The Government of the Azores announced today the relaunch of the public tender for the design and construction of a passenger ship for the region, with capacity for 650 passengers and 150 vehicles, due to the exclusion of the three proposals submitted.
“Given the outcome of this process, it is time to move forward, particularly with the re-launch of the competition that needs further deliberation by the Regional Council, to take soon,” said the regional transport director, Luís Filipe Melo, estimating that the new contest runs until May 2019.
The governor was speaking at a press conference in Ponta Delgada, São Miguel Island, where the chairman of the jury of the contest, José Manuel Monteiro da Silva, was also present.
According to the regional director, in the new competition, to be launched soon, “the parts of the new procedure will be fundamentally the same, with only some adjustments resulting from the clarifications that were provided in the outgoing procedure, the introduction of the electronic procedure and some changes occurred in the public procurement legislation “.
The Government of the Azores estimates that, between June and July, the stage of granting of the contract and the visa process of the Court of Auditors will take place.
“Therefore, if everything goes according to plan, the execution of the contract may begin sometime between July / August 2019, with a deadline of 580 days (a little over 19 months),” explained Luís Filipe Melo, estimating the delivery of the new ship in early 2021.
The regional director stressed that the new RO-RO passenger ship for the region aims to ensure “a year-round operation on a regular basis” and that it can link “the three groups” (eastern, central and western) of the Azores, “move cargo and passengers throughout the year and thereby boost the internal market. ”
“And this vessel, once acquired, will be put on the holding, and if there is any private person who is also interested in exploring the ship, he will have the opportunity to compete,” he recalled.
According to Luís Filipe Melo, “the three competitors have already been informed” of the jury’s decision “and they have not pronounced themselves.”
The president of the jury of the competition explained that a proposal presented by ASTILLEROS ARMON GIJON, S.A. was excluded because this company was not the qualified company in the first phase of the competition and invited to submit a proposal, but to ASTILLEROS ARMON, S.A.
The proposal of HIJOS DE J. BARRERAS, besides containing several irregularities in the technical documentation, presented a price higher than the maximum provided in the specifications.
Already “the proposal of the group formed by AMEDEO RESOURCES PLC and TAIZHOU KOUAN SHIPBUILDING CO, LTD, besides having been submitted outside the period established for this purpose, contained several irregularities in its technical documentation”, he indicated.
Monteiro da Silva said that the final report on the analysis of the proposals was presented Wednesday by the jury to the Regional Secretary for Transport and Public Works for decision.
“On the same day, the content and conclusions of the report were approved, with the decision not to award and, consequently, to revoke the decision to contract,” he said.
In November last year the public tender for the design and construction of the new ship, with a base price of 48 million euros, was published in Diário da República.
On October 16, 2017, through a resolution of the Government Council, the launching of the contest and the realization of the expense up to 48 million euros, plus VAT, were authorized.
