MINISTRY OF ENERGY (MoEn)

DEPARTMENT OF ELECTRICITY DEVELOPMENT (DoED)

ANAMNAGAR, KATHMANDU, NEPAL

REQUEST FOR EXPRESSION OF INTEREST (EOI) FOR

(Consulting Services – Firms Selection)

(Date of first publication: May 4, 2016)

Country: Nepal

Name of Project: Kabeli-A Hydroelectric Project

Grant No:  IDA Grant No. H900-NP

Assignment Title: Cumulative Impact Assessment (CIA) for the Tamor River Basin, Environmental and Social Safeguards and Capacity Building Activities including Compliance Monitoring.

1.   The Government of Nepal has received financing (grant) from the World Bank towards the cost of the Kabeli-A Hydroelectric Project (KAHEP), and intends to apply a portion of this proceeds for this consultancy services.

2.   The KAHEP project aims to add hydropower generation capacity in Nepal through public private partnership and also build up capacity for hydropower development in Nepal. The MoEn Component under this project will focus on: (a) supervising, monitoring and evaluation for the implementation of KAHEP to ensure compliance with the Project Development Agreement (PDA), Environment Management Plan (EMP) and Social Action Plan (SAP); (b) building technical, environmental and social safeguards capacity of Implementing Agency (IA) on integrated river basin management and cumulative impact management for sustainable hydropower development, including development and adoption of guidelines for CIA and involuntary resettlement and livelihood restoration; inter alia.

3.   The objective of this assignment is to enhance the long-term capacity of DoED and MoEn to implement the KAHEP project and also to improvethe management system for future hydropower development. 

4.   The consulting services ("the Services") include the Scope  as follows:
i. Update the previous CIA of the KAHEP with an expanded scope from the Kabeli River to the Tamor River, considering proposed and ongoing water resources projects including transmission line and access road(s) in the watershed of the river.
ii. Building capacity of DoED/MoEn staff for coordination and management regarding CIA for water resources development in other river basins of Nepal.
iii. Review of the existing regulatory, planning and implementation framework for Hydroelectric Power Projects with the objective of developing recommendations integrating CIA in planning, preparation and implementation into the framework.
iv. Prepare Guidelines for both (i) Involuntary Resettlement for Hydroelectric Power Projects and (ii) Benefit Sharing for Hydroelectric Power Projects, and provide technical support for related capacity building.
v. Provide technical support to the DoED as it carries out its regulatory requirement for compliance supervision, monitoring and evaluation of the implementation of the PDA, EMP and SAP of the KAHEP.

5.   DoED invites eligible consulting firms ("Consultants") to indicate their interest in providing the Services stated under Section 4 above. Interested Consultants should provide information/documents indicating that they have the required qualifications and relevant experience to perform the Services. Consulting firms must have been legally registered and in business for at least five (5) years prior to the last date of submission of EOI. Following documents shall be submitted along with the EOI application by all the Consulting firms:

• ·        Certificates of incorporation or registration of the consulting firm.
• ·        VAT registration certificate and tax clearance certificate for FY 2071/2072.
• ·        The consulting firms shall provide information on jobs completed in the last fifteen (15) years giving a briefdescription of each job undertaken, the funding source(s), amount of contract and information on the employer. Consulting firms' work experiences shall be evidenced by copies of client's references with contact addresses on the letterhead of the client's organization and shall be written in English. If the references are in other languages, it shall be accompanied by an accurate translation into the English language by competent authority. Any work experience without client's/employer's reference shall not be considered.
• ·        The EOI applicants shall also meet any three (3) of the following seven (7) minimum technical criteria (experience gained in last 15 years on the following assignments with contract value more than $ 100,000 or equivalent)

 i.    At least two (2) assignments completed on EIA,  SESA, CIA

ii.   At least one (1) assignment on CIA completed on hydropower projects

iii.  At least one (1) assignment completed on the preparation of resettlement guidelines

iv. At least one (1) project completed on the preparation of benefit sharing guidelines

v.   At least one (1) project, with more than 25 MW generation capacity, completed on EIA and/or SESA studies of hydropower projects and/or hydropower development  masterplans

vi. At least one (1) project completed on Environmental Audits of hydropower projects with more than 25 MW generation capacity

vii. At least 2 projects completed on compliance monitoring and/or construction supervision of hydropower projects with more than 25 MW generation capacity  

Short-listing Criteria are (a. Management competency of consulting firms-core business area of the firm, number of key professional staff in-house and quality assurance plan of the firm; b. Specific experience of consulting firm-experience in EIA, SESA, CIA general as well as hydropower specific, environmental audits of hydropower projects, preparation of resettlement guidelines and benefit sharing guidelines and compliance monitoring and supervision of the hydropower projects; and  c.Geographical experience of consulting firms.)  

6.   Short listing and selection of the Consultant will be carried out in accordance with the World Bank's Guidelines: Selection and Employment of Consultants under IBRD Loans and IDA Credits & Grants by World Bank Borrowers - January 2011, revised July 2014 ("Consultant Guidelines"). A Consultant will be selected in accordance with the QCBS method set out in the Consultant Guidelines. A brief description of the assignment can be found in the brief Terms of References (ToRs) which can be downloaded from the DoED website www.doed.gov.np..

7.   The attention of interested Consultants is drawn to paragraph 1.9 of the Consultant Guidelines setting forth the World Bank's policy on conflict of interest. ..

8.   Consultants may associate with other firms in the form of a joint venture or a sub-consultancy to enhance their qualifications. Experience and Qualification of other firms, whether parent or subsidiary firm, will not be considered for evaluation. Likewise, qualification and experience of the consulting firm associated as a sub-consultancy will not be considered for evaluation forshortlisting.

a.   Each partner in the JV firm shall individually comply with the criteria mentioned paragraph 5.

b.   Each partner of the JV firm shall meet at least one of the technical criteria mentioned in paragraph 5.

c.   The combined experience of the JV partners shall meet at least 3 criteria in paragraph 5.

d.   All JV firms shall submit a copy of JV agreement or memorandum of understanding (MOU) for the JV or intended JV agreement along with their EOI application.

e.   An applicant shall not submit more than one (1) EOI application either as a single entity or as a partner in JV firm.

9.   All submittals from the consulting firms shall be in English language.

10.  Further information can be obtained at the address below.

Purushottam Acharya

Department of Electricity Development

Post Box No. 2507

576 BhaktiThapaSadak (4), Anamnagar

Kathmandu, Nepal

Phone: (977-1-) 4480326, 4479507, 4480425, 9841366749

Fax: (977-1-) 4480257

Email: [email protected], Website: www.doed.gov.np

11.  Expressions of interest shall be delivered in a written form (in person, or by mail, or by fax, or by e-mail) to the address above on or before 12 hrs Nepal Standard Time on  June 3, 2016. The title of the submission shall be"Cumulative Impact Assessment (CIA) for the Tamor River Basin, Environmental and Social Safeguards and Capacity Building Activities including Compliance Monitoring for DoED.  DoED reserves the right to accept or reject any or all applications, or to cancel the entire proceedings without giving any reasons whatsoever.