Abiquiu and El Vado Hydroelectric Plants Condition Assessment

The Incorporated County of Los Alamos is issuing a Request for Proposals (RFP No. 9-RFP26-60) to procure a comprehensive condition assessment of the Abiquiu and El Vado Hydroelectric Plants located in northern New Mexico. The assessment will encompass non-destructive testing, equipment inspection, and site-specific evaluations of two run-of-the-river hydroelectric facilities serving Los Alamos County retail customers and Los Alamos National Laboratory. Deliverables must include a professional report documenting inspection findings, equipment condition analysis, recommended corrective actions, and a prioritized ten-year capital improvement plan with scopes of work, cost estimates, and construction schedules. The scope includes comprehensive field inspection and evaluation of the Abiquiu plant (three units totaling 16.9 MW commissioned between 1989-2011), electrical testing through Doble Services (mandated for access to technical libraries and baseline comparison data from prior 1999 and 2013 assessments), turbine runner inspection and evaluation, and a limited condition assessment of the El Vado plant (one 8.0 MW unit commissioned in 1987, excluding rehabilitated equipment from 2016 and 2017). Qualified firms must demonstrate technical qualifications and relevant experience in hydroelectric facility assessments, with evaluation criteria weighted as follows: technical qualifications and relevant experience (20 points), approach and work plan (35 points), schedule for completion (15 points), and cost proposal (30 points). Offerors must submit a minimum of three client references documenting similar services performed within the last three to five years. A non-mandatory pre-proposal conference is scheduled for April 1, 2026 at 1:00 p.m. Mountain Time via Microsoft Teams; written questions must be submitted by April 9, 2026 at 2:00 p.m., with responses issued by April 15, 2026. Proposals are due April 21, 2026 at 2:00 p.m. Mountain Time through the County's Bonfire Procurement Portal, with evaluation occurring April 22-24, 2026 and estimated contract award on June 10, 2026, contingent upon Board of Public Utilities approval for contracts exceeding $100,000 and County Council approval for contracts exceeding $300,000.

The RFP permits Los Alamos County preference certificates for eligible offerors under multiple designated categories including Local Business, Resident Business, Native American Resident Business, Resident Veteran Business, Native American Resident Veteran Business, and combinations thereof, with specific revenue thresholds applicable to certain preferences. Offerors claiming preference status must submit valid supporting documentation with their proposals; the County reserves the right to verify accuracy prior to applying preference factors. No cost-plus-a-percentage-of-cost contracts are permitted under County Ordinance. The RFP requires cost proposals broken into six primary deliverable categories with line-item descriptions in United States dollars, including hourly rates, total hours, and total amounts; direct reimbursable expenses for travel, lodging, meals, mileage, and reproduction costs are permitted subject to Los Alamos County Travel Policy limitations (maximum $250 per night for lodging, $90 per diem for multi-day travel, and minimum $0.45 per mile for mileage). Supporting documentation including 1999 generator and HV maintenance studies, 2013 condition assessment, 2015 El Vado refurbishment specifications, and historical runner blade crack data are available through the County's document portal. While no specific budget range or award value is disclosed in the solicitation, contracts exceeding $100,000 require Board of Public Utilities approval, and those exceeding $300,000 require County Council approval, suggesting the contract value may exceed $100,000. Proposals are limited to fifty pages and must be submitted electronically through the County's Procurement Portal; late submissions will not be considered.