Water and Wastewater Chemicals

Charles County Government's Department of Public Works has issued a Request for Quote (RFQ) for water and wastewater treatment chemicals to be provided on an as-needed basis to multiple county facilities. The procurement seeks nine distinct chemical products including Ferric Chloride (550 dry tons annually), Liquid Aluminum Sulfate (22,000 gallons), Liquid Calcium Chloride (10,000 gallons), Liquid Sodium Hypochlorite in bulk (110,000 gallons) and 55-gallon drums (4,000 gallons), Liquid Sodium Hypochlorite in 330-gallon totes (3,300 gallons), Liquid Sodium Bisulfite in bulk (6,000 gallons) and 55-gallon drums (3,000 gallons), and Micro-C 2000 in 55-gallon drums (6,600 gallons). Each chemical item will be awarded separately to the lowest responsive and responsible quoter. Qualified contractors must demonstrate a minimum of five years of active engagement in the chemical supply field prior to the response deadline and must submit three reference projects documenting experience with wastewater chemical transportation, MSDS/OSHA compliance, and public utility chemical supply. Responses must be submitted electronically through the County's eProcurement Portal by June 3, 2026 at 11:00 a.m., with questions due by May 21, 2026, and registration for quote opening required by June 2, 2026. The base contract term runs from July 1, 2026 through September 30, 2026, with two optional one-year renewal periods, and chemical pricing remains firm during the base term with potential adjustments by Consumer Price Index in renewal years. Contractors must provide commercial automobile insurance ($1,000,000/$2,000,000), worker's compensation, commercial general liability ($1,000,000 per occurrence/$2,000,000 aggregate), pollution liability ($1,000,000/$2,000,000), and environmental insurance ($2,000,000/$3,000,000), and must comply with all delivery requirements including seven to fourteen calendar days for delivery within Tuesday through Thursday windows between 8:00 a.m. and 3:00 p.m. Eastern Time.

Charles County has designated this procurement as subject to both the state's Small Local Business Enterprise (SLBE) and Minority and Women-Owned Business Enterprise (MWBE) programs, meaning contractors must comply with these program requirements. No incumbent vendors or existing contractors are identified in the solicitation documents. Delivery fees may be adjusted quarterly based on CPI fluctuations exceeding 25 percent, and contractors are responsible for remediating any chemical spills exceeding 15 gallons within four hours of occurrence. The RFQ does not specify an overall budget range or award value; instead, pricing is determined through the competitive quote process with awards made to the lowest responsive and responsible quoter for each chemical line item. The evaluation criteria emphasize price competitiveness, contractor responsibility and responsiveness, demonstrated experience in chemical supply to public utilities, and compliance with insurance and regulatory requirements.