B -- LEBANON:BEIRUT EMERGING TECHNOLOGY INDUSTRIAL AND RESEARCH CENTER

Notice Date

November 27, 2000

Contracting Office

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

ZIP Code

22209-2131

Response Due

January 15, 2001

Point of Contact

POC Evangela Kunene, USTDA, Tel: (703) 875-4357, Fax: (703) 875-4009.

Description

Mr. Kamel Hayek, Chairman-Managing Director, Investment Development Authority of Lebanon (IDAL), Presidency of the Council of Ministers, Nijmeh Square, Hussein El-Ahdab Street, Building 1145, Beirut, Lebanon, Telephone: (961-1) 983306/9, Fax: (961-1) 983302/3 B -- Lebanon: Beirut Emerging Technology Industrial and Research Center Feasibility Study POC Evangela Kunene, USTDA, 1621 N. Kent Street, Suite 200, Arlington, VA 22209-2131, Tel: (703) 875-4357, Fax: (703) 875-4009. Lebanon: Beirut Emerging Technology Industrial and Research Center Feasibility Study. 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 the construction of an industrial research center focusing on emerging technology in Lebanon. IDAL was established in 1994 by decree of the Lebanese Council of Ministers. The organization became fully operational in 1995 and its main function is to attract private capital investment support of the national development and reconstruction in Lebanon. IDAL has developed a conceptual project to build an industrial park that will be a location for the construction of telecommunications products and services. The industrial park will include manufacturing facilities for multimedia, computers, televisions, satellite receivers, audiovisual equipment, and other advanced communications products that will be sold in the Middle East. These manufacturing facilities will be used as final assembly plants requiring subassemblies and other materials to be imported from the U.S. Computers manufactured at this facility will contain U.S.-made components including software. The BETZ project represents a great opportunity for U.S. exports to Lebanon and the entire Middle East region. Because IDAL plans to use U.S. product content for the park's manufacturing facilities, U.S. exports would directly compete with European and Asian communications equipment which dominate the region. IDAL envisions the project to be developed on a BOT basis, where the selected investor will fund the project and receive profits for the rental of factory locations and/or from the sale of facilities. After a period of time when the investors have recovered their investment at a profitable rate of return, the park will be transferred to the Lebanese government. Once implemented, the telecommunications park would boost employment in the Beirut metropolitan area and generate additional tax revenue from the park's facilities and local industry needed to support the various operations at the park. The feasibility study for the industrial and research center project in Lebanon will focus on the following aspects: 1) determining the technologies that would be suitable for Lebanon overall and the park specifically, 2) clearly defining the physical infrastructure needed for developing BETZ, and 3) preparing the tender documents in a manner that proposes the most appropriate method for developing the park (public, private, or public/private partnership). The U.S. firm selected will be paid in U.S. dollars from a $226,160 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 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 mailed the following day. Please check with your courier and/or mailroom 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 P.M., Monday, January 15, 2001 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. 20001129/BSOL002.HTM (W-332 SN5074A8)