Submit a tender
The City obtains goods, services and construction works through contracts with organisations and individuals. If the value of these goods and services exceeds R200 000 (VAT included), they are called tenders and you must apply for one through a competitive bidding process (tender process). Tenders are advertised online and in local newspapers.
Register on the tender portal
Please note
The City of Cape Town will never call you to make a payment to accept a tender.
You will need to
register as a supplier before you can access the City of Cape Town’s tender portal, where all of the tenders are displayed.
TENDER PROCESS GUIDE
Download the booklet for help submitting a tender
Download PDF
Step 1: To view the tenders available on the
tender portal, click on the ‘register’ button.
To register you will need:
- your SA ID or passport
- company/business name
- business telephone number(s)
- a certificate indicating your B-BBEE level or other documentary proof applicable to small businesses
Once you are registered and logged in, you may edit your profile or change your password at any time.
Step 2: Once logged in, click on the ‘tender’ button to access the advertised tenders and quotations.
Click on a tender to find out details about the tender, the closing date and time (the date and time by which your bid must be received), and the tender number.
The tenders are cross-referenced into five categories, with filters that help you narrow your search by searching each specific category.
Bid for a tender
Please note
Bids exceeding R10 million will need additional information as required by legislation. You may be visited or contacted by a City of Cape Town-appointed service provider to verify the information you submitted in your tender documentation.
Step 1: To bid for a tender, first collect the hard copy documents from the Supply Chain Management offices at the Civic Centre or download a copy. The hard copy tender documents must be collected from:
Tender and Quotation Boxes
2nd Floor (Concourse Level)
Civic Centre
12 Hertzog Boulevard
Cape Town
If you have not registered online, the desk clerk will assist you with registering your company or business when you collect the tender documents. The City of Cape Town keeps a record of persons collecting or downloading tender documents so that it can send you other information about the tender (if necessary).
Step 2: Once you have collected the hard copy documents, or have downloaded them, you can begin drawing up your bid according to the requirements specified in the tender document.
The tender documents form an important part of the final decision process. You are not permitted to change anything in your bid after the closing date or after a tender has been awarded to you. It is critical to the success of your bid that you complete all your documents correctly and in full - failure to do so may result in your bid being excluded from the process. You are only allowed to submit a bid using the tender document provided.
Be sure to include the following with your bid:
- all of the information required in your bid (if you fail to include information or documentation you might be excluded from the process)
- proof of tax compliance from South African Revenue Service (SARS)
Step 3: Make sure your bid isn’t rejected due to the past behaviour of your business’s directors, members or partners.
Your bid may be rejected if your business, its directors, members or partners:
- is behind on their service charges, municipal rates or taxes for more than three months;
- was given written notice for unsatisfactory work on a previous contract with the City;
- has committed fraud when bidding for a previous tender; or
- appears on National Treasury’s list of tender defaulters or National Treasury’s database of restricted suppliers or are restricted from doing business with the City of Cape Town in terms of its policy provisions relating to combating abuse of the supply chain management system.
Step 4: Check that your bid is free of errors to avoid rejection. Common bidding errors include:
- incomplete or missing documents;
- incorrect prices or incomplete prices;
- not following the instructions of the tender document;
- misinterpreting the requirements of the tender;
- not following legal procedures;
- bids handed in late or placed in the wrong box; or
- signatures in the wrong places.
Step 5: The bid documentation must contain all of the following documentation:
- The full name of the person handing in the bid.
- The ID number or company or other registration number.
- The bidder’s tax reference number and VAT registration number.
- Proof of tax compliance from SARS (South African Revenue Services) and PIN.
- All of the documents listed in
step 2.
If you are delivering the bid, be sure to include your full name and contact details on all of the bid documents as the City of Cape Town will only communicate with the person whose name appears on the bid documents.
Usually you do not have to attend any site inspections or clarification meetings. If such meetings are compulsory for a specific tender, the tender document and advert will clearly state so.
Step 6: Deliver your bid in a separate, sealed envelope. Each bid must be in writing, using non-erasable ink, and must be submitted on the official form or tender document.
The following must be clearly written on the SEALED envelope:
- the name and address of the bidder
- the tender number and title
- the tender box number (where applicable)
- the closing date of the tender
Step 7: The complete bid document must be delivered to:
Tender and Quotation Boxes
2nd Floor (Concourse Level)
Civic Centre
12 Hertzog Boulevard
Cape Town.
Step 8: You may be present for the public opening of the tenders, which takes place as soon as is practical after closing time. An official will announce the bids received for a specific tender.
You cannot submit a bid by email, fax or other electronic means. It has to be delivered and placed in the correct tender box. Contact the relevant official as indicated on the tender document if you have any questions about submitting your bid. Tenders that meet all the tender conditions are scored based on their price and B-BBEE level of contribution and the award is made to the tenderer who scores the highest adjudication points out of 100.
In limited circumstances, the City is legally permitted to award the tender to a tenderer who did not score the highest adjudication points.
All bidders will be notified in writing of the tender having been awarded.
Two-stage and two-envelope bids
Your tender notice will state if a two-stage bidding system or a two-envelope bidding system is required. These differ from an ordinary tender procedure.
Two-stage bid
This process usually applies to tenders for large and complex projects of a specialised or long-term nature. Your tender documents will be considered as soon as possible after the bids have been opened. At opening, you are not yet required to submit a financial offer or prices. Bidders who are shortlisted are then invited to submit a financial offer and/or final technical proposals in the second stage of the tender process.
Two-envelope system
A technical proposal and financial offer are submitted at the same place and time in two separate sealed envelopes. The technical proposals will be opened and evaluated first. The unopened envelope containing the financial offers will be stamped by the official present and kept by him or her for safekeeping. They will open the financial offer when required (after technical proposals have been evaluated).
All of the steps leading up to submitting these tenders are the same as ordinary tenders.
Contact us
City Call Centre
Telephone:
0860 103 089
Fraud hotline
Telephone:
0800 323 130
For additional queries about the tender, you can use the contact details provided in the tender document.
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