26R0005 - Attachment (21) - Q and A (22JAN26).pdf

ATTACHMENT (21) – QUESTIONS & ANSWERS

RFP No. N3220526R0005

Q01. “[I]n regard to the declaration options, how does MSC go about declaring additional options/what amount of lead time prior to the end of the base period?”

A01. Please see PART VIII(c)(3), FAR 52.217-9 Option to Extend the Term of the Contract, of

Attachment (01).

Q02. “[Where should a company submit its] small business status within the offer?”

A02. Please see PART XII(c)(3), FAR 52.212-3 Offeror Representations and Certifications –

Commercial Products and Commercial Services, of Attachment (01).

Q03. “Would a draft Bare Boat Charter including foreign owners particulars and a Letter of

Intent that owner confirming upon award of resulting contract a US entity will be opened to comply with US Registry and that US entity will be named in a revised Bare Boat after award?”

A03. Please see Paragraph 14 of the BUSINESS PROPOSAL under PART X of Attachment

(01) regarding bareboat charters. As a reminder, the proposed vessel must be U.S. Flag or foreign flag to be reflagged prior to delivery.

Q04. “Ref Attachment (02), the RFP states a minimum cargo capacity of 240,000 bbls, an MR tanker nominally carries 310,000 bbls. To provide the most flexibility to MSC, we recommend the minimum cargo capacity be amended to 310,000 bbls. A stow plan for cargo capacity of 240,000 bbls and correlated draft can be provided.”

A04. The Government requires a Medium Range (MR) sized tanker for CONSOL purposes, but is limited by draft restrictions at some intended destinations for specific resupply missions.

Q05. “In attachment 01 TANKTIME 2024 (12-24), Part V-1 para (b.1.), Fuel Monitoring; does this requirement refer to the MSC voyage abstract that is submitted monthly? If not, what is MSC’s expectation for compliance with this requirement?”

A05. Yes. Fuel Monitoring is a required capability to produce MONTHLY VOYAGE ABSTRACTs as required under Paragraph (s) of Attachment (02) - PWS.

Q06. “Please confirm DFARS Clause 252.247-7026 is NOT checked for this solicitation.”

A06. DFARS Clause 252.247-7026 is not applicable for this procurement.

Q07. “Ref Attachment 6 – Basic Pricing Data, there is no TOTAL EVALUATION PRICE form. Will MSC provide a TOTAL EVALUATION PRICE form, as has been done in past RFP’s??”

A07. A Total Evaluated Price form will not be provided. Rather, the Government has identified the manner in which the Total Evaluated Price will be calculated under PART XI(e)(2) of Attachment (01). The Government will calculate the Total Evaluated Price.

Q08. “In attachment (14)- Fuel Delivery System-, there is no defined timeline for when the option to install a Fuel Delivery System will be exercised. Taking into consideration that subcontractor costs do escalate over time, will the Government consider making unanticipated FDS costs reimbursable?”

A08. No. The Fuel Delivery Station (FDS) Option will be Firm-Fixed Price.

Q09. “Ref Attachment 14, is the installation of CONSOL required at delivery? Or is CONSOL to be installed along with FDS installation to occur during a 30-day period within 12 months of the declaration of the FDS Option?”

A09. Per Paragraph 1 of Attachment (13), “Vessel must be equipped within six months of delivery to perform Refueling at Sea (CONSOL only) operations.”

Q10. “Please confirm that FDS is a requirement of this RFP, and that FDS pricing is required to be included in box 14. This question is asked because on page XI-2 under the Price section a sentence reads ‘the FDS option cost will be included if proposed in box 14.’

The word ‘if’ suggests that an offeror may not be required to include this price.”

A10. The FDS requirement, as covered under Attachment (14), is a requirement of this RFP.

Please see PART XI (e)(2) for revised language regarding how the FDS Option will be considered in the Total Evaluated Price.

Q11. “Is CONSOL to be included in the FDS pricing and included in box 14 of Attachment 01

TANKTIME 2024 (12-24) ?”

A11. CONSOL requirements, as covered under Attachment (13), are not part of the FDS

Option. Pricing entered into Box 14 of PART I of Attachment (01) pertains solely to the FDS Option.

Q12. “Will MSC consider NOT including FDS cost in the pricing evaluation? Also… how will

MSC evaluate the technical suitability of systems proposed by offerors?”

A12. The cost of the FDS Option will be part of the Price Evaluation as described in Part

XI(e)(2). Separately, the Government will evaluate the technical suitability of systems proposed by Offerors in accordance with PART XI(e)(1) of Attachment (01).

Q13. “If DFARS Clause 252.247-7026 is in fact applicable to this charter, please advise the definition of a covered vessel.”

A13. Please see A06; DFARS Clause 252.247-7026 is not applicable for this procurement.

Q14. “In Attachment (01) it states that a system security plans needs to be submitted, post award, within 30 days, however attachment (15) designates within 45 days of award.

Please provide clarity.”

A14. In accordance with PART V(k) of Attachment (01), within thirty (30) days of contract award, the Contractor shall make its System Security Plan(s) for its covered contractor information system(s) available for review by the Government at the contractor’s facility.

Attachment (15) has been revised/updated to designate this same 30-day requirement.

Q15. “We wanted to confirm that email receipt of submission is all that is required, meaning, no physical submittals are necessary?”

A15. Per PART X(b)(3) of Attachment (01), “Proposals/modifications must be submitted via e-mail”. No hard copy submittals will be considered.

Q16. “Page 24 of attachment (01) states: For those tankers whose vessel’s age will exceed 20 years during the charter period, the Owner/Offeror must provide a suitable like substitute vessel that shall possess the shall possess the same or greater characteristics as the Vessel being replaced. The charter rate shall remain unchanged from that contained in this charter. Approval of a Vessel substitution is a matter for the Charterer's sole discretion.

Under this substitution, Contracting Officer shall be provided vessel characteristics and full information sufficiently in advance to permit the Charterer to determine acceptability of the substitute vessel suitability in accordance with the Substitution section of this charter, and at least 18 months (new-build) and 12 months (existing vessel) prior to providing NOR and delivery of the substitute vessel.

“On submittal of the solicitation, is all that is required, if a vessel ages out during the charter, is that the Offeror /Owner plans to provide a suitable substation, without naming a vessel TBN, if unknown at this time or if not built yet?”

A16. Yes. For proposed vessels that will exceed 20 years of age during the performance of the contract, Offerors shall warrant it will comply with the requirements outlined in PART II(o)(7). Offerors do not have to provide the name of a substitution vessel at time of offer. See Paragraph 5(c)(13) of the TECHNICAL PROPOSAL under PART X of Attachment (01).

Q17. “In Sam.gov, Attachment (04a and 04b) are controlled documents and unable to access.

Will Offeror have to provide commentary for solicitation on this CBA? Offeror is unsure what these attachments entail and if needing to be responded to. Per business proposal on page 117 of attachment 1 it states: 6. SCA Certification: The Offeror must certify that it will comply with the Service Contract Act and Department of Labor Wage Determination

(Attachment (04)) in performance of this contract, should they apply. Are we able to get access to both 04a and 04b attachments so we can certify our compliance?”

A17. Attachments (04a) & (04b) have had their access changed from “Controlled” to “Public”.

These documents are available for download at the Governmentwide Point of Entry (SAM.gov) under Solicitation No. N3220526R0005.

Q18. “For the offer of this solicitation and per instructions on page 111 of attachment (01) it states the following: Submission of offers. (Tailored) Submit signed and dated offers to the point of contact specified in Block 7 of the SF 1449 at or before the exact time specified in this solicitation. Offers may be submitted on the SF 1449, letterhead stationery, or as otherwise specified in the solicitation. As a minimum, offers must show—

(1) That information identified in PART X under the following titles:

(i) BUSINESS PROPOSAL

(ii) TECHNICAL PROPOSAL

(iii) PRICE PROPOSAL

(2) The vessel’s Name, its International Maritime Organization (IMO) Number, a price, and a signature from an authorized representative.

“Will supplying the above be sufficient, or are there other areas in which the Offeror must reply to?”

A18. Offers must be submitted in accordance with PART X of Attachment (01) in order to be considered compliant with the solicitation.

Q19. “We see mention of ‘pre-award drawings, plans and documents’ to be included in the

Technical Proposal, listed on page X10 of Attachment 01. But in Section c. that continues on to pages X11 and X-12 I do not see any specific drawings listed. For submittal of this solicitation, what drawings are needed? Additionally, we do not see where we would need to supply General Arrangements or Capacity plans with this solicitation. Can you confirm please? Additionally, in attachment 13 part 4 references CONSOL drawings 2227933A (attached), and 803-2213159G and item 5 further cites other drawings. Where are these drawings attached or located or where can they be found?”

A19. In accordance with Paragraph 5(c)(4) of the TECHNICAL PROPOSAL under PART X of Attachment (01), Offerors shall provide stowage plans for each cargo listed in Paragraph (a) of Attachment (02). General arrangement drawing with CONSOL stations and FDS placement will be supplied when submitting for approval to NAVSEA Port Hueneme Division. All CONSOL drawings can be provided by MSC upon request.

Q20. “As it pertains to training (CBRN-D and ATFP), has MSC started accepting commercial crews into their training schools?”

A20. MSC does accept commercial crews in its training schools for CBRN-D and ATFP;

however, historically there have not been spots available for commercial crews.

Q21. “PART X. FAR 52.212-1, Instructions to Offerors—Commercial Products and Commercial Services (Sep 2023) (tailored pursuant to FAR 12.302(a)). BUSINESS PROPOSAL. Offerors shall provide the following: 13. Evidence of Contractor Responsibility. Offerors must provide evidence to support the prospective contractor’s affirmative responsibility determination, to include a response to each of the seven (7) elements of a responsibility determination as defined in FAR 9.104-1. Our representations to 52.209-5 and 52.209-11 in SAM.gov certifies our Evidence of Contractor Responsibility. Please confirm that having these complete in SAM.gov or completing 52.212-3(h) satisfies this requirement in lieu of responding to the 7 items in

FAR 9.104-1?”

A21. No. Offerors must provide evidence to support the prospective contractor’s affirmative responsibility determination, to include a response to each of the seven (7) elements of a responsibility determination as defined in FAR 9.104-1.

Q22. “PART X. FAR 52.212-1, Instructions to Offerors Number 4 under the instructions for the BUSINESS PROPOSAL requires ‘Completed Tank Time Charter Boxes’ and Number 5(b) under the instructions for the TECHNICAL PROPOSAL also requires ‘completed Part I Boxes (not including pricing details from Boxes 13).’ Would the Government please clarify which Completed Tank Time Charter Boxes are to be included in the Business Proposal?”

A22. For purposes of the BUSINESS PROPOSAL, please complete all Tank Time Charter Boxes present in PART I of Attachment (01) [Boxes 1 through 97].

Q23. “Page X-12, Price Proposal 1 states ‘Offeror’s proposed FDS Option price shall be entered in Box 14.’ Page XI-2, Evaluation Factors, 2. Price states: ‘The FDS Option cost will be included if proposed in Box 14.’ Question: Is the FDS pricing optional or mandatory? Also, if priced, is it part of the Total Evaluated Price?”

A23. Please see A10. FDS Option pricing is required and is part of the Total Evaluated Price.

Please see PART XI(e)(2) of Attachment (01) for revised language regarding how the FDS Option will be considered in the Total Evaluated Price.

Q24. “Would the Government please provide a copy of the wage determination for the current wages (copies of the current Collective Bargaining Agreements [CBAs])?”

A24. Attachments (04a) & (04b) have had their access changed from “Controlled” to “Public”.

These documents are available for download at the Governmentwide Point of Entry (SAM.gov) under Solicitation No. N3220526R0005.

Q25. “[R]espectfully request a two-week extension (13 FEB 2026) to the proposal timeline.”

A25. The Offer Due Date/Local Time has been extended from 13:00 Eastern Time, 30 JAN

2026 to 13:00 Eastern Time, 06 FEB 2026.

Q26. “Does MSC intend to keep the vessel On-Hire during the CONSOL installation process?”

A26. The Government does not intend to keep the Vessel On-Hire during the CONSOL installation process.

Q27. “Please confirm that the offeror does not need to submit representations and certifications that have been completed electronically in SAM (http://www.sam.gov).”

A27. Per PART X, BUSINESS PROPOSAL, Item 11, of Attachment (01), “If an Offeror has completed its representations and certifications electronically in SAM (http://www.sam.gov), it must so state in its proposal.”

Q28. “Attachment 14 (Fuel Delivery System) states, ‘The vessel will remain on-hire during the

30-day installation period.’ Does the government intend to keep the Vessel On-Hire if there are reasonable delays beyond the 30-day period?”

A28. The Government does not intend to keep the Vessel On-Hire beyond the 30-day period.