Friday, August 5 2016 17:04

ArmInfo. Under "Northern Corridor Modernisation Project:  Bagratashen border crossing between Armenia and Georgia Country", the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development announced on July 27 a tender "Design and Construction of Bagratashen Bridge".    

According to the official website of the EBRD, the closing date of the tender is 20 September 2016. The works to be carried out include the Design and Construction of the new bridge over river Debed, including all design and site investigation works, construction of the new bridge containing two separate decks that shall span over the existing border crossing infrastructure on the Armenian side of the river Debed, the channel of the river Debed and the railway line on the Georgian side of the river Debed. The contract is expected to start on 28/12/2016 and last about 42 months including 18 months for Design and Construction and 24 months for the DNP.

A two stage tender procedure will be adopted and will proceed as follows: 

(a) the First Stage tender will consist of a technical proposal only, without any reference to prices, and a list of any deviations to the technical and commercial conditions set forth in the tender documents or any alternative technical solutions a tenderer wishes to offer, and a justification therefor, provided always that such deviations or alternative solutions do not change the basic objectives of the project.  Following evaluation by the client of the First Stage tenders, the client will invite each tenderer who meets the qualification criteria and who has submitted a technically responsive tender to a clarification meeting.  The proposals of all such tenderers will be reviewed at the meeting and all required amendments, additions, deletions and other adjustments will be noted and recorded in a Memorandum.  Only qualified tenderers submitting a technically responsive and acceptable First Stage tender will be invited to submit a Second Stage tender. 

(b) the Second Stage tender will consist of an updated technical tender incorporating all changes required by the Employer as recorded in the Memorandum to the clarification meeting or as necessary to reflect any amendments to the tender documents issued subsequent to submission of the First Stage tender; and the commercial tender.

This tender will be conducted by e-procurement using the EBRD Client E-Procurement Portal (ECEPP). Interested firms should register on ECEPP at this link: https://ecepp.ebrd.com/respond/G48PQZB992 and express an interest in the tender.The tender documents are available for registered firms to view free of charge on ECEPP. Full conditions for participation are included in the tender documents (tender data section). Prospective tenderers who have registered in ECEPP and expressed an interest in the tender may access the tender documents free of charge and may request clarification and further information from the client through ECEPP. 

To recall, on 23 Nov 2012, Armenia and the EBRD signed the relevant agreement. The EBRD is financing the construction of a new bridge at Bagratashen, the main border crossing point between Armenia and Georgia. The EUR10.3 million loan to the Armenian government is the EBRD's contribution towards the financing of the Northern Corridor Modernisation Project. The upgrade of the cross-border infrastructure facilities is a priority for the Armenian government. In addition to the EBRD, the European Investment Bank (EUR 30.316 mln), European Union (EUR3.3 mln grant), Neighbourhood Investment Facility (EUR 12 mln) and United Nations Development Programme (EUR0.8 mln grant), jointly with the government of Armenia, will finance this project, the total cost of which is EUR62.6 million.

The Northern Corridor Modernisation Project includes the reconstruction of existing infrastructure to meet international standards, as well as the construction of new buildings at the three border control facilities. The improved border crossing points, equipped for vehicles and pedestrians, will have a more efficient and increased processing capacity, as well as providing a multi-directional road crossing for international cargo and passenger traffic. Located 200km from Yerevan, Bagratashen is the main land transport corridor connecting Armenia, through Georgia, with the rest of the world.