Lease of vessel

The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) Office of Acquisitions and Grants is seeking to lease a vessel for marine scientific missions in the Cascadia subduction zone. The primary objectives include deploying seafloor geodetic stations and a waveglider, with specific requirements for the vessel to be at least 90 feet long and fully U.S. Coast Guard licensed. The solicitation is an unrestricted, combined synopsis/solicitation for commercial services following FAR Parts 12 and 13 procedures, with potential offerors required to be registered in SAM.gov. Evaluation will be based on trade-offs involving prior experience, vessel specifications, and price, with a focus on the vessel captain having at least four years of experience as a vessel master in the Pacific. Quotations must be submitted electronically to vnuno@usgs.gov by April 17, 2025, at 1200 Eastern Time, with the solicitation covering marine research and scientific equipment deployment services.

The contract has no specific set-aside designation and will be performed in Eureka, California, with mobilization and demobilization occurring at that location. The period of performance spans from July 21, 2025, to September 12, 2025, during which the vessel will support two marine scientific missions. The vessel must be capable of accommodating up to 8 personnel for 24-hour operations and equipped with specific marine navigation and safety equipment. Key mission components include deploying six transponders for seafloor geodetic stations and retrieving a waveglider near Humboldt Bay. While specific award values are not detailed in the solicitation, the contract represents a specialized marine research support service with precise operational requirements and a defined geographical scope in the Pacific region.