Invitation for Bids (Rebidding)
Date:3 December 2008
TA No.:4989-IND: Deploying Innovative ICT for Supporting e-Governance in Assam
Contract Title:Design, Supply, Install and Commission the Broadband over Power Line (BPL) based on Internet Connectivity in a Pilot location in Assam India
Deadline for Bids:16:00 hours Local Time on 16 January 2009

1.    India has received a technical assistance grant from the Asian Development Bank (ADB) towards the cost of setting up of pilot project for last mile connectivity based on Broadband over Power Line (BPL) to demonstrate internet services in the selected location nearby Guwahati Assam, India.

2.    Assam Electronics Development Corporation Limited (AMTRON), represented by Managing Director on behalf of the state government of Assam as well as ADB will invite Bids for the works given below. Bidding is open to bidders from eligible source countries of ADB who fulfill qualification requirements given in Section 3 of Bidding Document, briefly stated below.

3.     The main objective of the Project is to demonstrate last mile connectivity based on Broadband over Power Line (BPL) utilizing the existing low voltage electricity network (below 650 Volts) to enable provision of e-Governance services. The pilot project would be executed on a turnkey basis by the selected solution provider who shall design, supply, install and commission the entire range of hardware, networking, software and support services required to provide the BPL based internet. The BPL internet will be utilized to deliver different business to business (B2B), business to citizen (B2C) and e-Governance services, along with other value added services such as Automatic Meter Reading (AMR), IP Phones etc. to 200 users spread over a defined and limited geographical area within Sualkuchi.

Name of Work Qualification Requirement

a) Design, supply, installation and commissioning of equipment required for the BPL connectivity and demonstration of internet connection for around 200 consumers in the identified location based on the existing power network;

b) Setting up a fully functional central laboratory and/or control room, with the necessary hardware, software, networking and services, for the monitoring the network and AMR operations;

c) Operating and maintaining the network including 3 years warranty;

d) Management and supervision of the project;

e) Facilitate and provide support to AMTRON for seeking permission from Government of India for the necessary license for the project;

f) Training of the counterpart team;

g) Assistance in appointment of a local partner to provide ongoing services and first level support to the customers and training the identified partner; and

h) Provide backup technical support.

Indian companies, partnerships firms, international companies (subject to such foreign companies obtaining all statutory approvals from Government of India, Foreign Investment Promotion Board, Reserve Bank of India etc. as may be required under applicable law, regulations, guidelines, notifications, press notes etc. by themselves) must meet all the following criteria:

a) At least one year experience in providing last mile connectivity through BPL technology. Data to be provided includes certificate of incorporation, registration/affiliation, core business and years of business in this field, experience in designing, installation, commissioning and maintaining of BPL networks and key technical staff. However, for entities incorporated anytime during the last one year, their promoters must satisfy this criterion.

b) Must have commissioned at least one cost effective last mile connectivity projects covering more than 200 consumers each spread over multiple locations. Respective projects should have demonstrated data speeds of 2 Mbps or higher at the end user level. Data to be provided include project name, name of client, project location within country, customer contact information, value of the project, source of financing, length of assignment, start and completion dates, type of technology implemented, number of connections supported, bandwidth provided, value added services offered and other detailed narrative description of the project.

c) Must have positive Net worth in the last 3 years with the Net worth* being at least USD 10 million as on 31 March 20081.

d) Additionally, the bidders should have Minimum average Annual Turnover of USD 10 million (US $ Ten million only) in the last 3 years

* Definition of Net worth: Net worth = Equity share capital + Free Reserves and Surplus (excluding revaluation reserves) - Deferred Revenue / Miscellaneous Expenditure not written off - Debit Balance in Profit and Loss Account - Cross holding of investments amongst consortium members in case of a consortium.

1 These should be supported by audited Financial Statements for the last 3 years including all schedules

4.    In case of a consortium (incorporated or unincorporated) bid, at least one of the consortium members should meet the criteria (a) and (b) above. In such cases, the consortium arrangement needs to be backed up with either (i) a duly executed consortium agreement or (ii) resolution of the Board of Directors of each of the organizations. Either the sole bidder's or at least one partner of the consortium's net worth should meet the minimum net worth criterion given in (c) above. Where the financial statement is expressed in currency other than US Dollars, the eligible amount as described above shall be computed by taking the equivalent US Dollars at the exchange rates (as stipulated by http://www.xrates.com prevailing on the date(s) of such financial statement.

5.    The Bidding Document also requests technical details of the products and solutions which you proposed in the past. The required information includes (i) products offered (hardware make and models, systems software, networking equipment, and cables and other accessories); (ii) services offered (number of trained engineers for product support; number of trained engineers in India, if any; service centers in India or other service center; and product certification of personnel, if any); (iii) profile of each of the consortium members; and (iv) your preference in terms of viability for WiMax or Fiber optical cables for the backbone. The request of Bidding Document includes relevant supporting documents for the criteria (a) experience, (b) commissioning, (c) net worth and technical details (as detailed in current paragraph). Only the parties that are found eligible as per the sole discretion of AMTRON based on these criteria will be intimated regarding further review and examination of proposed Bidding Documents in due course. Any proposal which cannot meet with these criteria will be rejected and notified accordingly. The advertisement and purchase of Bidding Documents confers neither any right nor expectation on any party to participate in the bidding process of the pilot project.

6.     For the purpose of demonstration of the BPL connectivity technology, a small town named Sualkuchi has been identified as the pilot location. More details about Sualkuchi are mentioned below. Interested bidders may contact the Managing Director, AMTRON through (md@amtron.in) for the following additional inputs, including a Map of Sualkuchi area and Power Distribution Network in Sualkuchi.

Particulars Details
Distance from Guwahati, Assam, India
Time to travel (from Guwahati)

Population (Madhya Sualkuchi Gram Panchayat - Sualkuchi Town)
Population density per km2
Area in km2 (Madhya Sualkuchi GP- Sualkuchi)
Number of Electricity Connections (1-3 KVA)
Number of Electricity Connections (3-10 KVA)
Number of Landline Telephone Connections

 30 km
Approximately 60 minutes by car (2 lane motorable road beyond Saraighat bridge)
14,133

2,019 per km2
7 km2
989
12
100

Source: Sualkuchi Block Development Office/ Lower Assam Electricity Distribution Company Ltd.

7.    Bidders are encouraged to tie-up with local partners for providing technical and logistics support.

8.    International Competitive Bidding will be conducted in accordance with ADB's Two-Stage Bidding Procedure. The bids should be submitted in hard copies and electronic submission of bids will not be allowed). A bid security in form of a demand guarantee of the amount USD 4,000 for International bidders and Indian Rupees 200,000 for Indian bidders is to be submitted along with the Financial Bid in the Second Stage.

9.    To obtain further information the bidder should contact the Managing Director at the address below or through the website indicated below:

Managing Director
Assam Electronics Development Corporation Limited (AMTRON)
Bamunimaidan Industrial Area
Guwahati: 781021 Assam, India
Email: md@amtron.in
Website: http://amtron.in/tender

10.    To purchase the Bidding Documents, bidders should:

  • Submit a written application to the Managing Director, AMTRON at the address above.
  • Pay a non-refundable fee of Indian Rs. 20,000 or US$ 440 by demand draft in favour of Managing Director, AMTRON payable at Guwahati.
  • The Bidding Document may be sent through a courier for an additional fee of Indian Rs. 500 for local delivery or US$ 100 for overseas delivery.
  • For online bidders, the Bidding Documents may be viewed and downloaded from the AMTRON website http://amtron.in/tender. Please consult with Managing Director for more details.

11.    Bids must be delivered:

  • on or before 16:00 hours local time on 16 January 2009
  • to Managing Director at the address indicated above

12.    Pre bid meeting will be held at 11.00 hrs on 2 January 2009, at the Managing Director's Office, AMTRON, Assam. AMTRON may consider providing video conference to invite interested bidders to participate in the pre bid meeting in an exceptional situation.

13.    Bids will be opened immediately after in the presence of the Bidder's representatives who choose to attend at the office of the Managing Director, AMTRON, Assam. The project shall be awarded in accordance with the ADB's Procurement Guidelines and ADB's Guidelines on the Use of Consultants (2007, as amended from time to time) and other arrangements satisfactory to ADB for engaging bidders.

14.    AMTRON and ADB will not be responsible for any costs or expenses incurred by bidders in connection with the preparation of delivery of Bids. AMTRON and ADB reserve the right to withdraw from the process or any part thereof or vary any terms at any time or accept or reject any/all offer(s) without assigning any reasons whatsoever.


Specific Notice