Telecommunications network

Tender description

DFID are procuring on behalf of the Government of Montserrat. Montserrat has been without international fibre connectivity since the deactivation of the Fox's Bay landing point of the Eastern Caribbean Fibre System (ECFS) following the evacuation of Plymouth in 1997. The UK Government (represented by DFID) and the Government of Montserrat (GoM) is commissioning a new fibre optic link for Montserrat. DFID on behalf of the Government of Montserrat (GoM) is seeking to appoint a supplier(s) to provide and lay the submarine cable, and provide operation and maintenance services for the cable. In order to achieve best value for money and give potential suppliers the flexibility to bid for the work most suited to their expertise, DFID is providing three contract options. These are: — Lot 1. A contract to provide and lay the submarine fibre optic cable, and — Lot 2. A contract to provide the operation and maintenance of the fibre optic cable, once installed, or — Lot 3. A combined contract to provide, lay, operate and maintain the submarine fibre optic cable, once installed. The GoM will award and manage the Contract(s) awarded as a result of this procurement process. The UK's obligation to the Overseas Territories derives from the United Nations' Charter: ‘to promote to the utmost, within the system of international peace and security established by the present Charter, the well-being of the inhabitants of these territories’. The 2012 White Paper sets out the UK's vision for its Overseas Territories (OTs) to be vibrant and flourishing, proudly retaining aspects of their British identity and generating wider opportunities for their people. The Business Plan for the Overseas Territories Department (OTD) 2016/17 — 2019/20 states the need for infrastructure investment to improve the investment climate on Montserrat, in order to attract domestic and international investment. This investment will remove specific constraints to economic transformation and target sectors identified in the country growth diagnostics as having most potential to create jobs, such as technology.