Study Reports

 

---

•  

Background Description

1. At the APEC Environment Ministerial Meeting on Sustainable Development held in Toronto, Canada in June 1997, Environment Ministers endorsed a Program of Action on Sustainable Cities. As one of the action items under the Programme of Action, we agreed to take up the role as the lead economy to "examine and disseminate innovative approaches to the financing of initiatives such as Sustainable infrastructure and building planning, design, construction and operation". In order to achieve synergy, and as stipulated in the Program of Action, we will pursue this initiative with the co-operation of the Committee on Trade and Investment (CTI) and the Infrastructure work group of the Economic Committee.

2. The Planning, Environment and Lands Bureau (PELB) of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) has agreed to co-ordinate the preparation of a report for presentation to the APEC Environment Ministers in mid-1999. Consultation with the Trade and Industry Bureau (TIB) and the Financial Services Bureau (FSB) has concluded that we do not have the resources and expertise to complete the project in-house and decided that a multi-disciplinary Consultants of environmental, engineering and financial analytical capacity with strong infrastructure project management background should be engaged to prepare the report.

 

Objective of the Consultancy

3. The Consultancy should examine and disseminate innovative approaches to the financing of initiatives such as sustainable infrastructure and building planning, design, construction and operation within APEC member economies.

4. The Consultancy should produce a report which will contain a rich compendium of experiences and approaches of 'industrialised' and 'developing' economies to the financing of sustainable infrastructure projects together with an overview raising, where appropriate, policy issues affecting the selection of financing approaches but not setting out policy conclusions.

 

Scope of Works and Duties of the Consultants

5. Whilst studies conducted under APEC's various committees and workgroups have focused on financing approaches for infrastructure projects, this Consultancy should focus on the sustainability aspects and how it had affected the financing approaches. Recognising the diverse interpretation of sustainability, this Consultancy should adopt a meaning agreeable to the Study Steering Group and appropriate for the Environment Ministers forum in the context of APEC's Programme of Action on Sustainable Cities.

6. Recognising the diversity in development amongst APEC member economies, the Consultancy should focus on experiences in financing sustainable infrastructure in Hong Kong, and selected 'industrialised' and 'developing' economies in APEC and where possible draw on experience from the selected European Union (EU) member states with outstanding environmental achievements. The Consultancy should include traditional infrastructure projects and where available pilot programmes of environmental significance.

7. The Consultants should conduct a literature review of on-going studies in infrastructure financing conducted by APEC members under the various committees and workgroups to identify and advise the Study Steering Group of their relations with this study. The Consultants should assess information available, including any reports, academic literature, etc., to identify and advise the Study Steering Group of any data gaps and to design forms, questionnaires, etc. to obtain such data from APEC member economies. The Consultants should, through me Government of the HKSAR, invite participation and contribution from APEC member economies and selected EU member states with outstanding environmental achievements. 8.The Consultants should review the range of financing arrangements for major infrastructure projects in Hong Kong. The financing arrangements to be covered should include amongst others franchises, capital financing, Build-Operate-Transfer schemes and Design-Build-Operate schemes. The review should also cover a wide range of infrastructure projects such as port development, road tunnels, airport facilities and environmental infrastructure, etc.

9. The Consultants should collate information from APBC member economies and selected EU member states on their experiences and approaches in financing their own sustainable infrastructure projects. The Consultants should also, through the Government of HKSAR, seek inputs from APEC's major Private Sectors Businesses (PSBs) involved in financing and implementing infrastructure projects, Multilateral Financing Institutions (MFIs) and Export Credit Agencies (ECAs).

10. The Consultants should consolidate me inputs from APEC member economies as well as PSBs, MFIs, ECAs and selected EU member states and prepare a draft report in mid-1999 for submission through our representatives to APEC's Environment Ministers. The draft report should contain a rich compendium of experiences and approaches to the financing of sustainable infrastructure projects together with an overview highlighting best practices, noting advantages and disadvantages of these practices. It should also explore the associated risk problems giving suggestions to address these risk problems, and raising, where appropriate, policy issues but not setting out policy conclusions.

11. The Consultants should prepare answers to questions raised and responses to comments made on the draft report. The Consultants should incorporate the answers and the responses as a addendum to the report. The Consultants should prepare audio-visual material for electronic presentation using Microsoft PowerPoint or other approved presentation software.

12. The Consultant should, in addition to providing the bonded copies of the reports, provide digital copies suitable for reproduction on a personal computer using Microsoft Word or other approved word processing software. The digital copy of the report should be contained in a single digital file with all the charts, figures, tables, illustrations, etc., properly embedded in the digital file. The consultant should also provide digital copies of the report prepared in Hyper Text Mark-up Language (HTML) suitable for direct incorporation into the PELB's and APEC Secretariat's homepage on the Internet for public access and down load.

 

Expertise and Types of Firms to be Required

13. Multi-disciplinary Consultants of environmental, engineering and financial analytical capacity with strong infrastructure project management background are required. At least one full-time consultant shall be deployed with the support of various experts in financing, construction, project management, etc., as and when necessary.

14. The selected Consultants should have exposure/background in financing sustainable infrastructures in APEC and should have sufficient knowledge in the construction industry and environmental protection to appreciate the risk associated with different categories of infrastructure project. Experience in previous studies in infrastructure financing would be preferable.

 

Information Required from Consultant

15. The Consultants should prepare a proposal demonstrating his understanding of the objectives and requirements of this assignment. The proposal should explain the methodologies and approaches used as well as the timeframe for the completion of the study. The Consultant should submit evidence/references to demonstrate his appropriateness under paragraphs 13 and 14, and CVs of each consultant/expert to be involved in this assignment.

 

Consultants' Staff

16. The Consultants should provide a Staff Schedule which should include key personnel with details of the respective task to be undertaken by them. Any change of key staff should be subject to the prior written approval of the Government.

Provisions and Restrictions to Employ Sub-consultants

17. The Consultants shall not without the prior written consent of the Government sub-contract or assign the whole or a part or parts of the Consultancy to any person whatsoever. The Consultants shall provide all the specialist and sub-consultant services required for the satisfactory completion of the Consultancy. No additional fees or expenses for the provision of such services rendered locally or overseas shall be payable by the Government.

 

Control of the Study

18. Principal Assistant Secretary (Environment) 2 of the Planning, Environment and Lands Bureau shall represent the Government of the HKSAR and the Consultant shall report to him.

19. A Study Steering Group would be established with representatives from Planning, Environment and Lands Bureau, Financial Services Bureau, Trade and Industry Bureau, Planning Department and Environmental Protection Department to manage the study and the Consultants are expected to work closely with Study Steering Group and PELB in preparing the reports. The Consultants should also attend the Study Steering Group meetings and submit written monthly progress reports to the Study Steering Group.

 

Duration of the Consultancy and Deliverables by Consultants

20. We expect the Consultancy to take 12 months and have four stages.

21. The timeframe for the stages and production of deliverables shall be as follows -

a)     The first stage should last not more than 6 weeks from the commencement of the Consultancy. The Consultants should submit to the study steering group an inception report (6 copies) within two weeks of the commencement of the Consultancy. The report should contain an outline of the works in various stages, the anticipated work programme, the issues to be addressed, the constraints involved and solutions suggested, the methodology for data collection and a detailed list of countries, PSBs, MFIs and ECAs to be invited to participate and contribute to the study. Within 6 weeks of the commencement of the Consultancy, the Consultants should submit a stage one report (6 copies) to the Study Steering Group. The report should include -
 

i) a definition of 'sustainability' for this Consultancy in accordance with paragraph 5,

ii) a list of selected 'industrialised' and 'developing' economies, PSBs, MFIs, ECAs and selected EU member states who have agreed to participate and contribute to the study,

iii) the results of the literature review and the data gaps identified in accordance with paragraph 7,

iv) the forms, questionnaires, etc., designed to obtain information to bridge the data gaps identified in paragraph 7 and to seek input from PSBs, MFIs, ECAs and selected EU member states as in paragraph 9.
 

b)    The second stage should last not more than 26 weeks. The Consultants should address the requirements of paragraph 8 and submit a stage two report (10 copies) to the Study Steering Group within 32 weeks of the commencement of the Consultancy. The report should include -

            i) a detailed review of Hong Kong's infrastructure project financing approaches as required in
            paragraph 8,

            ii) a review of available pilot programmes of environmental significance, and

            iii) a summary of information collected from various participating APEC member economies, selected
            EU member states, major APEC PSBs, MFIs and ECAs.

c)    The third stage should last about 13 weeks. The Consultants should review the information collected, including those concerning practices in the HKSAR, and identify any best practices, risk problems and policy issues as required in paragraph 10. Within 45 weeks of the commencement of the Consultancy, the consultants should submit to the Study Steering Group for endorsement a draft final report (65 copies) fulfilling the objective of this Consultancy suitable for circulation to APEC member economies, selected EU member states, major PSBs, MFIs, and ECAs for comments.

• •  

 d)    The fourth stage should last not more than 7 weeks. The Consultant should prepare answers to questions asked and response to comments raised on the report. Within 51 weeks of the commencement of the Consultancy, the Consultant should submit to the Study Steering Group for endorsement the final report including the addendum on answers and responses (65 copies) as required in paragraphs 10 and 11. Within 1 week after the endorsement of the final report, the Consultant should submit to the PELB, all digital files containing the audio-visual material for electronic presentation required in paragraph 11 and the final report in paragraph 12 on a CD-ROM (2 sets).22. The Consultants are encourage to minimise waste paper production and make our working environment greener, and adopt the green measures listed in Annex A in preparing documents for this Consultancy.

 

Response to Questions and Comments

23. The Consultants shall provide prompt responses to all questions and comments raised in connection with this Consultancy.

 

Method of Selection

24. The Consultants will be selected on the basis of a technical assessment of the proposal for the Consultancy and a value for money assessment based on the proposed consultancy fee. The factors which will be considered in the technical assessment include expertise, experience, efficiency, capability, past performance in government projects and reputation.

 

Proposal Required

25. A technical proposal for this assignment must include the following:

a) a description of the Consultants' understanding of the assignment objectives;

• •  

 

b) a description of the Consultants' intrepretation of sustainability appropriate for this Consultancy;

c) a description of the proposed methodology and approach for the completion of the Consultancy within the specified timeframe;

d) a description of the project team, proposed team structure, recommended method of interfacing with the Government, and qualifications of the project team members for carrying out this Consultancy (to be set out in a staff schedule);

•  

e) a description of the deliverables;

f) a project plan outlining the timeframe and estimate of effort by category of Consultant and work task; and

g) a description of the consulting organisation and experience in the consultancy services.

26.  A fee proposal is required to be submitted in a separate sealed envelop. The fee proposal should include a breakdown of the estimated time required (with a breakdown of the chargeable rate for different levels of staff to be employed by the Consultants) to carry out the assignment and submit a proposal for fixed consultancy fee not exceeding HK$500,000 (five hundred thousand Hong Kong dollars) in respect of the Consultancy with percentages of the fixed fee payable on completion of stages described in paragraph 21.

Proposal Submission

27. Eight bound copies of the proposal document should be submitted. Proposals must be received no later than 12:00 noon on 18 September 1998 to the Planning, Environment and Lands Bureau, 9/F., Murray Building, Garden Road.

 

Insurance

28. The Consultants shall maintain a minimum insurance cover of an amount to the value of the consultancy fee.

 

Conflict of Interest

29. The consultants, their specialist, their sub-consultants and associates shall not provide financial and management consultancy services to any other clients, whether public or private, where a potential or actual conflict of interest may arise during the period of consultancy.

 

Non Disclosure

30. The Consultants shall not disclose or use for its own or any third parties' (including but not limited to the Consultants' holding company, subsidiaries, associated and related persons) benefits or purpose any data or information obtained or received from the Government or the Governments agents pursuant to the Consultancy except as permitted by the Government. This obligation shall survive the Consultancy.

 

Ownership and Copyright

31. The property, copyright and other intellectual property right in the reports, responses, papers and other deliverables, including those in the electronic forms, submitted by the consultant under the consultancy shall be vested in and belong to the Government. For the avoidance of doubt, all such material may be used, reproduced, published and distributed in whole or in parts by the Government without incurring any fees or charges to the Consultants.

Consultancy Agreement

32. The selected consultant will be required to enter into a written agreement with the Government. Detailed terms and conditions of the consultancy will be set out in the agreement. The agreement will contain provision including fees and payment, period of engagement, termination of services, confidentiality, conflict of interest, sub-contracting, proper law etc. The governing law of the agreement will be the laws of the HKSAR. The Government may also require a suitable indemnity. No indemnity will be provided by the government in any respect.

 

---

 

NAME OF KEY STAFF ENGAGED IN THE CONSULTANCY STUDY (ANY CHANGE OF KEY STAFF SHOULD BE SUBJECT TO THE PRIOR WRITTEN APPROVAL OF THE GOVERNMENT):

Co-Directors

• Professor Gary W. Heinke, Director

Institute for Environment and Sustainable Development (IESD) (Tel: 2358 6908 Fax : 2358 1582)

• Professor John Kuo-chiang Wei, Director

Centre for Asian Financial Markets (CAFM)

(Tel: 2358 7676 Fax:23581749)

 Supporting Experts
  Professor Francis T. Lui, Director Centre for Economic Development (CED)
  Professor Wilson Tang, Head           Department of Civil Engineering

---