WINCHESTER, Va. – The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Middle East District has awarded a services contract to support the operational readiness of U.S. forces deployed to the Balkans and other areas, as needed, within the U.S. Army Europe (USAREUR) area of operations. The contract, called the USAREUR Support Contract II, was awarded Nov. 3 to Kellogg Brown & Root Services Inc. of Arlington, Va.
The one-year base contract, with four one-year option periods, was awarded for $118 million. The option periods can be awarded based on the government’s requirements. Over the five-year lifespan of this contract, the government may order up to $245 million in services, which is the contract’s maximum capacity.
USAREUR Support Contract II will provide for the continuation of operations and maintenance, logistics support services and unspecified minor military construction support of contingency operations, military readiness exercises and deployments throughout the 51 countries that comprise the USAREUR area of operations.
“We anticipate that more than 90 percent of the contract value will support contingency operations at Camp Bondsteel, Kosovo,” said Willis Herweyer, project manager, Middle East District. “The remaining effort will be for military readiness training exercises in Bulgaria and Romania.”
Given the changing nature of the Kosovo mission, USAREUR’s requirements for services may change during the life of the USAREUR Support Contract II. Portions of Camp Bondsteel have already been disassembled as NATO has reduced its forces and transitioned to a deterrent force.
Service requirements outside of the Balkans are unknown at this time.
Types of services provided under this contract include:
- Life support, such as food service, laundry, water production and distribution, latrines and showers.
- Transportation and maintenance, such as shuttle services, hauling, cargo handling, mail delivery, road repair and maintenance, and non-tactical and tactical vehicle and equipment maintenance.
- Logistical services such as fuel distribution, supply support, firefighting, hazardous waste management, and airfield and air terminal operations.
- Erecting, operating and maintaining temporary troop facilities and any subsequent disassembly of these structures when they are no longer needed.
The USAREUR Support Contract II is a performance-based services contract allowing the government to issue task orders for work requirements. Performance-based contracts are structured around the purpose of the work to be performed as opposed to the manner in which the work is performed. The contractor has the freedom to determine how to best meet the government’s performance objectives while being measured against quality and performance standards.
This contract contains both firm-fixed-price and cost-plus-fixed-fee line items. “Approximately 80 percent of the new contract is firm fixed price,” Herweyer said, “with the remaining 20 percent being cost plus fixed fee. The majority of work under this contract is known and therefore can be priced. The cost line items allow flexibility for unknown work requirements.”
This competitively awarded contract was first announced on the Federal Business Opportunities website on Sept. 30, 2010. A site visit with interested firms was conducted June 2, and the Request for Proposal was issued June 7. The USAREUR Support Contract II is the fifth contract awarded by the Army Corps of Engineers to support USAREUR’s operations in the Balkans, starting with peacekeeping operations in Bosnia in late 1995, followed by Kosovo operations beginning in 1999. The new contract replaces the USAREUR Support Contract (I) which had been in place since 2006.
The contract is administered by the Middle East District, which provides engineering, construction and related services in the Middle East, Central Asia and other areas. Its work includes designing and constructing facilities for use by U.S. forces, performing engineering activities for other U.S. government and foreign agencies, and providing operations and maintenance services for various customers. In addition, the District provides project management, engineering, contracting and support services to USACE districts in Afghanistan.