overnight delivery service (e.g. Federal Express) should include the name of the delivery service and your firm's account number in the request for the RFP. Firms that want to send a courier to TDA to retrieve the RFP should allow one hour after faxing the request to TDA before scheduling a pick-up. Please note that no telephone requests for the RFP will be honored. Please check your internal fax verification receipt. Because of the large number of RFP requests, TDA cannot respond to requests for fax verification. Requests for RFP's received before 4:00pm will be mailed the same day. Requests received after 4:00pm will be mailed the following day. Please check with your courier and/or mail room before calling TDA. Only U.S. firms and individuals may bid on this TDA financed activity. Interested firms, their subcontractors and employees of all participants must qualify under TDA's nationality requirements as of the due date for submission of qualifications and proposals and, if selected to carry out the TDA-financed activity, must continue to meet such requirements throughout the duration of the TDA-financed activity. All goods and services to be provided by the selected firm shall have their nationality, source and origin in the U.S. or Venezuela. The U.S. firm may use subcontractors from the host country for up to 20 percent of the TDA grant amount. Details of TDA's nationality requirements and mandatory contract clauses are also included in the RFP. Interested U.S. firms should submit an original and eight (8) copies of their Proposal in Spanish and one (1) copy in English directly to the Grantee. Evaluation criteria for the Proposal are included in the RFP. Price will not be a factor in contractor selection, and therefore, cost proposals should NOT be submitted. The Grantee reserves the right to reject any and/or all Proposals. The Grantee also reserves the right to contract with the selected firm for subsequent work related to the project. The Grantee is not bound to pay for any costs associated with the preparation and submission of Proposals. (0290)

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