Eng. Ary Haro Dos Anjos, Jr.; Companhia de Saneamento do Parana; Rua Tibagi, 294-8 andar, Curitiba, Paran=87, Brazil CEP 80060-110; Tel. 011-55-41-322-7767; Fax: 011-55-41-225-7986

B -- WATER LOSS REDUCTION PROJECT IN CURITIBA, BRAZIL POC Evangela Kunene, USTDA, 1621 North Kent Street, Suite 300, Arlington, VA 22209-2131, Tel: (703) 875-4357, Fax No.: (703) 875-4009 The Grantee invites submission of qualifications and proposal data (collectively referred to as the "Proposal") from interested U.S. firms which are qualified on the basis of experience and capability to develop a feasibility study for a water supply loss reduction project in the city of Curitiba, Parana, Brazil. SANEPAR, the Parana State water and sewage authority, is highly interested in addressing the problem of water loss in the State's water supply systems, especially in Curitiba. The project will entail testing for water leakage and where needed, rehabilitation of pipe, dealing with illegal connections, and replacing faulty or inoperable meters. Pipe rehabilitation will be performed using trenchless technology, thus avoiding major excavation work in congested urban areas. The scope of the feasibility study will include developing a good understanding of the water supply system in Curitiba, the design of improvements in the system, and preparation of a bid package for the implementation of a waterloss identification study and rehabilitation of the water supply network. The scope will also include the development of detailed cost estimates for rehabilitation by service area and a strategy for development of detailed cost estimates for rehabilitation by service area and a strategy for financing the project. The total cost of the study is estimated at U.S.$367,000. This amount will be paid to the selected U.S. firm from a 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/desk study report are available from TDA, at 1621 N. Kent Street, Suite 300, Arlington, VA 22209-2131. Requests for the RFP should be faxed to the IRC, TDA at 703-875-4009. In the fax, please include your firm 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 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 RFPs received before 4:00 PM will be mailed the same day. Requests received after 4:00 PM 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 selectedto 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 host country. 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 their Proposal in both Portuguese and English (two copies of each) directly to the Grantee in Curitiba by 4:00 pm local time, November 14, 1997 at the above address. 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. (0258)

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