Q&A_Thule_Sealift_Solicitation.xlsx

Sheet1

can vessels with either a Danish Owner (company registered in Denmark) or operated by a Danish company (company registered in Denmark) be accepted, despite vessel is under foreign flag (not US and/or DK flag)

Please confirm the carrier will not be responsible for any cargo handling / container stuffing; all cargo will be made available to the carrier ready for loading onto vessel.

Please confirm the carrier is only responsible for “ocean” costs basis “dock-to-dock” i.e. "liner in/out” terms.

Attachment 4 Proposed Prices?

The RFP provides “Materials and structure of the ice strengthened ship used shall be designed for operation at the ships polar service temperature and resist both global and local structural loads anticipated under the foreseen ice conditions in accordance with Chapter 3 – Ship Structure of the International Code for Ships Operating in Polar Waters (Polar Code, Attachment 3)”. Please clarify if this means that a vessel is acceptable for this RFP regardless of the specific Polar Code Category it belongs to (A,B or C). Is there any requirement for a minimum Ice Class/Polar Code Category on the vessels?

A. Please confirm an email submittal meets the electronic submittal requirement.

B. The requirement to submit the proposal on Digital Video Disk (DVD) to the US Embassy in Copenhagen, is this submittal required on the same date/time as submittal to the contracting office?

Would a teaming agreement with a company with past performance in polar trading be deemed acceptable for an offeror’s relevant and recent experience evaluation?

However, it looks like the government through its response in the Q&A, is imposing a new exception to the Polar Code, by providing that Polar Code Category C are not acceptable, when such vessels can perform in Arctic waters depending of course on the foreseen ice conditions as per the Polar Code, which is something that applies to all vessels.

Can you please provide the historic or foreseen polar condition data for specifically the Thule Air Base voyage passage during the open season (about July to September as per RFP) that the government is using to perform such a risk assessment that excludes all Polar Category C vessels as per polar Code provisions or how the government concluded to only permit Polar Code Category A and B vessels when future polar Category C vessels have been trading in the area for the past years? In addition, our understanding is that for vessels on which the Polar Code will apply after 2018, the current international regulations (pre-Polar Code) and status regarding voyages to Thule will apply. Please confirm.

It is confirmed that any proposal’s Factor 2, Subfactor 2 will be determined acceptable if the offeror demonstrates acceptable Polar Code adherence with a statement of assurance which includes the elements described in Clause 52.212-2 under Subfactor 2 in the RFP.

Please note the definitions of Category A, B and C ships in Attach-3 Polar Code: Annex 10, page 6, INTRODUCTION paragraphs 2.1-2.3.

• 2.1 Category A ship means a ship designed for operation in polar waters in at least medium first-year ice, which may include old ice inclusions.

• 2.2 Category B ship means a ship not included in category A, designed for operation in polar waters in at least thin first-year ice, which may include old ice inclusions.

• 2.3 Category C ship means a ship designed to operate in open water or in ice conditions less severe than those included in categories A and B.

Minimum Ice Class ratings should be set by the vessel’s Insurance Company and their Classification society.

During performance of the contract in the year of execution the contractor will be required to adhere to PWS paragraph 3.1.2 in providing a valid Polar Ship Certificate for all vessels to be used each port season IAW the standards described in that paragraph of the PWS.

“Thin first-year ice” is the key terminology and the separation factor between Category B and Category C. Based on historical/meteorological data from the U.S. National Ice Center, the US Government technical expert does not foresee ice conditions to be anything less than "thin first-year ice" on the Thule Air Base voyage passage during the open season. The ship shall, at any time, have an ice class corresponding, as a minimum, to the ice that it is navigating.

The US Government is not in possession of any further historic or foreseen polar condition data for the Thule Air Base voyage passage during the open season.