e-PG5A International Plant Supply and Installation Preparation Guideline

01When to Use e-PG5A

Use e-PG5A (International) when you need plant and equipment designed, supplied, installed and commissioned as a working facility by one contractor (a turnkey contract combining goods, works and services), and you want international competition. Award goes to the lowest evaluated responsive tender, for any value.

Nature

Plant and equipment, turnkey

Method

One Stage Two Envelope (OSTETM)

Competition

International

Value

Any

Award basis

Lowest evaluated responsive tender

Joint venture

Allowed

Local contractors can deliver and Taka pricing is enough? Use e-PG5A (National). Only buying equipment without installation? Use e-PG4 (international) or e-PG3 (national). For mainly civil construction, use a works STD.

02What You Prepare

03Key Time Limits

04Qualification Criteria

All criteria are pass/fail. Failing any one makes the tender non-responsive.

AACT = (E ÷ N) × F, where E = official estimate, N = contract duration in years (at least 1), F = 1.0 to 1.5 (lower for larger contracts).

Example: setting the financial criteria A 33/11 kV substation is estimated at Tk. 60 crore over 24 months. Annual cash flow is 60 ÷ 2 = Tk. 30 crore. With F = 1.2, ask for average annual turnover of Tk. 36 crore. For specific experience, one similar contract of 60–80% of the estimate means Tk. 36–48 crore. (The STD's own example: Tk. 24 crore over 18 months gives Tk. 16 crore a year, and with F = 1.5 an AACT of Tk. 24 crore.)

Joint ventures (TDS 17.1–17.2): agreement on Tk. 300 non-judicial stamp, or a notarised letter of intent. The STD's suggested split:

05Other TDS Entries

Example: tender security On a Tk. 60 crore estimate, 3% is Tk. 1.8 crore, so state a fixed amount no higher, for example Tk. 1.5 crore with its USD equivalent. A foreign tenderer may use a guarantee from an internationally reputable bank, endorsed by its correspondent bank in Bangladesh.

06Price Schedules, INCOTERMs and Currency

• Tenderers quote on a single-responsibility basis: anything reasonably inferable is included, and unpriced items are deemed covered elsewhere.
• Taxes and duties in force 28 days before the deadline are included in rates (ITT 26.18). GCC 65.2 says the PE pays customs and VAT on plant; decide and state which applies (section 16).
• Local costs in BDT; foreign costs in the TDS currency. The TEC converts to BDT at the Bangladesh Bank selling rate on the opening date.
• Unconditional discounts and multi-lot discounts are allowed; alternatives are not.
• Fixed-price tender: an adjustable quote is non-responsive. Adjustable-price tender: a fixed quote is accepted with zero adjustment.

07PE's Requirements and Appendices

• Scope of supply and installation: exactly what the contractor delivers, and the interfaces with other contractors.
• Technical specifications under Rule 38: new, current-model equipment; national or international standards; required inspections and tests and where they happen; functional performance. Standards are descriptive: tenderers may offer equivalents.
• Forms: Completion Certificate, Operational Acceptance Certificate, and the change-order forms (request, estimate, acceptance, proposal, change order, pending-agreement order, application).

Appendix 6 matters: if your operators, utilities or raw materials are not ready for pre-commissioning, the contractor gets time and costs (GCC 43.5). Plan them as carefully as the plant.

08Fill In the PCC

09Opening and Technical Evaluation

1. e-GP opens only technical offers after the deadline and generates the Tender Opening Report. Financial offers stay encrypted.
2. Preliminary examination: all forms filled and e-signed, priced schedule present, valid tender security. Any missing means rejection.
3. Technical examination: country of origin, Technical Proposal (Form e-PG5A-4), qualification evidence, compliance with the PE's Requirements without material deviation, and the specifications compliance sheet (Form e-PG5A-5).
4. Material deviations, reservations or omissions cannot be cured. Non-material documentary gaps may be filled on request, but never anything touching price or mandatory criteria.
5. Clarifications through e-GP, signed by the TEC Chair only, with at least 3 working days to reply.
6. The TEC sends the technical report directly to HOPE or the Authorized Officer.

There is no minimum number of responsive tenders. Validity may be extended at most twice, and only for tenders that passed the preliminary examination.

10Financial Evaluation

1. After approval, e-GP decrypts financial offers of technically responsive tenderers only.
2. No arithmetic correction is made in e-GP.
3. Convert all currencies to BDT at the Bangladesh Bank selling rate on the opening date.
4. Apply discounts and the TDS 55.6 economic factors: delay adjustment, mandatory spares and service, life-cycle costs. Recommended spares are not counted.
5. Rank. Ties: check for collusion (Rule 149), then superior past performance with the PE, then the quality judged more advantageous by end-users. Never a lottery.
6. If prices are unbalanced, the TEC may recommend a performance security of up to 25%.
7. Negotiation is only to cut scope or reallocate risk when the lowest tender is well above a realistic estimate; the lowest must stay lowest, and the tenderer may decline without penalty.
8. Post-qualify the lowest; a site visit to its facilities is allowed. If it fails, go to the next.

The adjustment is for comparison only. B's contract price stays Tk. 59.98 crore, and B must still meet the completion time it offered or pay liquidated damages.

Reject all tenders, with HOPE approval, only if the lowest exceeds a realistic estimate, competition was ineffective, no one can meet a reasonable time, all are non-responsive, the documents are defective, or misconduct is proven; never if the lowest matches the market.

11Award, Securities and Signing

1. Issue the NOA (Form e-PG5A-9) within 3 working days of approval, before validity expires, with the draft contract (Form e-PG5A-10).
2. Publish the award (Format e-PG5A-B) within 24 hours, for 28 days.
3. Performance security: 10% of the contract price, in BDT, by bank draft, pay order or bank guarantee (Form e-PG5A-11), valid 28 days beyond the Intended Completion Date, within 7/10/14 working days.
4. Sign within 14/21/28 days. Failure to give security or sign forfeits the tender security; award to the next.
5. A government enterprise gives a 10% security deposit deducted from invoices instead.
6. Publish the contract (Format e-PG5A-C) and beneficial ownership (above Tk. 10 lakh) within 3 days, for 30 days.

Example B's Tk. 59.98 crore contract needs a performance security of about Tk. 6.0 crore. If the TEC found front-loaded equipment rates, it could recommend up to 25%, about Tk. 15.0 crore.

12Design, Supply and Installation

• Appoint the Project Manager within 14 days of the Effective Date if not named. All instructions and certificates come through the Project Manager.
• The contractor appoints its Representative (deemed approved if you do not object within 14 days) and a Construction Manager on site.
• Within 21 days: organisation chart with key staff CVs. Within 28 days: detailed programme. Then monthly progress reports.
• Design approval: review Appendix 7 documents within 14 days, or they are deemed approved. Disapprove only for non-compliance or bad engineering practice.
• Hand over site possession by the PCC dates; late possession is a compensation event.
• Ownership of imported plant passes on loading in the country of origin; local plant on arrival at site. Care and risk stay with the contractor until Completion.
• Attend factory and site tests at your own travel cost; extra tests you order are paid if they pass.
• Check insurances and site regulations; you are co-insured on most policies.

13Completion, Commissioning and Guarantees

1. The contractor notifies mechanical completion. Within 7 days you supply operators, utilities and materials for pre-commissioning.
2. The Project Manager issues the Completion Certificate within 14 days, or lists defects. Silence, or your use of the facility, means deemed Completion. Care and risk then pass to you.
3. Commissioning and the Guarantee Test follow, within the PCC period. If the test cannot be done for reasons not the contractor's fault, the guarantees are deemed met.
4. On request, the Project Manager issues the Operational Acceptance Certificate within 7 days, or it is deemed issued.

• Liquidated damages for delay: 0.03–0.05% per day of the value of uncompleted work, capped at up to 10%. Reaching the cap is grounds for termination.
• Defect liability: 540 days from Completion or 1 year from Operational Acceptance, whichever is first, extended for downtime; optional extended liability for critical components up to 5 years.
• Liability cap: the contract price times the PCC multiplier, excluding defective equipment and patent indemnity.

Example: delay damages Work worth Tk. 12 crore finishes 30 days late at 0.05% a day: 12 crore × 0.0005 × 30 = Tk. 18 lakh, far below a 10% cap of about Tk. 6 crore.

14Payments and Price Adjustment

Example: imported plant of USD 3.4 million USD 340,000 advance against a guarantee; USD 2,720,000 on shipment documents; USD 170,000 at Completion; USD 170,000 at Operational Acceptance.

• The advance payment security is given within 28 days of award and reduces as plant is delivered or work paid.
• Retention is held until the Defects Correction Certificate (PCC 64.1: 5%).
• The performance security halves at Operational Acceptance (unless the PCC says otherwise) and expires 540 days after Completion or 365 days after Operational Acceptance, whichever is first; it is returned within 7 days of final payment.
• Late payment carries interest at the PCC rate.

P = A + b(Lₘ/L₀) + c(Sₘ/S₀) + …, with A the fixed part and the weights summing to 1. Indexes from the Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics unless stated; base values 28 days before the deadline.

Example: price adjustment A = 0.15, labour 0.25 (index 100 → 110), steel 0.40 (100 → 120), miscellaneous 0.20 (100 → 105). P = 0.15 + 0.275 + 0.48 + 0.21 = 1.115. A Tk. 5 crore certificate becomes Tk. 5.575 crore (+Tk. 57.5 lakh). No adjustment on the advance portion, and no increase for delays caused by the contractor.

15Changes, Delays and Termination

• Changes: Request for Change Proposal → contractor's estimate of preparation cost → your acceptance → Change Proposal → Change Order within 14 days of agreement. If price is not agreed, issue a Pending Agreement Change Order. The contractor may object if all changes together exceed 15% of the price.
• Extensions: decide within 21 days; up to 30% of contract time by the PE, 30–100% with HOPE, beyond 100% with the Secretary.
• Claims: notice within 28 days of the event and full details within 42 days, or the claim is lost.
• Suspension: if you suspend for more than 90 days without contractor fault, it may demand resumption within 28 days. It may suspend or slow work after 14 days' notice of non-payment.
• Termination for default: Notice to Correct first (reply in 5 days); then a Notice of Default with 21 days to explain; then termination with HOPE approval, with 14 working days' notice. Grounds include stopping work for 28 days, failing to start, no security, LD cap reached, unauthorised subcontracting, corrupt practice; for the contractor, site not handed over or certified payment unpaid for 84 days. HOPE may set up a Contract Termination Review Committee.
• Also insolvency, convenience (21 days' notice), and force majeure (notice within 14 days).
• Disputes: amicable settlement; Adjudicator within 14 days (decision in 28, fees shared); arbitration after 28 days under UNCITRAL or ICC rules for a foreign contractor, or the Arbitration Act 2001.

Example: extension authority On a 24-month contract you may extend by up to 7.2 months; up to 24 more months needs HOPE; anything beyond needs the Secretary.

16Points to Correct in the Draft

The December 2025 draft mixes goods, works and plant templates. Settle these in the TDS and PCC or ask BPPA:

• Taxes: ITT 26.18 puts all taxes in the price, but GCC 65.2 says the PE pays customs on Schedule 1 plant and VAT on plant in Schedules 1–2.
• Retention: TDS 69.1 says 10%; PCC 64.1 says 5% (up to 20%). TDS 69.3 caps contractual security at 10%, which the 10% performance security alone fills.
• Price adjustment: PCC 60.4 puts A at 0.20–0.25 and cites ITT 27.8/27.9; Appendix 2 puts A at 0.10–0.15.
• Schedule numbering: ITT 26.6–26.7 call installation Schedule 4 and spares Schedule 6; the forms make civil works 4, installation 5, grand summary 6 and spares 7; columns say "carry to Schedule No. 5 Grand Summary"; the grand summary omits civil works.
• Form numbers: the guidance notes number forms differently from Section 5 (tender security 6 or 7, NOA 7 or 9, performance security 9 or 11); ITT 23–26 cite Forms 1a and 1b, but only one Form e-PG5A-1 exists; GCC 60.1 cites Form 8 for the contract agreement (it is 10).
• Section numbers: ITT 1.1 points to "Section 6: Schedule of Requirements"; Section 7's headings are numbered 6.1–6.6; the change-order log cites a non-existent Annex 8.
• Defect liability: GCC 45.2 fixes 540 days or 1 year; PCC 45.2 asks for months. PCC 45.3 holds an unrelated "late programme" amount; PCC 63.4 cites GCC 42.10 (it is 45.10).
• Commencement: GCC 28.1 repeats the completion text of 29.1.
• Cross-references: e.g. ITT 4.5 cites GCC 38; GCC 36.1 cites 39.2.1; 41.7 "referred to an 82.3"; 42.4 cites 39.4; 46.2 cites 69.2.2 for termination; 50.3 cites 64 and 71.1; 54.3 cites 65; 70.4 cites 65.1–65.2; 73.2 cites 72.1; PCC 68.1 says GCC 71.1.
• Goods wording: ITT 13.1 and 31.1 speak of "supply of Goods"; TDS 69.1 retention starts "upon delivery of Goods and acceptance by the TEAC"; the Acceptance Certificate covers "Goods" and construction defects.
• Security validity: the submission letter says 28 days after the Completion Certificate; ITT 67.1 says after the Intended Completion Date; GCC 63.4 runs into the defect period.
• Signing rule: TDS 70.2 cites Rule 123(9); the NOA cites 123(11).
• JV table: TDS 17.1 and 17.2 both set the partner limit; the table cites "ITT 14.1(d)", which does not exist.
• Assessment year: TDS 23.2(e)ii says "immediate past" but its example for FY 2025-26 is AY 2023-24.
• Garbled text: ITT 19.1 repeats a sentence; GCC 70.6 is incomplete; GCC 70.1 refers to a delivery period "in the TDS" that the TDS lacks; tender security form mentions arithmetic correction, which e-GP does not do; reporting formats read "FUNDING NEGRMATION" and skip item 12; every page header reads "e-PG5A (International)PW3".

17Publishing Checklist

• Turnkey scope confirmed; international OSTETM chosen; estimate realistic.
• Qualification: experience, arbitration, liquid assets, AACT, personnel, equipment, JV split and licences set.
• Subcontracting limit and nominated subcontractors stated.
• Price schedules set up with one consistent numbering; INCOTERM place, currency and fixed/adjustable choice stated.
• Tax treatment decided (ITT 26.18 vs GCC 65.2) and stated.
• Economic factors in TDS 55.6 filled or deleted.
• Specifications, tests, drawings and functional guarantees with minimum levels complete.
• Appendices 1–8 complete, especially PE's supplies for commissioning.
• PCC complete: dates, Guarantee Test period, LD, bonus, defect liability, insurance, advance, interest, retention (one figure), adjudicator, arbitration.
• Validity, tender security and timelines set by estimate band.

18Common Questions