1. International competitive bidding
1.1 General “International competitive bidding”, as used in these guidelines, has the purpose of affording to prospective bidders from all countries adequate notification of a recipient’s requirements and of providing all bidders an equal opportunity to bid on the necessary goods or works, subject to appropriate preferences for goods and services from developing countries according to Para. 3.9 of these guidelines. In connection with any contract to be financed by the OPEC Fund, as a general rule, the OPEC Fund does not permit a recipient to deny prequalification, if required, to a firm for reasons unrelated to its capacity to supply the goods and services in question; nor does it permit a recipient to disqualify any bidder for such reasons.** As an exception to the foregoing, a firm of a certain country or goods manufactured in a certain country may be excluded if, as a matter of law or official regulation, the recipient’s country prohibits commercial relations with that firm or country, provided that the OPEC Fund is satisfied that such exclusion is based on reasonable grounds. The OPEC Fund also reserves the right to exclude the firms of a certain country or goods manufactured in a certain country, as the OPEC Fund’s Governing Board may decide. 1.2 Type and size of contracts In order to foster widespread competition, individual contracts should be of an appropriate size to attract bidders. The bidding documents should state clearly whether contracts will be awarded on the basis of unit prices (for work performed or goods supplied) or of a lump sum price, or a combination of both for different portions of the contract, according to the nature of the goods or services to be provided. Contracts based principally on the reimbursement of actual costs are accept able to the OPEC Fund only in exceptional circumstances. The size and scope of individual contracts will depend on the magnitude, nature, and location of the project. For projects requiring a variety of works of specialized character (e.g. civil works, supply of equipment, an erection of different items of plant), separate contracts are normally awarded for each part. On the other hand, for a project requiring similar but separate civil works or items of equipment, bids should be invited under alternative contract options that would attract the interest of both smaller and larger firms.
* See Para. 1.4: Prequalification of bidders ** See e.g. Para. 3.7: Postqualification of bidders
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