Following a bumpy tender process that lasted nearly two years, the Recovery and Development Agency received two bids this month for the contract to construct the long-delayed new ferry terminal in West End.
One bid came from a joint venture of two local firms, and the other came from a Canadian firm, but the RDA declined to name either bidder for now.
“At this stage of the procurement process, the names of the firms would not be disclosed,” the RDA told the Beacon. “This approach is aligned with best practices in procurement and is designed to ensure a fair, transparent and impartial evaluation process.”
The bid opening at the agency’s office in the Cyril B. Romney Tortola Pier Park was led by RDA Director of Procurement John Primo and attended by representatives from both bidders as well as Caribbean Development Bank Contract Supervisor and Project Manager Sergio Dantas, other RDA officials, and representatives from the design consultant Inros Lackner S.E., the RDA stated.
Because the bid-opening — which was not open to the public — followed a “two-part envelope system,” only the technical submissions were opened for review, according to the agency.
Inros Lackner SE will now evaluate the technical proposals by early next month, after which the financial proposals will be opened, the RDA stated.
The public, however, will not be welcome at that opening either, the agency told the Beacon, citing three reasons for “maintaining confidentiality” at this stage:
• helping “protect the integrity” of the bidding process by “preventing any undue influence or external interference;”
• encouraging broader participation from bidders “who might otherwise hesitate due to concerns about public scrutiny or exposure of their competitive strategies;” and
• safeguarding “commercially sensitive information, both for the RDA and the bidders involved.”
After the tender process concludes and a contract has been awarded, the RDA will share “the relevant information in the interest of transparency and accountability,” the agency told the Beacon.
Tender delays
The terminal project is being funded through part of the $65 million Rehabilitation and Reconstruction Loan that the government obtained from the CDB after hurricanes Irma and Maria in 2017.
But the procurement process has faced various hurdles.
In May 2023, the RDA launched an initial prequalification process, and nine firms responded.
But the RDA and CDB reviewed the submissions and determined that none of them met the requirements.
As a result, all nine firms were disqualified.
Criteria relaxed
In August 2023, the RDA relaunched the process under relaxed criteria approved by the CDB. This time, four of nine bidders prequalified.
“I am particularly pleased to highlight that three local firms (one standalone applicant and two firms within a joint-venture application) were successful in the second round of the prequalification process,” Communications and Works Minister Kye Rymer said in October 2023 in the House of Assembly. “This underscores the ability of our local contractors to succeed in the competitive bidding processes.”
Mr. Rymer also said at the time that the full tender process would begin early last year. That didn’t happen as planned, but on July 30 the CDB approved bidding documents that finally allowed the process to proceed, the RDA said at the time.
Four shortlisted firms were issued bid documents the same day, and they were set to take part in a site visit and bidders’ conference ahead of their deadline to submit bids by Oct. 25.
Deadline bumped
On Oct. 18, however, the Oct. 25 deadline was bumped to Jan. 17 of this year.
“This extension has been granted to provide the shortlisted bidders with additional time to properly review the detailed specifications in order to submit comprehensive proposals in accordance with the project requirements,” the RDA announced last November, adding that bids received after the new deadline would not be considered.
Despite announcing the new deadline at the time, the RDA did not say whether the four firms were still in the running, and it did not identify them.
42,000 square feet
The new terminal will be 42,000 square feet and will have the capacity to process up to 200 passengers per hour, or 200,000 passengers per year, officials have said.
“It will provide a fast and efficient facility for immigration and customs processing, with separate handling for private and charter yachts, private boats and water taxis from ferry passengers,” Mr. Rymer told the HOA in October 2023.
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