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

B -- ALUM PLANT (URANIUM ORE LEACH FIELD REMEDIATION) PROJECT DUE 062800 POC Evangela Kunene, USTDA, 1621 N. Kent Street, Suite 200, Arlington, VA 22209213 1, Tel: (703) 875?4357, Fax: (703) 875-4009 POC Evangela Kunene, USTDA, 1621 N. Kent Street, Suite 200, Arlington, VA 22209213 1, Tel: (703) 875?4357, Fax: (703) 875?4009. Alumplant (Uranium Ore Leach Field Remediation) Project. 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 an alum plant. From the late 1960s to 1989, large quantities of sulfuric and nitric acid were injected into an aquifer in the North Bohemia region to extract uranium ore by a technique called Insitu leaching. The resulting acid contamination and associated contaminates in solution have created a plume in the lower aquifer comprising the equivalent of 24 square kilometers. In-situ leaching (ISL) is a technology applied to extraction of minerals without the need for overburden removal, using water, chemical and wells to selectively extract suitable minerals from permeable geological settings. ISL extraction generally costs less and is safer than other mining methods. However, the original concepts for ISL application were not environmentally friendly, particularly concerning the groundwater quality. The ISL practice at Strad pod Ralskem originated in the late 1960s, due to pressure from Soviet headquarters to accelerate the production of uranium. In 1994, Diamo was granted authority to proceed with a major investment for a processing plant to remove solids from the pumped ground water, which was polluted through the ISL process. The successful bidder was Resources Conservation Company International (RCCI) of Belleview, Washington, which received a contract for $42 million for the design and construction of the plant. The plant was completed in 1996 and has been operating since 1997. This portion of the remediation process is known as "Stage I." This process of cleaning the groundwater yields crude alum, which is not marketable. In order to make the crude alum (at least 100,000 tons per year) usable, it must be upgraded to a commercial product. Therefore another process is needed to eradicate the solids disposal problem and generate some net revenues from processing to defer the cost of operations. Now Diamo wishes to enter a Stage II development, which would involve the downstream processing of the alum produced in Stage I. Alum (composed of aluminum sulfate) is primarily used in water treatment, causing solids to precipitate and separate from the water. However, upgrading the alum production to commercial grade could exceed the European market needs. Therefore Diamo needs a global market study, including estimated transportation costs, to make decisions concerning the ultimate work off of the large quantities of low quality alum. The U.S. firm selected will be paid in U.S. dollars from a $255,000 grant to the Grantee from the U.S. Trade and Development Agency (TDA). The study is estimated to cost $305,000. The U.S. company is expected to contribute an implied cost share of $50,000 towards the study. A detailed Request for Proposals (RFP), which includes requirements for the Proposal, the Terms of Reference, and a background desk study report is available from TDA, at 1621 N. Kent Street, Suite 200, Arlington, VA 22209?213 1. 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 requestsfor 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 theirProposal in English directly to the Grantee by 4:00 pm local time, June 28, 2000 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.***** Posted 05/15/00 (W-SN454761). (0136)

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