Eurocopter EC725 : 4th Highest of seven bid selected (RM 605 Mil higher than lowest bid)

Eurocopter EC725 : 4th Highest of seven bid selected (RM 605 Mil higher than lowest bid)

Eurocopter EC725 of RM 1.1 Billion selected against lowest bid of RM 494.9 million (RM 605 Million higher i.e more that 2.2 x times the lowest bid)


" The decision to procure helicopters from Eurocopter was done following proper procedure and was not influenced by any party, Defence Ministry secretary-general Datuk Abu Bakar Abdullah said. "

Abu Bakar said the tender was closed on Feb 12 this year and at noon the same day, the tender committee opened the seven tenders received while being witnessed by representatives from companies that had taken part.

The tender offers received were:

T521/07/A/001: £341.88mil (RM2.08bil); (2nd Highest)

T521/07/A/002: RM663.1mil; (6th Highest)

T521/07/A/003: €104.6mil (RM494.9mil); (Lowest)

T521/07/A/004: US$220.5mil (RM777.45mil); (5th Highest)

T521/07/A/005: US$708.3mil; (RM2.49bil); (Highest)

T521/07/A/006 (Eurocopter): €233.24mil (RM1.1bil); (4th Highest)

T521/07/A/007: US$348.17mil (RM1.22bil). (3rd Highest)


PETALING JAYA: The decision to procure helicopters from Eurocopter was done following proper procedure and was not influenced by any party, Defence Ministry secretary-general Datuk Abu Bakar Abdullah said.

The ministry chose the Eurocopter EC725 because the company had a complete tender offer that obtained the highest marks based on technical evaluation, an offset package and it offered a reasonable price, he said.

“Eurocopter also offered a system that was proven, and this also fulfilled the army’s specifications,” he said in a statement yesterday.

The Government, he said, had no influence on prices that were offered by the company as bidding was done via an international open tender process.

Abu Bakar said the Royal Malaysia Air Force (RMAF) prepared specification documents for utility helicopters capable of search and rescue that were also capable of being upgraded to combat search and rescue aircraft.

On Oct 10 2007, the Economic Planning Unit approved the decision to buy new helicopters and an international open tender was announced on Nov 7, he said.

“To make it easier for prospective suppliers to put forth their offers, the RMAF held a briefing during the Langkawi International Maritime Airshow on Dec 6 and explained that it was important for suppliers to include an offset package.”

Abu Bakar said the tender was closed on Feb 12 this year and at noon the same day, the tender committee opened the seven tenders received while being witnessed by representatives from companies that had taken part.

The tender offers received were:

T521/07/A/001: £341.88mil (RM2.08bil);

T521/07/A/002: RM663.1mil;

T521/07/A/003: €104.6mil (RM494.9mil);

T521/07/A/004: US$220.5mil (RM777.45mil);

T521/07/A/005: US$708.3mil; (RM2.49bil);

T521/07/A/006 (Eurocopter): €233.24mil (RM1.1bil);

T521/07/A/007: US$348.17mil (RM1.22bil).

“The documents were then split up into three parts for the technical evaluation committee, offset evaluation committee and price evaluation committee to evaluate,” Abu Bakar said.

He said the committees’ conclusions were tabled at a Tender Board meeting on July 22 and was then forwarded to the Finance Ministry on Aug 4.

The Defence Ministry received the green light on Sept 3.

“The letter of intention could have been issued at any time after Sept 3 and it was a coincidence that it was issued on Sept 15,” he said.