Bidders Invited for the Construction of National Fiber Backbone in the Philippines

The Bases Conversion Development Authority (BCDA), a state-owned enterprise mandated to develop former military assets (particularly land assets) into industrial centers, has released a bidding invitation for the design and construction of the first phase of the national fiber optic cable (FOC) backbone. The national fiber backbone is one of the components of the government’s National Broadband Program (NBP), a flagship program of the Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT) to enhance the country’s ICT infrastructure and improve internet connectivity.
The BCDA has earmarked PHP 1.25 billion (USD 25.7 million) as an approved budget to contract the Design, Build, and Establishment of the National Fiber Backbone Phase 1.
In addition to specifying what must be done in 200 calendar days, BCDA has also set out the required qualifications for interested bidders: bidders must be 60% Filipino-owned citizens/sole proprietorships, partnerships and corporations, and hold at least an “AAA” license category. They must also be classified as “Large B” from the Philippine Contractors Accreditation Board (PCAB) for General Engineering, General Building, Electrical Works or Communication Facilities. For other bidding requirements, the company may refer to the BCDA notice: https://bcda.gov.ph/bids/design-build-and-establishment-national-fiber-backbone-phase-1
(Sources: BusinessWorld; Bases Conversion and Development Authority)