APPENDIX 2
Commonwealth’s Objectives for the National Broadband Network
The evaluation criteria in clause 10.3 include the extent to
which the Proposal meets the Commonwealth’s objectives for the NBN project.
The Commonwealth’s objectives for the NBN project are to establish a national
broadband network that:
-
covers
98 per cent of Australian homes and businesses;
-
is
able to offer broadband services with a minimum 12 Mbps dedicated downlink
transmission speed over each connection provided to a premises;
-
supports
symmetric applications such as high-definition video-conferencing;
-
is
able to support high quality voice, data and video services;
-
uses
fibre-to-the-node or fibre-to-the-premises network architecture;
-
enables
uniform retail prices on a national basis;
-
is
rolled out and made operational progressively over five years from the date of
execution of a contract between the Commonwealth and successful Proponent;
-
continues
to promote the long-term interests of end-users;
-
has
sufficient capacity to meet current and foreseeable demand and has a specified
upgrade path within clear timeframes, consistent with international trends;
-
facilitates competition through
open access arrangements that ensure equivalence of price and non-price terms
and conditions, and provide scope for access seekers to differentiate their
product offerings;
-
enables low access prices that
reflect underlying costs while allowing Proponents to earn a rate of return on
their investment commensurate with the risk of the project;
-
provides benefits to consumers by
providing choice to run applications, use services and connect devices at
affordable prices;
-
provides the Commonwealth with a
return on its investment of up to $4.7 billion;
-
is compatible with the
Government’s related Fibre Connections to Schools initiative;
-
meets Government requirements for
the protection of Australia’s critical infrastructure;
-
is consistent with national
security, e-security and e-safety policy objectives including compliance with
laws relating to law enforcement assistance and emergency call services;
-
is consistent with Australia’s
international obligations; and
- facilitates opportunities for
Australian and New Zealand small and medium enterprises (SMEs) to provide goods
and services to the project.
National Broadband Network Evaluation
Criteria
The evaluation process is outlined at section 10 of this
RFP. Within the framework of an overarching value-for-money assessment, the
evaluation criteria against which Proposals will be assessed are:
-
the
extent to which the Proposal meets the Commonwealth’s objectives for the NBN
project (as set out in clause 1.3);
-
the
capacity of the Proponent to roll-out, maintain, upgrade and operate the
network;
-
the
nature, scope and impact of any legislative and/or regulatory changes that are
necessary to facilitate the Proposal;
-
the
cost to the Commonwealth of the Proposal;
-
the
acceptability to the Commonwealth of the contract terms and conditions proposed
by the Proponent and the extent to which the Proposal departs from the
Commonwealth’s notified commercial terms (if any); and
-
the
extent of the Proponent’s compliance with the RFP.
The criteria are not listed in order of importance. Subject
to clauses 10.4 to 10.9, the Panel will evaluate each Proposal against each of
these criteria and then undertake a comparative assessment of all Proposals in
order to make a recommendation to the Minister for Broadband, Communications
and the Digital Economy (‘the Minister’) as to which Proposal(s) offer the best
overall value for money to the Commonwealth. The Minister, following
consultation with Cabinet, will be the final decision maker.
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