Contact: Mr. Gabriel Grecu, Director General for Regulation, Bd. Libertatii, 14, 70060 Bucharest, Romania, Phone: 011-401-400-1734, Fax: 011-401-312-5642

R -- ROMANIA -- TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE FOR THE DEVELOPMENT OF A TELECOMMUNICATIONS INTERCONNECTION POLICY AND FRAMEWORK POC Evangela Kunene, USTDA, 1621 N. Kent Street, Suite 300, Arlington, VA 22209-2131, Tel: (703) 875-4357, Fax: (703) 875-4009 Technical Assistance for the Development of a Telecommunications Interconnection Policy and Framework for Romania. 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 provide technical assistance to Romania's Ministry of Communications for the development of a framework for Rom-Telecom that will allow it to provide effective, compensatory interconnection to other telecommunications services providers in Romania. Although the government of Romania has passed legislation that calls for a more competitive market, significant barriers have emerged to stall real competition. U.S. telecommunications companies are involved in the recently announced GSM consortiums, and new licenses are upcoming. However, companies cannot form a viable enterprise until a fair and open interconnection agreement can be established with Rom-Telecom. Presently the two GSM companiesare operating under a special decree issued by the Minister of Communications that mandated interconnection at an arbitrarily chosen rate. This decree expires in June 1998. Therefore, there is an urgent need to develop a transparent and non-discriminatory interconnection policy framework which will set the ground rules for all companies seeking to enter Romania's telecommunications network. The objective of the project is to establish transparent, non-discriminatory and cost reflective interconnection charges for implementation by 1998. This grant will provide the framework and formula for interconnections. The technical assistance scope of work follows: -- Perform an assessment of the current telecommunications environment in Romania; -- Define interconnection service offerings to be provided by Rom-Telecom; -- Assess and review current available cost information from Rom-Telecom, existing services provided, and current organization of cost accounting/allocation functions; -- Review Rom-Tel's current interconnection contracts and compare to international interconnection contract standards; -- Develop model interconnection contracts based on Rom-Tel's and industry requirements using international comparison models; and -- Develop processes for the timely and appropriate resolution of interconnection disputes. These processes may include external arbitration of interconnection disputes or de facto arbitration by the Ministry of Communications. The U.S. firm selected will be paid in U.S. dollars from a $234,800 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's name, contact person, address, and telephone number. Some firmshave 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 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 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 English directly to the Grantee by 4:00 PM, January 12, 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. (0311)

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