B -- JAMAICA WATER SUPPLY IMPROVEMENT PROJECT

Notice Date

November 21, 2001

Contracting Office

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

ZIP Code

22209-2131

Response Due

January 28, 2002

Point of Contact

POC -- Evangela Kunene, USTDA, 1621 N. Kent Street, Suite 200, 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 that will assess three priority water supply and improvement projects being developed by the Government of Jamaica's National Water Commission (NWC). The NWC is the major provider of water supply and sewerage services in Jamaica. The three projects are priority water projects for the NWC and fit into the national water sector policy and are integral in the Government of Jamaica's commitment for all of the population to have access to water by the year 2005. The feasibility study will assist the NWC with a detailed examination and assessment of the water supply systems and treatment facilities and to prepare an implementation plan for the NWC. The specific areas of focus for the proposed study will be improvement of the Stony Hill water supply, rehabilitation of a number of outdated water treatment plants and development of new wells throughout Jamaica. The first part of the study will assist with the analysis and prepare engineering and implementation plans for: expansion of the existing plant from 2 million gallons per day (mgd) to 3.5 mgd; construction of additional water storage facilities in the area; upgrading of transmission systems including rehabilitation/replacement of pressure controls, pumping stations and other components; and replacement of distribution mains in the Stony Hill area. Secondly, the study will assess up to ten water treatment plants to determine deficiencies and develop a plan of action. Inadequate maintenance throughout Jamaica on existing water treatment facilities have left the NWC with unacceptable losses and has hindered the ability to serve the Jamaican population. Therefore, the NWC has identified ten of the most dilapidated and critical water treatment plants and requires detailed assessments for rehabilitation as well as specifications for appropriate maintenance systems for each facility. The analyses will include: overhaul of equipment; replacement of unsuitable equipment with more current equipment and technology; replacement/upgrading of chlorination facilities; provision of process monitoring and control equipment including remote monitoring capabilities; provision of protective equipment and maintenance plans. Lastly, the NWC envisions that the construction and drilling of wells in various sections of the country will form a critical part of the NWC's water supply expansion strategy and thus have integrated well development as part of the study. The feasibility study will include detailed water resource assessments in order to identify potential sources and well sites and based on the results a well construction and development program will be prepared to include installation of well pumping equipment, connecting and transmission mains, as well as construction of water storage tanks. The U.S. firm selected will be paid in U.S. dollars from a $310,000 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 a background desk study 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 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 5:00pm, Monday, January 28, 2002 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. 20011126/BSOL005.HTM (W-325 SN5135S4)