World Bank and development bank tenders for power projects
How procurement works on transmission, distribution and generation projects financed by the World Bank and other development banks: who runs the tender, where notices appear, the standard bidding documents, eligibility and the complaint process.
A large share of the substations, transmission lines and rural electrification networks built in Africa, Asia, Latin America and Eastern Europe are paid for with loans from development banks. For contractors and equipment makers, these projects are attractive: the financing is usually in place before the tender starts, the rules are public, and competition is international. They also follow their own rules, which differ from EU or national procurement law. This guide explains the basics.
This guide is general information, not legal advice. The banks update their rules regularly, so always check which rules and which edition the tender documents cite.
The borrower runs the tender, not the bank
When the World Bank or another development bank finances a project, the tender is run by the borrower's implementing agency, typically the national utility, the transmission company or an energy ministry. The agency writes the documents, answers questions, evaluates bids and signs the contract. The bank sets the rules, reviews key decisions (for larger contracts before they are taken) and can refuse to finance a contract that breaks its rules. Your questions and your bid go to the implementing agency, not to the bank.
The World Bank's rules
For projects after 1 July 2016, the World Bank's Procurement Framework applies, with the Procurement Regulations for IPF Borrowers setting out what borrowers must do. The Regulations have been updated several times since; the edition that applies is named in the tender documents. A few terms you will meet:
- Procurement Plan and PPSD. Each project has a procurement plan, based on a Project Procurement Strategy for Development, listing the contracts, their method and their expected dates. Plans are published and are the best early warning of tenders to come.
- STEP. The Bank's system for tracking the borrower's procurement steps.
- General Procurement Notice. Published early in the project, it announces the contracts expected.
- Specific Procurement Notice. The invitation for a particular contract. For open international competition the Bank publishes it on its website, and the borrower also advertises it, for example on its own website, in a national newspaper or in the official gazette. UN Development Business (UNDB), which used to carry these notices, closed in March 2025.
The standard documents
For open international competition, borrowers must use the Bank's Standard Procurement Documents; for national procurement they may use their own documents if the Bank accepts them. For power projects the most common standard documents are:
| Document | Used for |
|---|---|
| Request for Bids: Plant (design, supply and installation) | Substations, transmission lines, power plants: the contractor designs, supplies and installs, with the risk of making it work |
| Request for Bids: Works | Construction to the employer's design, such as civil works or line construction without design responsibility |
| Request for Bids: Goods | Supply of equipment such as transformers, meters, cables or poles |
| Request for Proposals: Consulting services | Feasibility studies, design, supervision, owner's engineer |
Because the documents are standard, you can learn them once. The general conditions stay the same; what changes is the data sheet, the specific conditions, the qualification and evaluation criteria and the employer's requirements. Read those parts first. Recent editions increasingly score quality as well as price, so check how the bid will be evaluated before you decide how much effort to put into the technical proposal.
What bidders usually have to show
- Specific experience in a number of contracts of similar size and nature completed in recent years, for example substations at the same voltage level.
- Financial capacity: average annual turnover and access to cash or credit above set minimums.
- Manufacturer's authorisations for major equipment if you are not the manufacturer.
- Key personnel and equipment with CVs and ownership or rental evidence.
- Environmental and social commitments, including codes of conduct for workers and, in many documents, declarations of past environmental and social performance and on sexual exploitation and abuse and sexual harassment.
- A bid security (usually a bank guarantee; the documents may also allow an insurer's guarantee or a letter of credit) or a bid-securing declaration, as the documents require.
Joint ventures are allowed and common. Check how the documents let partners combine experience and turnover, because the rules often require the lead partner to meet a minimum share on its own.
Eligibility and integrity
Firms from all countries may generally bid. The country exceptions are a law or official regulation of the borrower's country that bans commercial relations with a country, provided the Bank is satisfied that competition remains effective, and measures of the UN Security Council. Separate rules deal with conflicts of interest and with state-owned enterprises from the borrower's country. Firms and individuals debarred by the World Bank are not eligible; the Bank publishes its list of debarred firms. Bidders commit to the Bank's anti-corruption rules, and the Bank has the right to inspect bidders' accounts and records related to the tender. Under a 2010 agreement, a debarment of more than one year for fraud, corruption, collusion or coercion by the World Bank, the Asian Development Bank, the African Development Bank, the EBRD or the Inter-American Development Bank is generally applied by the others as well.
After the evaluation: standstill and complaints
For contracts subject to a standstill period, the borrower sends all bidders a Notification of Intention to Award before signing. It names the intended winner and its price, and tells each bidder why its own bid was not successful. A standstill period, generally ten business days, then gives unsuccessful bidders time to ask for a debriefing and, if they believe the rules were broken, to submit a complaint to the borrower. Complaints must follow the process and deadlines in the documents; a late complaint falls outside that process.
Other development banks
| Bank | Where to look | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Asian Development Bank (ADB) | ADB website, procurement notices by project | Rules: ADB Procurement Policy and ADB's rules for borrowers; check the edition the documents cite |
| African Development Bank (AfDB) | AfDB website | Rules: AfDB Procurement Policy Framework; documents often in English or French |
| European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) | EBRD website and its Client E-Procurement Portal (ECEPP) | Many client tenders are run entirely on ECEPP, including submission |
| European Investment Bank (EIB) | TED (also for many projects outside the EU) and the EIB website | Inside the EU, the EU procurement directives apply |
| Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) | IDB website | Documents often in Spanish or Portuguese |
The principles are similar everywhere: open international competition for large contracts, standard documents, prequalification or post-qualification, and usually a standstill before award. The details, from thresholds to complaint deadlines, differ, so always read the rules named in the tender documents.
Practical tips
- Follow projects, not just notices. Project documents and procurement plans show which substations and lines will be tendered, often a year ahead.
- Register with the implementing agency early. Some agencies publish documents only on request or on their own portal.
- Ask your questions in writing, before the deadline. See how to read a tender notice for what to check first.
- Price the currency and payment risk. Bids can often be priced in several currencies; check the exchange rate rules and the price adjustment formula.
- Plan partners early. Local partners help with civil works, logistics and permits, and the qualification rules decide how much their experience counts.