The City of Cape Town is evaluating the three tenders it has received for the running of the Green Point Stadium after 2010, and expects to award the tender within a month.

The process closed on 10 July, and the City’s procurement committee is verifying the bids to see if they comply with tender specifications.

A bid evaluation committee will then analyse and evaluate the bids, and then the bid adjudication committee will hold an open sitting to award the tender.

The tenders for the 30-year lease come from seven different business entities. One tender is from a single company, another from two companies, and the third is a joint venture between four companies. They have not yet been named.

“This tender is different from others in that it will not be evaluated on a final contract price,” says Mike Marsden, Executive Director of Service Delivery Integration. Instead, the City will be looking at how much it will be paid for the use of the stadium after 2010. The operator should also pay for the upkeep of the redeveloped Green Point Common.

The top tier of seating in the stadium is expected to be removed after 2010, making it a 55 000-seat stadium, and freeing up space for the winning bidder to use for executive suites and other uses, in order to make a commercial return. Investec carried out a study early in 2007 which found that the stadium would be financially viable. This came after the investment bank agreed to underwrite a R185-million budget shortfall in order for construction to start on time.

One of the reasons the City has put out the tender now, well ahead of the stadium being completed, is so that the winning bidder has a say in the design of the stadium – as long as it remains within FIFA specifications. The bidder will then be able to fit the stadium interior out to meet their needs.