Procurement of Global Internet Connectivity Services via a Dynamic Purchasing System

Contract summary

Industry

• Telecommunications services - 64200000

Location of contract

London

Value of contract

£0

Procurement reference

tender_267769/932740

Published date

14 March 2021

Closing date

12 April 2021

Closing time

12pm

Contract start date

12 July 2021

Contract end date

13 January 2027

Contract type

Service contract

Procedure type

Restricted procedure (above threshold)

Contract is suitable for SMEs?

Yes

Contract is suitable for VCSEs?

No

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Description

The Contracting Authority, on behalf of the Secretary of State for the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) and the British Council (collectively the 'Partners'), intends to establish a Dynamic Purchasing System (DPS) for the procurement of global internet connectivity services.

The Contracting Authority intends to make the DPS available to other UK Central Government bodies.

The global internet connectivity services will connect ministerial headquarters and other head offices in the UK with their respective embassies, consulates and other office locations, totalling approximately 500 sites in 175 countries.

The FCDO makes no contractual commitment to procure any global internet connectivity services under the DPS. However, significant elements are expected to be called off when the DPS is established (or very shortly thereafter).

Information about the limits on the number of candidates to be invited:

There is no limit on the number of candidates that may be invited to join the DPS. All the candidates satisfying the selection criteria shall be admitted to the DPS.

Time limit for receipt of tenders or requests to participate:

There is no time limit for the receipt of requests to participate in the DPS. Requests to participate in the DPS may be made throughout the entire period of validity of the DPS, in accordance with Regulation 34 of the Public Contracts Regulations 2015 (as amended) ('PCR 2015').

The Contracting Authority reserves the right to cancel, withdraw or discontinue this procurement and, to the extent permissible by law, to make changes to the scope or procedure of this procurement. The Contracting Authority shall not be liable for any costs, expenses or liabilities incurred by any economic operator directly or indirectly as a result of such withdrawal, discontinuance or change. The Contracting Authority reserves the right at any time to: i) reject any or all responses; ii) change the basis, the procedure and timescales set out or referred to within the procurement documents; iii) require a potential supplier to clarify any submissions in writing and/or provide additional information (failure to respond adequately may result in disqualification); iv) terminate the procurement; and v) amend the terms and conditions of the tender.

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More information

Additional text

The Partners' global connectivity requirements are currently provided by a single supplier which has responsibility for the provision of the bulk of the Partners' local and wide area network requirements.

The Partners are disaggregating their connectivity requirements into i) network integration services, the scope of which comprises MPLS and VSAT connectivity, an intelligent routing platform, secure internet gateway and related services and ii) global internet connectivity.

The scope of this notice is the proposed procurement of internet connectivity at approximately 500 Partner sites in 175 countries. The FCDO is proposing to establish a DPS for the procurement of global internet connectivity. Potential suppliers can apply to join the DPS at any time following the publication of this Contract Notice.

Once the DPS is established, suppliers that have successfully qualified to join the DPS may be invited to take part in a series of procurements for the provision of global internet connectivity at the Partner sites. The size and scope of these future procurements have not yet been established by the Partners, but the FCDO anticipates that the first procurements will take place in the late summer of 2021.

The network integration service is the subject of a separate procurement. The contract notice for the network integration service, reference 2020/S 106-258337, was published in the Official Journal of the European Union on 3rd June 2020.

The FCDO has produced a descriptive document that provides further information on the Partners and their global connectivity requirements.

IMPORTANT INFORMATION FOR POTENTIAL SUPPLIERS

In order to participate and gain access to all documentation in relation to this procurement, potential suppliers should access the FCDO's e-procurement portal, JAGGAER ONE, available via the below link.

URL: https://fcdo.bravosolution.co.uk/web/login.html

Once logged in, search for project reference 6334.

If a potential supplier is not registered on the portal, click the link above to be taken to the home page, click the "Click here to register!" button, and follow the on-screen instructions to complete registration.

Registration takes approximately 5 minutes and is free of charge.

Two-Factor Authentication (2FA)

Potential suppliers should note that two-factor authentication will be required to access the FCDO's e-procurement portal, JAGGAER ONE, which requires Google Authenticator to be downloaded onto a mobile device. For more information in relation to two-factor authentication, a guide can be accessed by clicking the link on the home page of the FCDO's e-procurement portal, JAGGAER ONE.

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About the buyer

Contact name

Craig Wormleighton

Address

King Charles Street
London
SW1A 2AH
England

Email

craig.wormleighton@fcdo.gov.uk