e-PG8 National Two-Envelope Goods Preparation Guideline

01When to Use e-PG8

Use e-PG8 for goods and related services with high-end specifications, where the TEC must judge technical compliance without being influenced by price. Compliant offers then compete on price, and the lowest evaluated responsive tender wins.

Nature

Goods and related services

Method

One Stage Two Envelope (OSTETM)

Competition

National (this guide); ICT also in the STD

Value

Any

Joint venture

Not allowed

Domestic preference

Not applied (Rule 103(2))

Off-the-shelf goods with simple specifications? Use e-PG3. Goods that must be designed, installed and commissioned as a working plant? Use e-PG5A (National).

02What You Prepare

03Key Time Limits

04Qualification Criteria

All criteria are pass/fail. There is no turnover test; financial strength is shown through liquid assets.

Example: a Tk. 8 crore order for 10 ultrasound systems Ask for one similar contract in the last 5 years worth at least Tk. 4.8–6.4 crore (60–80%), supply capacity of 20 units a year (twice the quantity), and liquid assets of Tk. 6.4–8 crore (80–100%). Require manufacturer's authorisation and after-sales service, since the supplier is unlikely to be the manufacturer.

For several lots, a tenderer must meet the summed criteria of the lots it wins; general and specific experience are not counted separately per lot unless the lots differ in nature.

05Other TDS Entries

Example: tender security and timelines On a Tk. 8 crore estimate, 3% is Tk. 24 lakh, so state a rounded figure such as Tk. 20 lakh, never "3%". The estimate sits in the Tk. 5–25 crore band, so the winner has 10 working days for the performance security and 21 days to sign.

06Lots, Prices and Schedules

• National tenders are priced in BDT only, using Form PG8-4A-1 for goods (with country of origin and manufacture) and PG8-4A-2 for related services.
• Rates are delivered prices to the final destination, including profit, overheads, VAT, taxes, duties, banking and insurance, as of 28 days before the deadline.
• Prices are fixed for the contract.
• Each item must be priced for its full quantity. Unconditional discounts and multi-lot discounts go in the financial submission letter.
• Related services (installation supervision, tools, manuals, maintenance, training) are listed in Section 6, Part B, with completion dates.

Example: lot coverage A lot has 20 items worth Tk. 1 crore. A tender quoting 17 items covering Tk. 70 lakh of estimated value passes (at least 16 items and Tk. 65 lakh). If it wins, the PE may buy the 3 missing items from the other responsive tenderers quoting them lowest, since they are no more than 20% of the items.

07Fill In the PCC

08Opening the Two Envelopes

1. Each tender arrives as one outer package holding Envelope-01 (technical) and Envelope-02 (financial), each with original and copies. Late tenders are returned unopened.
2. Within one hour of the deadline, the Tender Opening Committee opens only Envelope-01, checks any modification, substitution or withdrawal envelopes, and records the Tender Opening Sheet. No tender is rejected at opening except late ones.
3. Envelope-02 stays sealed in the custody of HOPE or the Authorized Officer.
4. After HOPE approves the technical report, give responsive tenderers at least 7 days' written notice of the public financial opening. The TEC Chair reads out and records each price, initialled corrections and discounts in the Financial Offer Opening Sheet.
5. Non-responsive tenderers' financial envelopes are returned unopened after the contract is signed.

On e-GP the same sequence is enforced by encryption: the system releases financial offers only for tenderers marked technically responsive after approval.

09Technical Evaluation

1. Preliminary examination: all forms filled and signed, signatory authorization, valid tender security. Any missing means rejection.
2. Technical examination: country of origin, specification compliance (Form PG8-5), and every qualification criterion, judged on the tender itself without outside evidence.
3. Material deviations, reservations or omissions cannot be cured. Minor documentary gaps may be filled on request, never on price or mandatory criteria.
4. Clarifications in writing, at least 3 working days to reply; no change of substance.
5. The TEC sends the technical report straight to HOPE or the Authorized Officer for approval.

Write specifications that are generic and performance-based. If only one brand can comply, the two-envelope method will not create competition.

10Financial Evaluation

1. Correct arithmetic errors: unit price prevails over line total (unless a decimal point is obviously misplaced), subtotals over totals, words over figures. A tenderer who refuses the correction is rejected and loses its security.
2. 10% ceiling: a national tender more than 10% above the official cost estimate is rejected.
3. Apply discounts and TDS 52.6 economic factors (delay, mandatory spares). Recommended spares are not counted.
4. Significantly low-priced tender check (national only), below.
5. Rank, lot by lot or for the least-cost combination. Ties: check for collusion (Rule 149), then past performance with the PE, then end-users' quality preference. Never a lottery.
6. No negotiation in national tenders. If prices are unbalanced, the TEC may recommend a performance security of up to 25%.
7. Post-qualify the lowest; visit its premises if useful. If it fails, go to the next.

Weighted average x̄ = 0.5 × (average of responsive prices) + 0.2 × official estimate + 0.3 × X_NPPI; S_d = √(Σ(x̄ − x_i)² ÷ n). Tenders below x̄ − S_d are rejected.

Only one technically responsive tender? Skip the formula and compare its evaluated price with the estimate: more than 20% away, it is non-responsive. It must still respect the 10% ceiling, so in practice the band is 20% below to 10% above (Tk. 6.4–8.8 crore here).

11Award, Securities and Signing

1. At award you may vary item quantities within the TDS percentage (up to 20%) without changing unit prices.
2. Issue the NOA (Form PG8-9) within 3 working days of approval, with the draft contract (PG8-10); publish the award within 24 hours.
3. Performance security: 10% of the contract price by bank draft, pay order or bank guarantee (PG8-11), within 7/10/14 working days, valid 28 days beyond the intended completion date and extended with any extension.
4. Sign within 14/21/28 days. Failure 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 and beneficial ownership (above Tk. 10 lakh) within 3 days.

Example B's Tk. 7.40 crore contract needs a Tk. 74 lakh performance security within 10 working days. Retention of 10% would add up to another Tk. 74 lakh, double the 10% contractual security cap in TDS 70.3: say in the TDS how the cap is applied.

12Delivery, Acceptance and Warranty

• Goods are packed and marked as the PCC says, with a packing list; documents reach you at least a week before arrival.
• Tests and inspections follow the PCC and specifications at the supplier's cost; you pay your own attendance. Failed goods are rectified or replaced and retested free.
• The TEAC starts inspection within 24 hours of delivery; the Acceptance Certificate (Format PG8-D) is issued within 14 working days, partly if some items are defective.
• Warranty: at least 3 months for supplies and 1 year for equipment (or the PCC period), from acceptance of the delivery challan. Defects are fixed within the PCC days; otherwise you draw on the retention.
• Retention is released only after the warranty, if goods are free of patent and latent defects.

Example: patent and latent defects An analyser that will not power up is a patent defect, seen at acceptance. One that drifts out of calibration after four months is a latent defect, caught by the 1-year warranty and secured by the retention.

13Payments, Delays and Changes

• Payment (sample PCC): advance up to 10% within 30 days of signing against a bank guarantee (PG8-12); the balance on delivery and acceptance, within the PCC days; interest if late.
• Delay: the supplier must ask for extension before the delivery date; you decide within 21 days. Up to 30% of contract time by the PE, 30–100% with HOPE, more with the Secretary.
• Liquidated damages: 0.03–0.05% per day of the value of goods delivered late, capped at up to 10% of the contract price; reaching the cap allows termination.
• Change orders: packing, place of delivery, related services, and design or specification only for specially manufactured goods, as an improvement at no extra cost. Approval by the Approving Authority first.
• Additional delivery: repeat quantities within the warranty period if prices are still best, with total increase up to 10% of the original price.
• Tax-rate changes adjust the price, with HOPE approval, so the supplier's net amount is unchanged.

Example: delay damages and extension Goods worth Tk. 1.5 crore arrive 15 days late at 0.05% a day: 1.5 crore × 0.0005 × 15 = Tk. 1,12,500, far below the Tk. 74 lakh cap. On a 120-day delivery period the PE alone may extend by up to 36 days.

14Termination and Disputes

• Notice to Correct: the supplier replies within 5 days with its remedy plan.
• Default: grounds include late delivery, lapsed security, LD cap reached, corrupt practice, or unauthorised subcontracting. Notice of Default with 21 days to explain; Verified Report within 7 days; show cause within 7 days; HOPE decides within 10 days; a Contract Termination Review Committee may assist.
• After default you may buy the balance elsewhere and charge the PCC percentage (15–25%) of the revised estimate; the supplier may be debarred up to 2 years.
• Insolvency; convenience with 21 days' notice (funding cut, changed conditions); force majeure notice within 14 days.
• Disputes: amicable settlement; Adjudicator within 14 days (decision in 28, fees shared); arbitration under the Arbitration Act 2001 at the PCC place.

Example: cost of default If undelivered goods are re-estimated at Tk. 2 crore and the PCC rate is 20%, the PE may recover Tk. 40 lakh in extra cost, besides LD already deducted.

15Points to Correct in the Draft

The April 2026 draft combines national and international rules and paper and e-GP procedures. Settle these in the TDS and PCC, or ask BPPA:

• Opening: ITT 41.1 repeats a sentence; 41.5 reads "the Tender price" and "official cost estimate" aloud at technical opening, when prices are still sealed; 43.3(b) checks a priced schedule at the technical stage although it is in Envelope-02.
• Price limits: the 10% ceiling (ITT 50.3) and the single-tender 20% band (54.7) overlap; a lone tender 15% above estimate passes one and fails the other.
• Negotiation: ITT 57.1 forbids it for national tenders, but 57.6 allows it for divisible goods under Rule 120(e).
• Security cap: 10% performance security plus 10% retention (TDS 70.1, PCC 29.1) against a 10% contractual security cap (TDS 70.3).
• Security validity: ITT 68.1 says 28 days past the intended completion date; GCC 28.1 says until the Acceptance Certificate; the financial letter says 28 days past completion of all obligations.
• Taxes: ITT 24.10 and the price notes put VAT in the price; GCC 23.2 says VAT is excluded from evaluation.
• Retention guarantee (PG8-13) speaks of Works, Taking-Over, the second half of retention and plant installation.
• Rule references: TDS 66 cites Rule 123(5) for performance security, the NOA Rule 123(7); signing cites 123(9) and 123(11).
• Wording: ITT 67.1 reads "National approach of tendering (ICT)"; GCC 41 refers to a Project Manager and Time for Completion; GCC 33.4 is incomplete; Section 7's box is titled "Notes on Drawings".
• Cross-references: e.g. ITT 4.5 cites GCC 37; 21.3(c) cites 41.3; 35.1(c) cites 63.2; 52.4 cites 23.5–23.6; 52.6 cites Clause 26; 24.14(d) and TDS cite 23.12(a)/23.14(a); 55.2(d) speaks of Works and "tender capacity"; PCC 8.1 cites ITT 59.1; PCC 47.3(c) samples are numbered GCC 46.3(b).
• Assessment year: "immediate past" but the example for FY 2025-26 is AY 2023-24.
• Garbled text: every header reads "PG8PW3"; formats read "FUNDING NEGRMATION" and skip item 12; Format PG8-B's content appears under the PG8-C heading.

16Publishing Checklist

• High-tech goods justify two envelopes; estimate realistic (it drives the 10% ceiling, SLT check and 20% band).
• Experience, supply capacity, liquid assets, litigation years, manufacturer's authorisation and after-sales service set.
• Subcontracting percentage, alternatives, lots and coverage rules stated.
• Schedule of Requirements: quantities, delivery points, earliest and latest dates, related services.
• Specifications generic, with inspections and tests.
• Economic factors filled or deleted; quantity variation percentage stated.
• Security cap and retention reconciled; validity and security timelines by estimate band.
• PCC complete: documents, payment, insurance, tests, warranty, LD, default cost, adjudicator, arbitration.

17Common Questions