USTDA, 1621 N. Kent Street, Suite 200, Arlington, VA 22209-2131

A -- BOSNIA AND HERZEGOVINA -- CABLE TELEVISION AND RELATED TELECOMMUNICATIONS SERVICES FEASIBILITY STUDY DUE 121599 POC Evangela Kunene, Tel:703-875-4357, Fax:703-875-4009, e-mail:ekunene@tda.gov 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 cable television project in Bosnia and Herzegovina. The Grantee, Public Enterprise PTT Bosnia and Herzegovina (PTTBiH), prior to the war, had developed a very up-to-date telecommunication network in Sarajevo that included modern switching equipment and fiber optic transmission. This communication system was extended to major cities in BiH to provide high quality telephone services. The war was responsible for major destruction of this network. Two major switching systems in Sarajevo were completely destroyed and the transmission infrastructure within in the country heavily damaged. Prior to the end of the war, BiH was totally cut off from any outside connections due to destroyed transmission lines and circuits. PTTBiH has not yet fully recovered from this damage to their network after 4 years of reconstruction. As PTTBiH rebuilds their network, however, it will be easy to install new service offerings, such as cable television services. PTTBiH would like a study to help them develop a business plan that will define appropriate technologies and evaluate market demand for cable television services. The study will also suggest what transmission technology should be used to deliver these services to their existing and future potential subscribers. This project will be separated into two tasks: a Phase I Feasibility Study and a Phase II Pilot Project. This Request for Proposals is limited to the selection of a Phase I Feasibility Study Contractor. The Phase I Feasibility Study Contractor will define the potential market for cable television services and prepare the technical parameters for the Pilot Project to be conducted in Phase II. The Phase I Contractor will serve as advisor to the Grantee during the selection of the Phase II Contractor and during implementation of the Pilot Project. The feasibility study will include the following tasks: 1) Market Study: Definition of Service Areas and Offerings 2) Examination of Existing Network Distribution Facilities 3) Technical Design and Alternative Design Approaches 4) Technical Design of PTTBiH Cable Television Network and Procurement Specifications 5) Budget and Schedule Recommendations The final feasibility study report will address the information uncovered in each task and include the following: 1. Preliminary Subscriber and Service Offering Recommendations 2. Alternative Technology Approach for the design of CATV network 3. Preliminary Recommendations for CATV Network Design including trade-off analysis of traditional co-ax overlay vs. IP Bandwidth on Demand technology. PTTBiH shall provide direction as to what technology shall be used for the following reports 4. Technical Network Evaluation and Preliminary recommendations 5. Technical Design and Approach for CATV system including subscriber interface and associated equipment recommendations 6. Technical Specifications for equipment and systems that will be procured in the Phase II project. 7. Budget and Schedule Recommendations 8. A Report that shall make recommendations as to whether a new company should be formed and how the new company should be organized. 9. Final Report with recommendations on design and implementation of CATV system The U.S. firm selected will be paid in U.S. dollars from a $199,265 grant to the Grantee from the U.S. Trade and Development Agency (TDA). Note: As currently envisioned, the Phase II Pilot Project will have a budget of no greater than $879,800. TDA will contribute $439,900 towards the Phase II Pilot Project, with a U.S. equipment vendor (Phase II Contractor) expected to provide up to $439,900 in cost-sharing. At a later date, the Grantee will negotiate a separate contract with a Phase II Contractor. 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 1621 N. Kent Street, Suite 200, 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 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 mailedthe 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 4:00PM, December 15, 1999, at the above address. Evaluation criteria for the Proposal are included in the RFP. The proposal shall consist of a technical proposal. Although cost will not be a factor in the evaluation, cost proposals must be submitted for the purpose of evaluating proposed allotments of resources for the feasibility study. 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.***** Posted 11/05/99 (W-SN398568). (0309)

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