The Government proposes to allow the application of the form of designated bidding for the turnkey construction package of the main plant (Ninh Thuan nuclear power project) with the contractor named in the Intergovernmental Agreement.
On the evening of February 10, the National Assembly Standing Committee gave opinions on the policy and special mechanism for building nuclear power plants in Ninh Thuan to prepare for submission to the National Assembly for consideration and approval at the extraordinary session opening on February 12.
Choosing a contractor under the Bidding Law will prolong the time.
Presenting the report, Minister of Industry and Trade Nguyen Hong Dien said that the Government proposed many specific mechanisms to achieve the goal of putting the project into operation in the next 5 years.
One of the specific mechanisms and policies is contractor selection. The Government proposes to allow the Prime Minister to assign the investor to implement the project; apply the turnkey contract form and implement contractor selection immediately after the National Assembly approves the adjustment of the project's investment policy.
Notably, the Government proposed to allow the application of the form of direct bidding for the turnkey package of construction of the main factory with the contractor named in the Intergovernmental Agreement according to the shortened direct bidding process (direct negotiations are organized based on the draft contract sent to the contractor).
According to the Government's explanation, choosing a turnkey contract is necessary to speed up progress, due to the nature of nuclear power plants requiring nuclear fuel for the first cycle and experts in operation and maintenance in the first phase.
Currently, the Law on Bidding does not have any regulations on selecting contractors to implement bidding packages that combine construction investment costs and production and business costs (purchase of nuclear fuel and operation and maintenance experts). Therefore, if selecting contractors according to the procedures prescribed by the Law on Bidding, it will take longer and will not meet the project implementation schedule.
The Government also proposed to appoint contractors/select contractors in special cases/shorten bidding to evaluate technology, report on environment, safety, security, as well as inspect nuclear regulations in the investment stages of construction of Ninh Thuan nuclear power projects.
The Government believes that the Ministry of Science and Technology currently does not have enough resources to conduct safety and security assessments and nuclear regulatory inspections in all phases of the project. Other specialized agencies in Vietnam also lack experience in implementing this first project, so it is necessary to hire international consultants.
It is reasonable to apply the turnkey package bidding designation.
Examining this content, Chairman of the Committee of Science, Technology and Environment Le Quang Huy expressed his agreement that applying the turnkey bidding package is reasonable to speed up the implementation progress of the Ninh Thuan nuclear power project.
However, the auditing agency noted that this form could lead to limited competition, the risk of group interests and lack of transparency in the implementation process.
To minimize risks, the Standing Committee of the Science, Technology and Environment Committee proposed to study and supplement strict monitoring processes such as: Publicizing the list of contractors and selection criteria to increase transparency; establishing an independent monitoring board to check the bidding process; developing a mechanism for periodic reporting on contract implementation progress; applying strict sanctions if negative signs are detected during the process of contract designation and implementation.
In addition, there should be clear regulations on the conditions of application, criteria for selecting contractors, and additional mechanisms to strictly control contract terms, especially commitments on technology, maintenance and technology transfer after project completion.
Regarding financial plans and capital arrangements, the Government proposes that investors be allowed to borrow and re-borrow under preferential conditions. The Government is allowed to use increased revenue, savings from the central budget and other legal sources of capital for the project in case the loan agreement negotiations are unsuccessful or the loan is small-scale.
With a very large amount of counterpart capital, the Government recommends that investors be allowed to use loans and bond capital as counterpart capital.
According to the Government’s proposed plan, the investor of the Ninh Thuan nuclear power project will retain all remaining after-tax profits to supplement counterpart capital during the project implementation period. They will also be exempted from the procedure for approving the policy of transferring forest use rights for items related to the project.
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Source: https://vietnamnet.vn/chinh-phu-de-xuat-chi-dinh-thau-de-lam-nhanh-nha-may-dien-hat-nhan-ninh-thuan-2370210.html
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