USDA, Rural Development, Operations & Management, Procurement Management Division, NASA Stop 0741, 1400 Independence Avenue, S.W., Washington, DC 20250-0741

R -- ANALYTICAL SUPPORT AND FINANCIAL/ECONOMIC EXPERTISE AND COUNSEL FOR UTILITY DEBT RESTRUCURES/REORGANIZATIONS. DUE 121799 POC Veronica Moss, Contracting Officer, 202-692-0110 or fax 202-692-0117. E-MAIL: Veronica Moss, Contracting Officer, on vmoss@rdmail.rural.usda.gov, vmoss@rdmail.rural.usda.gov. The Rural Utilities Service (RUS) is gathering information for analytical support, financial/economic expertise and counsel for its (a) utility debt and organizational restructures, plans of reorganization, and negotiating strategies for its financially troubled and bankrupt borrowers, and (b) risk management activities. The Financial Services Staff (FSS) maintains primary responsibility for RUS's borrowers who are (a) in bankruptcy, (b) in potential or actual default to the Government, or (c) requesting debt restructuring or compromise. A troubled borrower may be an electric generation & transmission cooperative, electric distribution cooperative, telecommunications cooperative, or small telecommunications company. FSS negotiates plans of reorganization/liquidation, debt restructures, or other appropriate settlements for its troubled borrowers. Negotiations involve RUS's borrowers, subscribers/consumers served by RUS's borrowers, other creditors, state public service commissions, and investors andand participants in financing mechanisms. During negotiations, FSS must be ready to address and act on a myriad of sensitive issues such as cash collateral orders, litigation, selection of trustee, plans of reorganization, regulatory actions with respect to borrowers' rates, asset sales, asset valuation, viability of debt restructuring proposals, debt compromise, etc. FSS maintains an agency-wide risk management function to examine the impact of changes in the electric, telecommunications and water utility industries on RUS's loan portfolio and its borrowers. The pace of change and transformation in the utility industries potentially exposes RUS's loan portfolio to increased risks. These risks result from (a) electric industry restructuring, deregulation and transition to a more competitive retail and wholesale marketplace; (b) rapidly evolving telecommunications technologies, competition within the telecommunications industry, and universal service fund issues; and (c) increasingly competitive demands for water and environmentala concerns for the quality of water. FSS requires sources to have individuals on staff who possess the appropriate credentials, in-depth knowledge of and extensive experience in the electric, telecommunications and water industries; and with financially troubled and bankrupt utilities. Services shall include (a) providing economic and financial expertise and counsel to FSS (1) in support of ongoing litigation, complex negotiations with RUS's troubled and bankrupt borrowers, and in evaluation of debt restructuring proposals and negotiating strategies, and (2) on the impact of actual and potential risk exposures to RUS's loan portfolio, and in ways of proactively responding to the changing business risks of RUS's borrowers; (b) providing expert testimony in court proceedings and before state regulatory bodies on a wide spectrum of complex utility issues; (c) developing the necessary integrated financial and economic models and forecasts on, for example, (1) assessments of alternative debt restructuring proposals or plans of reorganization, (2) forecasts of price and availability of alternative conventional fuels, and (3) regional power supply curves and the costs of alternative fuels as principal factors in the cost of electricity production; (d) assisting RUS in identifying, examining and prioritizing the major risk exposures in each program area; and (e) using risk assessment tools, techniques, and methodologies, and developing, as necessary, new analytical skills and risk assessment techniques to measure the major risk exposures to RUS's loan portfolio. Interested sources shall submit statements which demonstrate their capability in the following areas: (1) Knowledge of and experience (a) in the electric, telecommunications and water utility industries and with current issues in those industries, including restructuring, deregulation, transition to competitive marketplaces, rapidly evolving technologies, environmental concerns, etc., (b) with financially troubled and/or bankrupt utilities; and (c) in utility risk assessment and risk management programs. (2) Experience in providing financial and economic expertise and counsel to financially troubled and/or bankrupt utilities, or to credit organizations with such utility loans in their portfolios. (3) Experience in providing risk assessment expertise and counsel to either utilities, or to credit organizations on the risks of individual utility loans in their portfolios. (4) Experience in providing testimony in court proceedings and before state regulatory bodies. (5) Experience in developing integrated utility financial and economic models and forecasts to enable the analyses of financial and economic conditions, and of regional power markets and alternate fuels. (6) Experience in providing specialized and speedy ad hoc analyses of alternative debt restructure proposals and plans of reorganization for utilities or credit organizations during the course of ongoing negotiations for troubled and/or bankrupt utilities. (7) Experience in developingrisk assessment programs for utilities, or credit organizations with utility loans in their portfolios. These itemize the risk assessment tools, techniques and methodologies routinely used in such programs and any special risk assessment techniques developed by the company for such purposes. Any new and innovative conceptual ideas to achieve the requirements are encouraged. Elaborate proposals or pricing information are neither required nor desired. This sources sought synopsis is for informational or planning purposes only and is not to be construed as a commitment by the Government. Unless otherwise specified, all references to "utility" or "utilities" refer to utilities in the electric, telecommunications, and water industries. Posted 11/22/99 (W-SN402604). (0326)

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