21 Nov 2006
Power Sector Assets and Liabilities Management Corporation (PSALM) President Nieves Osorio has assured the three prospective bidders for the 25-year concession of the National Transmission Corporation (TransCo) that the 20 December bidding will be conducted with utmost transparency and integrity.
Ms. Osorio gave her assurance during the pre-bid conference held Monday, 20 November, at the TransCo Training Center in Diliman, Quezon City, in response to queries from the investor groups if the evaluation of documents submitted during the 20 December bidding would be completed on the day itself.
The signed versions of the Direct Agreement and its schedules will be submitted by the bidders on the final bidding day as these are projected on wide-screens to ensure that all interested parties can see for themselves what the evaluators are examining, Ms. Osorio assured. The evaluators will go through all the pages to ensure accuracy in the page checking.
Ms. Osorio asked the bidders to put in writing all other questions and requests in compliance with standard operating procedures. PSALM, in turn, will reply in writing, copies of which will be distributed to all bidders to ensure equal treatment.
The conference was attended by representatives of the three prequalified investor groups namely, the consortium of Triratna Holdings Corporation, Tenaga Nasional Berhad and Newbridge Asia IV, L.P.; the consortium of Citadel Holdings Inc. and Terna SPA; and the consortium of Monte Oro Grid Resources Corporation and State Grid Corporation of China.
Representatives of the government's major international creditors - the World Bank, Japan Bank for International Cooperation and the Asian Development Bank - were also present during the conference.
"The conference is the proper venue to discuss with the prospective bidders the bidding procedures before the transaction documents are finalized prior to the bid submission deadline," Ms. Osorio said. "This is also to ensure that prequalified bidders are notified of the amendments and revisions in the bid documents."
Modifications resulting from the discussions will be contained in a subsequent Supplemental Bid Bulletin that will be issued immediately to the bidders.
"More significantly, through this activity we will be able to deepen dialogues with the investor groups on any unforeseen issues to improve the terms and conditions of the bidding procedures," Ms. Osorio pointed out.
During the conference, Ms. Osorio, who is also a member of the PSALM Privatization, Bidding and Awards Committee (PBAC), discussed the Bidding Procedures documents dated 28 May 2006 page by page subject to the comments and clarifications of the investor groups. She was assisted by Mr. Nonito R. Bernardo Jr., PBAC Technical Working Group chairman and PSALM vice president for Finance.
PSALM is set to issue on 04 December the final bid transaction documents to the prequalified bidders for the concession of the country's sole transmission arm.
The final transaction documents are the execution versions of the bid transaction documents that incorporate the first and second round comments of the investor groups. These documents consist of the Direct Agreement and its schedules and exhibits, including the Concession Agreement.
The conference was also attended by PSALM advisers, representatives from government partner agencies, and non-government organizations.
Strategic Communications and Partnership Division |