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Amended - Tina River Hydro Power Project, Solomon Islands

Request For Expressions of Interest

Versions
Edition 5:   Nov 30, 2009 (shown)
Edition 4:   Nov 25, 2009
Edition 3:   Nov 25, 2009
Edition 2:   Nov 25, 2009
Edition 1:   Nov 18, 2009

General Information
Country:   Solomon Islands
Notice/Contract Number:   REOI 10-0549
Publication Date:   Nov 30, 2009
Deadline:   Dec 7, 2009
Funding Agency:   World Bank
Buyer:   World Bank Trust Funds
Original Language:   English

Contact Information
Address:   Conrado Flores
IFC
2121 Pennsylvia Avenue, NW
Washington DC 20433
United States
Telephone:   202 458 8764
Email:   Click here

Assignments

 

Original Text

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Amended Request for Expressions of Interest for Legal Consultant
Tina River Hydro Power Project, Solomon Islands

The Solomon Islands (SI), a post-conflict country, is the third-largest Pacific Island Countries (PIC) with Honiara as its capital. It consists of nearly 1,000 islands- 350 inhabited- spread over 1.35 million km2 with a land area of 29,785 km2. The current population is around 500,000, with around 86% rural and the urban population living in one city - Honiara. The population is expected to reach 700,000 (with 100,000 in Honiara) by 2019.

The Government of Solomon Islands (SIG) is seeking private sector investment to develop a 6-20MW hydro-power facility on the Tina River (the “Project”). A feasibility study funded by the European Investment Bank (EIB) (completion expected in April 2010) will determine the size and location of the proposed project.

The Solomon Islands Electricity Authority (SIEA) currently uses as much as 90% of its monthly operational budget for fuel purchases. Wholly or partially replacing the diesel-powered generators with hydropower will significantly decrease both the SIEA’s dependence on imported fuel, use of foreign exchange and overall power generation costs.

The World Bank is undertaking the Tina River Hydropower Development Project (TRHDP) for project preparation and implementation. The World Bank is also leading the Solomon Islands Sustainable Energy Project (SISEP) to commercialize and improve the creditworthiness of SIEA. SIG has established a Task Force under the Ministry of Mines, Energy and Rural Electrification (MEMRE) with representation from a broad range of other ministries. The Task Force will represent SIG in all aspects related to the implementation of the Project. A Project Office, which will act as the secretariat of the Task Force, will be established before the end of 2009, and its staff will work on a full time basis on all day-to-day aspects related to project implementation.

In line with the objective of diversifying the generation fuel mix, saving foreign currency, and meeting electricity demand, SIG wishes to invite and select a private sector hydro-power developer via a competitive tender process for the Tina River Hydro IPP and has appointed IFC, a member of the World Bank Group, as transaction advisor for the preparation and implementation of the tender process.

IFC requires consultants to provide advice and support to IFC in relation to the legal aspects of the Project and help structure the Project as a Public-Private Partnership (PPP). The legal consultants (the “Legal Consultant”) will work under the coordination and supervision of IFC.

The Legal Consultant is expected to carry out the responsibilities outlined below.

1. Identify and advise on the relevant legal (including regulatory, corporate, commercial, tax and land) aspects of the Project;
2. Identify any changes required to the legal and regulatory frameworks to implement the Project and draft such revised legislation or regulation;
3. Analyze the legal and implementation risks and advise on the optimal risk allocation between the SIG, the off-taker and the project company;
4. Assist in preparing recommendations for the proposed Project structure(s) and draft term sheet(s) for the Project documents such as the PPA, Implementation Agreement and Government Guarantee;
5. Prepare draft Project documents;
6. Advise on the investor promotion aspects (including preparation of Information Memorandum) of the Project;
7. Assist in the legal aspects of the investor due diligence, including the preparation of the legal information for the data room and responding to investors;
8. Assist in the preparation of the pre-qualification and bidding documents, including the design of the pre-qualification and bidding criteria and the process for prequalification and bid evaluation;
9. Assist in evaluating the bids, including compliance with RFP terms and preparing legal section of the evaluation report; and
10. Support post-bid discussions or negotiations, where relevant, up to financial closure.

The assignment will start in February 2010 and take between eighteen (18) and twenty four (24) months to finish.

IFC now invites eligible consultants to indicate their interest in providing their services by submitting a response to this Request for Expressions of Interest (REOI). Please note that consulting firms may associate with other interested firms or individuals to enhance their qualifications. Individuals and/or firms that have been determined qualified through the evaluated results of this first stage may be invited to submit proposals in response to the Request for Proposals (RFP) that will be issued at a later date.

Interested consultants must provide the following information to indicate that they are qualified to perform the services:
• Your expertise and experience with any prior similar assignments (including experience in similar conditions; and availability of appropriate skills among staff)
• Declaration or statement of capacity to meet the World Bank Group’s Vendor Eligibility Criteria as found on www.worldbank.org/corporateprocurement .

Responses must be in writing and sent to the undersigned only by e-mail no later than 6:00 PM Washington DC time, 7th December 2009. Please limit your responses to five (5) pages. For responses exceeding 5 pages, IFC reserves the right to consider only the first 5. Elaborate artworks are neither required nor encouraged. Should you decide to provide marketing brochures, please include them only as attachments. They will not be considered as a substitute for written responses.

By responding to this REOI, you are confirming compliance with the World Bank Group Procurement Policy.

The responses will be reviewed and those consultants deemed best qualified in IFC’s judgment will be short-listed according to the following criteria:

The following qualifications, in relation to the hydro-power and energy sectors, are mandatory:
• Experience in drafting and advising on company constitutional documents;
• Experience in drafting and negotiating lender documents relating to the energy sector and in particular the hydro-power sector;
• Experience in drafting and negotiating power purchase agreements;
• Experience in drafting and negotiating engineering, procurement and construction agreements;
• Experience in drafting and negotiating operation and maintenance agreements;
• Experience in advising on relevant social and environmental regulations;
• Experience in related insurance aspects and mitigation of hydro power project risks; and
• Legal presence and/or license to practice in Asia, Oceania or the Pacific.

The following qualifications are desirable:
• International experience in the hydro-power sector, in similar geographic conditions and size; and
• Private Sector Participation (PSP) and PPP experience in similar projects.

IFC reserves the right to limit the number of qualified firms that will be shortlisted for efficiency. IFC reserves the right to verify any information provided, or request additional information after EOI packages are received. IFC reserves the right to proceed, or to not proceed, with issuing an RFP; or modify the scope of work provided in the RFP to meet Project requirements, as necessary.

All data and information received from IFC for the purpose of this assignment are to be treated confidentially and are only to be used in connection with the execution of these Terms of Reference. The contents of written materials obtained and used in this assignment may not be disclosed to any third parties without the express advance written notice of IFC.

All correspondence related to this REOI should be addressed in writing only by sending an e-mail to cflores@worldbank.org.

IFC shall not be responsible for any verbal explanation or interpretation of these documents.

Sincerely,

Conrado Flores
GSDPR
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