Consultancy Services for Detailed Project Reports on Bhutan Hydropower Plants

REQUEST FOR EXPRESSIONS OF INTEREST (CONSULTING SERVICES – CONSULTANT SELECTION) Country: Bhutan Name of Project: ACCELERATING TRANSPORT AND TRADE CONNECTIVITY IN EASTERN SOUTH ASIA PHASE 2 - BHUTAN PROJECT Assignment Title: Consultancy services for Preparation of Detailed Project Report (DPR) for Chamkharchhu II HPP and Chamkharchhu IV HPP, Bhutan Reference No.: DGPC/ACCESS/DPR-CHAMKHARII&IVHPP/2026

• The Kingdom of Bhutan (hereinafter called “Borrower”) has received financing from the International Development Association (IDA) (the “Bank”) in the form of a grant and credit (hereinafter called “grant” and “ credit”) toward the cost of Accelerating Transport and Trade Connectivity in Eastern South Asia (ACCESS) Phase 2 - Bhutan Project . The Department of Surface Transport, Ministry of Infrastructure and Transport as the Implementing Agency has been allocated grant funds (the “Grant and credit”) from the World Bank which are administered by the International Development Association (IDA) and executed by the Department of Surface Transport, Ministry of Infrastructure and Transport. The Department of Surface Transport, Ministry of Infrastructure and Transport intends to apply the funds to eligible payments under the contract for which this Request for Expression of Interest is issued. Payments by the Bank will be made only at the request of the Kingdom of Bhutan and upon approval by the Bank, and will be subject, in all respects, to the terms and conditions of the financing[1] agreement. The financing agreement prohibits a withdrawal from the credit and grant account for the purpose of any payment to persons or entities, or for any import of goods, if such payment or import, to the knowledge of the Bank, is prohibited by a decision of the United Nations Security council taken under Chapter VII of the Charter of the United Nations. No party other than the Borrower shall derive any rights from the financing agreement or have any claims to the proceeds of the credit and grant . “For this contract, the Borrower shall process the payments using the Direct Payment disbursement method, as defined in the World Bank’s Disbursement Guidelines for Investment Project Financing.”
• Scope of Services

PMU-DoST, MoIT represented by Druk Green Power Corporation Limited (DGPC), as the Client, intends to prepare DPRs for the Chamkharchhu II and Chamkharchhu IV Hydropower Projects in full compliance with Bhutan’s Guidelines for Development of Hydropower Projects 2018 (Revised 2024), relevant national regulations, and internationally recognized standards and best practices. The primary objective is to ensure that both projects are technically sound and financially viable for consideration by International Financial Institutions. To prepare the DPRs, DGPC seeks to engage a reputable international consulting firm (hereafter referred to as the “Consultant”) to lead the design and engineering activities for both projects. The detailed Terms of Reference (ToR) are available at https://www.drukgreen.bt/tender/. This ToR is to provide an idea about the scope of the assignment to potential Consultants to help them prepare their Expressions of Interest (EoIs). An updated TOR would be included in the Request for Proposal (RfP), which will be issued to the short-listed Consultants.

• Selection Procedure

Due to the highly specialized and time-sensitive nature of the assignment, and considering that the required hydropower expertise is limited to a well-defined and identifiable pool of qualified firms and also, PMU-DoST, MoIT represented by DGPC has been carrying out this kind of activity following the Quality and Cost Based Selection (QCBS) method by issuing the RFP document and same approach will be followed for this consultancy service by issuing the RFP document to eight selected consultants. The shortlisted firms had previously participated in DGPC’s DPR tender processes.

• This REoI is only for notification purposes.

Name: Sonam Choden Designation: Manager, Contracts Section Address: DGPC Wangchhu Taba Junction, Khamtoe Lam SE Thimphu E-mail: s.choden272@drukgreen.bt [1] [ “loan agreement” term is used for IBRD loans; “financing agreement” is used for IDA credits; and “grant agreement” is used for Recipient-Executed Trust Funds administered by IBRD or IDA] Agency: Ministry of Infrastructure and Transport Procurement method: Quality And Cost-Based Selection Notice type: Request for Expression of Interest Status: Published Value: 4000000.0 USD