Bids invited for the building of three water treatment plants under $76.2M CDB loan

The government has approached the Caribbean Development Bank (CDB) for a US$76.2 million loan to build three water treatment plants in Regions Two, Three, Five and Six respectively, and is calling on contractors to submit bids for the project.

An invitation to bids published in yesterday’s Sunday Stabroek stated that the application for financing from the CDB was for “an amount equivalent to US$76,249.000” towards the cost of a Water Supply Improvement Project.

The Ministry of Housing and Water is responsible for the overall implementation with Guyana Water Inc being the executing agency of the project, which sets out strict requirements of the contractor. “… Submissions that do not provide the information required or that do not demonstrate the prospective contractor’s ability to perform satisfactorily, will not qualify and will not be considered for further evaluation,” the invitation to bid said.

The project is divided into three lots with Lot 1 being at Maria’s Delight in Region Two, Lot 2 in Leguan and Wakenaam in Region Three and Lot 3 in Bath, Region Five and Adventure, Region Six.

The advertisement explained that the work would “include but may not be limited to … the Construction of Five Water Treatment Plants along the coast (average plant size of 7.3 million litres per day).”

The bidding process will be conducted according to the procedures specified in the Procurement Procedures for Projects Financed by CDB (January 2021), as published on the CDB’s website and open to all bidders from eligible countries, with eligibility extended to include countries eligible for EIB financing which are not member countries of CDB.

The government informed that the terms of the agreement with CDB are that payments by CDB will be made only at the request of the government and upon approval by CDB and will be subject in all respects to the terms and conditions of the Financing Agreement.

“The Financing Agreement prohibits withdrawal from the financing account for the purpose of any payment to persons or entities, or for any import of goods, if such payment or import, to the knowledge of CDB, is prohibited by a decision of the United Nations Security Council taken under Chapter VII of the Charter of the

United Nations. No party other than [the Guyana government] shall derive any rights from the Financing Agreement or have any claim to the proceeds of the financing,” the advertisement stated.

Eligible countries are member countries of CDB. Bidders are advised to review the relevant eligibility criteria as detailed in Section 4 and conflict of interest provisions in Section 5 of the Procurement Procedures for Projects Financed by CDB (January 2021), as published on CDB’s website.

It said that firms, whether applying individually or in the form of a joint venture, shall “be legally incorporated or otherwise organised in, and have their principal be more than 50 percent country; place of business in an eligible country; or by a body corporate or bodies meeting these requirements, as far as the ownership can be reasonably determined and shall have no arrangement and undertake not to make any arrangement whereby the majority of the financial benefits of the contract, i.e. more than 50 percent of the value of the contract, will accrue or be paid to subcontractors or sub-consultants that are not from an eligible country.”

Eligible bidders will be required to submit full qualification information with their bids establishing their eligibility to bid and qualification to perform the contract if the bid is accepted.

Qualification requirements include, “a minimum average annual turnover of, for Lot 1 - USS4,400,000, Lot 2 USS4,400,000, Lot 3 - US$12,700,000 (defined as certified payment received for works in progress or completed) within the last three years. a demonstrable cash flow (including access to credit) of no less thanUS$900,000 for Lot 1, no less than US$900,000 for Lot 2 and no less than US$2,500,000 for Lot 3, and experience as prime contractor in the construction of at least three contracts of the nature, scope, and complexity comparable to the prop project activity within the last ten years for all three lots or two contracts for individual lots, each with a value outlined.”

Each bid is to be accompanied with security which for Lot 1, is $40 million or US$200,000; for Lot 2, $20 million or US$100,000 and for Lot 3, $40 million or US$200,000.

Bids are to be submitted by February 6 at 9 am at the National Procurement and Tender Administration Board, Urquhart and Main streets, Georgetown.

The government said that late bids will be rejected but it also “reserves the right to accept or reject any bid, and to annul the process and reject all bids, at any time prior to the award of the contract, without thereby incurring any liability to the affected prospective bidders or any obligation to inform the affected prospective bidders” of the grounds for its action.

The government said that it will also “not defray any costs incurred by any bidder in the preparation of bids.”

Last year June, construction began on an $847 million water treatment plant at Parika, East Bank Essequibo, that will serve some 12,000 residents from Ruby, going all the way to St Lawrence when completed later this year. At the time, six others were under construction at Onderneeming, Essequibo Coast; Parfaite Harmonie and Wales, West Bank Demerara; Caledonia and Bachelor’s Adventure, East Coast Demerara and Cummings Lodge, Greater Georgetown.

Then, the GWI had said that work will also begin on a new water treatment plant at Charity, Essequibo Coast; Leguan, Region Three; Wakenaam, Region Three; Bath, Region Five and Adventure, Region Six before December. In addition, some 12 existing treatment plants were being upgraded and work had started on the laying of transmission and distribution lines across the coastland.