RULES & PROCEDURES (PROCUREMENT WITHOUT DIALOUGUE)

Procedures of the Procurement Process (without Dialougue)

This procurement process is intended to identify prospective supplier(s) for the provision of the deliverables. In the evaluation process, CIG may include information provided by the bidder’s references and may also consider the bidder’s past performance or conduct on previous contracts with CIG or other institutions. CIG will conduct the evaluation of submissions and negotiations in the following stages:

Stage I – Mandatory Requirements

Stage I will consist of a review to determine which submissions comply with all of the mandatory requirements. If a submission fails to satisfy a mandatory requirement, the bidder will be issued a rectification notice identifying the deficiencies and providing the bidder an opportunity to rectify the deficiencies within a given period. If the bidder fails to satisfy the mandatory eligibility requirements, its submission will be excluded from further consideration.

Stage II – Non-Price Rated Criteria

CIG will evaluate each qualified submission on the basis of the non-price rated criteria. Interviews, presentations or demonstrations may be used verify and optimise scoring.

Stage III – Pricing

Scoring of the initially submitted pricing of qualified submissions will be done in accordance Appendix C.  

CIG may, at its discretion, conduct one of the following additional processes:

Reverse Auction (RA) - All eligible bidders will be invited to participate in the RA and will be provided with instructions on how to do so.

Best and Final Offer (BAFO) - CIG may invite up to the top 3 ranked bidders to enter into the BAFO process. CIG may provide each bidder with additional information and will seek submission and pricing improvements from each bidder.
The pricing at the end of this stage shall be considered the bidder’s final offering and will be scored in accordance with the method set out in the Appendix C.

Stage IV – Ranking and Contract Negotiations

The bidder with the highest combination of the scores from Stage II & III will receive an invitation to enter into contract negotiations with CIG. The terms and conditions found in Appendix D will form the basis for negotiations. A bidder invited to enter into negotiations should be prepared to satisfy the pre-conditions of award listed in Appendix A.

If the pre-conditions of award are not satisfied or if the parties cannot finalize the agreement for the Deliverables within the Contract Negotiation Period, CIG may discontinue negotiations and may invite the second-ranked bidder to enter into negotiations. This process will continue until an agreement is finalized, until there are no more bidders remaining that are eligible for negotiations or until CIG elects to cancel the procurement process.

Rules of the Procurement Process

3.1        General Information and Instructions
3.1.1     Submissions in English

All submissions are to be in English only.

3.1.2     Information in procurement Only an Estimate

Any quantities shown or data contained in this procurement or provided by way of addenda are estimates only, and are for the sole purpose of indicating to bidders the general scale and scope of the Deliverables. It is the bidder’s responsibility to obtain all the information necessary to prepare a submission. CIG makes no guarantee of the value or volume of work to be assigned to the successful bidder. The agreement to be negotiated with the selected bidder will not be an exclusive contract for the provision of the described Deliverables. CIG may contract with others for deliverables the same as or similar to those seen in this procurement.

3.1.3     Bidders to Bear Their Own Costs

The bidder will bear all costs associated with or incurred in the preparation and presentation of its submission, including, if applicable, costs incurred for interviews or demonstrations.

3.2        Communication after Issuance of Procurement Project
3.2.1     Bidders to Review Procurement

Bidders should promptly examine all of the documents comprising this procurement, and may direct questions or seek additional information in writing to the procurement contact on or before the Deadline for Questions. CIG is not responsible for any information provided by or obtained from any source other than the Procurement Contact. It is the responsibility of the bidder to seek clarification on any matter it considers to be unclear. CIG is not responsible for any misunderstanding on the part of the bidder concerning this procurement or its process.

3.2.2     All New Information to Bidders by Way of Addenda

This procurement may be amended only by addendum in accordance with this section. If CIG, for any reason, determines that it is necessary to provide additional information relating to this procurement, such information will be communicated to all bidders by addendum. Each addendum forms an integral part of this procurement and may contain important information, including significant changes to this procurement. If CIG determines that it is necessary to issue an addendum, CIG may extend the Submission Deadline for a reasonable period of time.

3.2.3    Verify & Clarify

When evaluating submissions, CIG may request further information from the bidder or third parties in order to verify or clarify the information provided in the bidder’s submission, including but not limited to clarification with respect to whether a submission meets the mandatory technical requirements set out in the procurement particulars. CIG may revisit and re-evaluate the bidder’s response or ranking on the basis of any such information.

3.3        Notification and Debriefing
3.3.1     Notification to Other Bidders

Once an agreement is executed by CIG and a bidder, the other bidders will be notified directly in writing of the outcome of the procurement process.

3.3.2     Debriefing & Protest Procedure

Bidders may request a debriefing after receipt of a notification of the outcome of the procurement. All requests must be in writing to the procurement contact and must be made within five (5) business days of notification of the outcome. The debriefing session is to aid the bidder in presenting a better submission in subsequent procurement opportunities. Following a debriefing, if a bidder wishes to challenge the procurement process, it should provide written notice to the procurement contact. The notice must provide a detailed explanation of the bidder’s concerns with the procurement process or its outcome.

3.4       Conflict of Interest and Prohibited Conduct
3.4.1     Conflict of Interest

CIG may disqualify a bidder for any conduct, situation or circumstances, determined by CIG, in its sole and absolute discretion, to constitute a Conflict of Interest, as defined in Appendix B).

3.4.2     Disqualification for Prohibited Conduct

CIG may disqualify a bidder, rescind an invitation to negotiate or terminate a contract subsequently entered into if CIG determines that the bidder has engaged in any conduct prohibited by this procurement.

3.4.3     Prohibited Bidder Communications

Bidders must not engage in any communications that could constitute a Conflict of Interest and should take note of the Conflict of Interest declaration set out in Appendix B. Bidders must not at any time directly or indirectly communicate with the media in relation to this procurement or any agreement entered into pursuant to this procurement without first obtaining the written permission of the procurement Contact. Bidders must not, in relation to this procurement or the evaluation and selection process, engage directly or indirectly in any form of political or other lobbying whatsoever to influence the selection of the successful bidder(s).

3.4.5     Illegal or Unethical Conduct

Bidders must not engage in any illegal business practices, including activities such as bid-rigging, price-fixing, bribery, fraud, coercion or collusion. Bidders must not engage in any unethical conduct, including lobbying, or other inappropriate communications; offering gifts to any representatives of CIG; deceitfulness; submitting submissions containing misrepresentations or other misleading or inaccurate information; or any other conduct that compromises or may be seen to compromise the competitive process provided for in this procurement.

3.4.6     Past Performance or Past Conduct

CIG may prohibit a supplier from participating in a procurement process based on past performance or inappropriate conduct in a prior procurement process, including but not limited to illegal or unethical conduct as described above, the refusal of the supplier to honour its submitted pricing or other commitments; or any conduct, situation or circumstance determined by CIG, in its sole and absolute discretion, to have constituted an undisclosed Conflict of Interest.

3.5        Confidential Information
3.5.1     Confidential Information of CIG

All information provided by or obtained from CIG in any form in connection with this procurement either before or after the issuance of this procurement is the sole property of CIG and must be treated as confidential. It is not to be used for any purpose other than replying to this procurement and the performance of any subsequent contract for the Deliverables, except as required by act or by order of a court. Information must not be disclosed without prior written authorization from CIG; and must be returned by the bidder to CIG immediately upon the request of CIG.

3.5.2     Confidential Information of Bidder

All submissions and other information submitted to CIG in relation to this procurement are subject to the most recent provisions of the Procurement Act, the Freedom of Information Act and the Data Protection Act, and will be held in confidence. Bidders are advised that their submissions will, as necessary, be disclosed on a confidential basis to advisers retained by CIG to advise or assist with the procurement process, including the evaluation of submissions. If a bidder has any questions about the collection and use of any information, including personal information pursuant to this procurement, questions should be submitted to the procurement contact. As per the Procurement Regulations, please be advised that the name of the successful bidder and the value of the contract will be made publicly available online.

3.6        Procurement Process Non-binding
3.6.1     No Process Contract and No Claims

This procurement process is not intended to create and will not create a formal, legally binding bidding process and will instead be governed by the act applicable to direct commercial negotiations. For greater certainty and without limitation:

this procurement will not give rise to any contract–based tendering act duties or any other legal obligations arising out of any process contract or collateral contract; and
neither the bidder nor CIG will have the right to make any claims (in contract, tort, or otherwise) against the other with respect to the award of a contract, failure to award a contract or failure to honour a submission submitted in response to this procurement.

3.6.2     Cancellation

CIG may cancel or amend the procurement process without liability at any time.

3.7        Governing Act and Interpretation

This procurement is governed by most recent version of the Procurement Act and Procurement Regulations. These Terms and Conditions of the procurement Process are intended to be interpreted broadly and independently (with no particular provision intended to limit the scope of any other provision). They are non-exhaustive and will not be construed as intending to limit the pre-existing rights of the parties to engage in pre-contractual discussions in accordance with the common act governing direct commercial negotiations; and are to be governed by and construed in accordance with the acts of the Cayman Islands.