The Pilot Deployments Program (PDP) aims to develop production and deployment supply chains and expedite the acquisition of pivotal knowledge essential for the timely development of interventions on the Great Barrier Reef. This involves activating marine operators including the tourism, marine contracting section, and Traditional Owner (TO) groups, delivering the next important steps in characterising the benefits and evaluating the potential of interventions to expedite recovery from acute disturbances, while concurrently bolstering coral resilience against heat and bleaching stress. One of the expected outcomes of the PDP is to progressively increase the scale of delivering or deploying interventions onto the Reef over five years commencing 2025.

This Request for Panel Tender is to set up a panel of intervention production and deployment providers for a three-year period who can deliver vessel charter and technical services across a variety of in-water and shore-based activities to support the PDP and develop capacity for delivering interventions. The PDP seeks to train and activate marine operators (including TO Groups) to become ongoing deliverers of reef resilience interventions being developed in the RRAP (Reef Restoration and Adaptation Program). Panel participants may be engaged for a subset of activation and capacity building activities depending on their expertise, vessel and aquaculture infrastructure capabilities, and operational availability. It is not expected that Respondents must deliver all activities, or every part of a single activity.

The activities covered by this panel will be:

• Coral spawn collection and vessel charter transport

• Deployment and maintenance of inflatable larval pools

•Deployment and monitoring of coral seeding devices

•Support for in-situ coral larval release

•Conservation aquaculture tasks including broodstock collection and in-facility rearing

Other Instructions:

Respondents must demonstrate capability to undertake the supervised delivery of one or more of these activities. Capability Requirements are outlined in Section 4 and Schedule A. Detailed vessel, equipment, and manning requirements are contained in Schedule A., Appendix 1 Vessel and Manning Requirements.

Conditions for Participation:

As per tender docuements

Timeframe for Delivery:

October to Janurary 2025/26 -2027/28

Address for Lodgement:

https://www.tenders.gov.au/