British firm qualified to bid for P5.4-B Navy deal

MANILA, Philippines - The defense department has declared a British firm as the only company qualified to bid for the supply of two Navy anti-submarine helicopters worth P5.4 billion.

During the opening of bids held in Camp Aguinaldo last Tuesday, the Bids and Awards Committee declared AgustaWestland as the only helicopter manufacturer that met the documentary requirements.

Two companies submitted bids for the project, which seeks to improve the military’s maritime security capabilities.

The other bidder, Indonesian firm PT Dirgantara, was disqualified for failing to present a statement of the largest completed contract, one of the requirements set by law.

AgustaWestland was able to submit all the needed documents, making it the only bidder to hurdle the first phase of bidding for the project.

The anti-submarine helicopters will be acquired through a two-stage bidding because of the detailed nature of the air assets.

A two-stage bidding is applied to big-ticket items that require the scrutiny of technical teams. In the first stage, officials determine who among the bidders are qualified to submit offers.

The second stage will determine which of the qualified suppliers has the best offer. The opening of financial documents, including the price being offered by suppliers, is also done in the second stage.

The schedule of the second phase of the bidding has yet to be announced.

A document obtained by The STAR showed that four companies bought bid documents for the anti-submarine helicopter project.

The other two companies that expressed interest to join the bidding were Bell Helicopter Asia (PTE) Ltd./Serpenair Group Inc. and Israel Aerospace Industries, but they did not submit offers.

The anti-submarine helicopter acquisition project is one of the big-ticket items in the military’s upgrade program.

The air assets are primarily ship-based helicopters with mission essential equipment. They are expected to strengthen the military’s maritime security capabilities as they can be immediately deployed to safeguard the country’s maritime resources.