P -- POLAND-ROKITA PROPYLENE OXIDE FACILITY CAPACITY EXPANSION FEASIBILITY STUDY

Notice Date

September 15, 2000

Contracting Office

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

ZIP Code

22209-2131

Response Due

October 16, 2000

Point of Contact

POC Evangela Kunene, USTDA, 1621 N. Kent Street, Suite 300, Arlington, VA 22209-2131, Tel: (703) 875-4357, Fax: (703) 875-4009

Description

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 to examine the technical, financial, economic and environmental factors surrounding the capacity expansion of Rokita's propylene oxide production process. A leading producer of propylene oxide/polyols in Poland, Rokita manufactures chlorine, polyols (including propylene oxide), pesticides and herbicides, and surface active and auxiliary agents (for cosmetics and household products). Polyols is Rokita's chief product and represents 30% of the firm's annual income. In order to maintain market share and profitability, Rokita intends to double its production of this compound. However, in doing so, Rokita must contend with the additional waste generated by this process. The current method utilizes a chlorohydrin saponfication process with calcium hydroxide. The waste product of this process is calcium chloride, for which there is a limited commercial market in Poland. However, if sodium hydroxide replaces calcium hydroxide, the saponification reaction will yield sodium chloride as a by-product. This is a more environmentally benign compound, which can also be recycled to the company's mercury power cells. In effect, conversion to a sodium hydroxide based process will eliminate the waste product of the propylene oxide production by providing a recyclable off-take product. The study will require a number of tasks, as follows: (1) Conduct on-site visits to Rokita for detailed examination of existing conditions of the existing plant facilities and meet with management to gather pertinent data and information needed to perform the study. (2) Establish a basis for the study -- feedstocks, products, utilities, battery limits considerations; also location, logistics, infrastructure and capacity. (3) Identify and evaluate available technology. Select the preferred option on the basis of cost, product quality, profitability, and environmental considerations. (4) Develop conceptual design documents, including plant layouts, process flow diagrams, equipment specifications, instrument diagrams, and preliminary Piping & Instrumentation Diagrams (P&IDs). (5) Generate overall heat and material balances for the selected option. (6) Prepare a preliminary equipment list and a construction cost estimate with order of magnitude plus/minus 15%, along with a list of potential U.S.-sourced equipment and services. (7) Develop capital requirements, operating and maintenance costs estimates, and a preliminary construction schedule. (8) Develop a preliminary project environmental assessment, including an environmental impact statement; and establish permit requirements and emission control technologies. (9) Develop an economic and financial analysis for project implementation, including both local supplied and imported equipment, materials and services. (10) Issue a final report that will serve as a bankable document and will be written in both English and Polish. The U.S. firm selected will be paid in U.S. dollars from a $300,000 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 the Definitional Mission 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 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 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, October 16, 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.

Record

Loren Data Corp. 20000919/PSOL001.HTM (W-259 SN497153)