Unsolicited proposals for Privatization projects are defined as proposals to design, finance, implement (i.e., construct, expand, or renovate), operate, and/or maintain a Privatization project which are not prepared in response to a competitive RFP issued in accordance with the requirements of this Manual. Entities are prohibited from awarding a Privatization contract in response to such proposals, and any such contract shall be null and void.
NCP recognizes, however, that the private sector can generate innovative and beneficial ideas for potential Privatization projects, and that these ideas may be worthy of consideration in developing Entity Privatization programs. This section provides the procedures by which such proposals may be considered and brought into compliance with NCP requirements for due process and accountability for Privatization projects.
When an Entity receives an unsolicited proposal for a Privatization project from a private party, the Entity is under no obligation to consider it. The Entity may either:
a) Return the proposal unread to the party which submitted it, with a written statement that proposals for this project are not being solicited at this time; or,
b) Conduct an initial evaluation of the proposal. During this evaluation, the Entity shall not engage in any discussion or communication with the private party about the proposal, but shall evaluate the proposal upon its merits as submitted. It is incumbent upon the party submitting the proposal to include sufficient information to enable a comprehensive evaluation. The information contained in the proposal shall be treated as confidential, as though it were the product of a competitive procurement, and shall not be released to any party except as required for the evaluation process.
If the Entity elects to evaluate the proposal, it may determine:
a) That the proposal is not worthy of further consideration (e.g., because the services the project is intended to provide are not a high-priority requirement, the proposed project does not appear to provide the services in a technically-feasible, cost-effective, or affordable manner, the proposal is insufficiently detailed to allow a comprehensive evaluation, etc.). The Entity shall then notify the party which submitted the proposal, in writing, that the proposal has been reviewed by the Entity and is not of interest at this time. The private party may submit a written request for a debriefing within 10 calendar days of receipt of this notice. If a debriefing is requested, the Entity shall provide a written summary of the high-level strengths and weaknesses of the proposal within 30 calendar days.
b) That the proposal appears to have sufficient merit to warrant further evaluation. In this case, the Entity shall prepare a written request to the Entity's Supervisory Committee to consider the project as a potential Privatization. If the Entity does not yet have an established Supervisory Committee, the Entity shall contact the NCP for guidance.
In submitting the request to the Supervisory Committee the Entity shall include, at a minimum, the following information (additional information may be included at the Entity's discretion, and may facilitate the review process):
1. Executive Summary: (including summary of recommendation to incorporate this project within the sectoral Privatization program and consider the unsolicited proposal). The Executive Summary shall not exceed five pages in length, and shall provide an overview of key aspects of the project, the process by which the unsolicited proposal was evaluated, and a summary of why further consideration of this project as a Privatization is warranted.
2. Administrative Context: This section identifies: The Entity responsible for the project; the individual at that Entity to be contacted with questions about the request or for additional information; their contact information; and the official name of the project. Note that the project name cannot be changed, as it will use to track the project in the NCP Privatization Project Registry.
3. Unsolicited Proposal: The Entity shall identify: the date the unsolicited proposal was received; a summary of key features of the proposal, such as physical assets to be developed, services to be provided, duration of contract, and payment mechanism(s); description of the proposal evaluation process; a summary of the proposal evaluation; the date the evaluation was completed; and the key strengths and weaknesses (if any) of the proposal.
4. Project Rationale and Assessment of Need: The Entity shall identify the needs which the Entity seeks to address, and describe how this project addresses those needs. This requirement is identical to the requirement for a First File, except that an Entity may limit its consideration of alternatives to (a) the unsolicited proposal and (b) execution of the project as a traditional public procurement (additional alternatives may be included at the Entity's discretion).
5. Preliminary Economic Case: For each alternative identified in item IV above, the Entity shall explore the economic case by providing indicative implementation cost estimates for project construction and operation (as applicable). These estimates shall meet all of the requirements of a First File, except that the cost estimate for the unsolicited proposal may be based on the proposed contract cost, plus any additional government costs, e.g., for conducting the procurement, monitoring and administering the resulting Privatization contract, etc.
6. Preliminary Assessment of Affordability: For each alternative identified in item IV above, the Entity shall prepare a preliminary assessment of affordability in accordance with the requirements for a First File.
7. Privatization versus Other Alternatives: The Entity shall explore whether it will be more advantageous to pursue the project as a Privatization or through traditional public procurement, and identify the key factors, consistent with the requirements for a First File.
8. Initial Market Assessment: The Entity shall consider and document, consistent with the requirements for a First File, whether the required capabilities to execute the project are available in the private sector. The assessment should include both an assessment of the unsolicited offeror and the broader market.
9. Consideration of Project-related Issues: The Entity shall document any technical, environmental, social, or legal issues related to the project which may be apparent at this stage in the project preparation. This documentation shall be consistent with the requirements for a First File.
10. Summary and Recommendation: Based upon the information provided in this request, and any additional explanatory or back-up data which the Entity may wish to append, the Entity shall summarize its conclusions and recommend (a) adding this project to the sectoral Privatization program and (b) considering the unsolicited proposal as one potential option for the delivery of this project in subsequent analyses.
The Supervisory Committee will evaluate this request, using the same criteria as are used for First File reviews, and may contact the Entity for discussions or to request additional information. Upon completion of its review, the Supervisory Committee will provide written notification of its determination to the requesting Entity. Three outcomes are possible:
a) If the Supervisory Committee determines that the project concept is not worthy of further consideration, it will decline the request. Upon receipt of this notification, the Entity shall notify the private party submitting the proposal, in writing, that the Supervisory Committee has determined that no further action will be taken on this proposal. This notification shall be made within 10 working days of the Entity's receipt of this decision. The Supervisory Committee's decision is final, and shall not be subject to appeal.
b) If the Supervisory Committee determines that the project appears worthy of further consideration as a Privatization, and that the Entity's submittal is effectively a complete First File, it will approve the request and authorize the formation of a Work Team to prepare the Second File for this project. The solution proposed by the unsolicited proposal shall be one of the alternatives considered by the Second File.
c) If the Supervisory Committee determines that the project appears worthy of further consideration as a Privatization, but that additional alternatives should be considered or that other supplemental information should be provided, it will approve the request and authorize the formation of a Work Team to prepare the First File for this project. The solution proposed by the unsolicited proposal shall be one of the alternatives considered by the First File.
If the Supervisory Committee approves the preparation of a First File or Second File, the project shall be entered into the NCP Privatization Project Registry, and the record for this project shall explicitly identify that the project was generated as the result of an unsolicited proposal.
Once the approval to prepare the First File or Second File is issued, the Privatization project preparation and procurement will proceed in full compliance with the standard of this Manual guidance, except as noted below. The solution proposed by the original unsolicited proposal will be judged upon its merits, and may or may not be the final solution (if any) proposed for Privatization procurement. No communication with the firm submitting the original unsolicited proposal shall be conducted during this process, except in the course of market surveys or discussions open to other potential bidders. The original bidder shall be treated equally in all respects with other bidders and afforded no advantage in the bidding process.
Exceptions to the standard NCP procedures which apply to unsolicited proposals are as follows:
a) If a decision is made by the Supervisory Committee (or CEDA, as applicable) at the First, Second or Third File stage that the project concept is not worthy of further consideration as a Privatization, the project preparation effort will cease, and the Supervisory Committee will provide written notification to the Entity (First File) or Work Team (Second and Third Files). Upon receipt of this notification, the Entity or Work Team shall notify the private party submitting the proposal, in writing, that the Supervisory Committee/CEDA has determined that no further action will be taken on this project concept at this time. This notification shall be made within 10 working days of the Entity or Work Team's receipt of this decision. The Supervisory Committee/CEDA decision is final, and shall not be subject to appeal.
b) If a decision is made to proceed with a Privatization procurement, the RFQ shall clearly state that this procurement was initiated as the result of an unsolicited proposal, but that the requirements of the final procurement may vary from those of the original unsolicited proposal.
c) The RFQ and RFP shall not disclose any proprietary information included by the bidder in the original unsolicited proposal. The Work Team, in coordination with its legal advisors and NCP, will make the determination as to what information will be considered proprietary; assertions and supporting rationale from a private party in its proposal that certain information is deemed proprietary will be considered, but NCP shall be the final arbiter.
d) On the date of public announcement of the RFQ for the project, the Work Team shall provide written notification to the private party which submitted the original unsolicited proposal that a procurement has been initiated as a result of its proposal, and that it may be eligible for reimbursement of certain proposal preparation expenses incurred as part of the subsequent procurement.
e) If the private party which submitted the original unsolicited proposal participates in the competitive procurement by submitting an SOQ and/or Proposal, and is not awarded the contract, it shall be eligible for reimbursement of up to SAR 1.5 million in total proposal expenses for the unsolicited proposal and competitive proposal combined. Claims for reimbursement shall be supported by auditable backup (e.g., timesheets, payroll data, consultant invoices, etc.) and claims lacking auditable backup may be required to be resubmitted or denied.
f) If the private party which submitted the original unsolicited proposal elects not to participate in the competitive procurement, it shall be eligible for reimbursement of up to SAR 500,000 in total proposal expenses for the original unsolicited proposal. Claims for reimbursement shall be supported by auditable backup (e.g., timesheets, payroll data, consultant invoices, etc.) and claims lacking auditable backup may be required to be resubmitted or denied.
g) If the private party which submitted the original unsolicited proposal participates in the competitive procurement and is awarded the resulting contract, it is not eligible for reimbursement of proposal-related expenses.