3.1.9 First, GPEs should seek the needed funding commitments and management approval for the PPP project, before inviting private sector participation in PPP tenders. This is to minimise the possibility of abortive PPP tenders which are called and subsequently not awarded.
3.1.10 Second, GPEs should work with their PPP advisor to ensure that the PPP contract is a viable one before they issue the PPP tender. To do so, the GPE should conduct a pre-procurement briefing, say, 3 to 6 months before the PPP tender. The pre-procurement briefing should be open to any interested party, including financiers. For PPP procurement, therefore, agencies should not merely include upcoming PPP projects in its half-annual pre-procurement plan published in GeBiz, Government's one stop e-procurement portal, but can also arrange for separate market sounding sessions to prepare potential providers ahead of the procurement.
3.1.11 Third, a selective tendering process can be used to identify the right PPP provider. The initial stage involves inviting the private sector to a pre-qualification round. Certain potential providers are then shortlisted and pre-qualified from all who have responded to the pre-qualification stage of the tender. The pre-qualified players are then invited to submit their bids for the PPP tender. The pre-qualification stage is important - if executed properly, it can help to eliminate unsuitable bidders as early as possible, thus keeping bidding costs as low as possible for both the private and public sector. At the pre-qualification stage, the GPE should release information on the salient features of the PPP procurement (the PPP draft contract can be published only at the Invitation to Tender stage), so that potential bidders can make an informed decision whether to even participate in the pre-qualification stage of the PPP tender in the first instance.
3.1.12 As a general policy, GPEs should not reimburse bidding costs incurred by suppliers.