Proposals for new Panama Canal locks due March 3

A sophisticated selection process has been put in place to select the winner for what will be the largest contract under the US$5.25bn programme. Consortia submissions will be separated into two submissions, by price and technical proposals. The price proposals will be moved to an independent and secure environment and will not be reviewed until the technical proposals have been evaluated and points computed.

“All contracts undergo a very rigorous process to ensure fairness and transparency,” said ACP’s administrator and CEO, Alberto Alemán Zubieta. “As the largest and most important contract under the expansion programme, we have taken additional measures to ensure that the contracting process is airtight, complies with Panamanian law, is managed by experts and audited by a third party to certify thoroughness and transparency.”

Bidding for the contract to design and build the new set of locks has undergone an 18-month-long process which began in August 2007. In December that same year the ACP announced that four global consortia met the minimum prequalification requirements and would move forward with their bids to design and build the new locks.