PHL accepts rice supply offers from Thailand and Vietnam

The Philippines accepted on Friday the offers made by Vietnam and Thailand to supply the rice requirements of the National Food Authority.

The official announcement for the bids will be made next week.

Thailand lowered its bid on the 25 percent brokens to $517.50 per metric ton to match Vietnam’s offer.

Vietnam and Thailand were asked last week to resubmit their offers after they failed to comply with the reference price of the NFA.

The reference price supplied on Friday by the NFA for 15 percent brokens, in which up to 15 percent of the rice has been broken into two or more pieces during the milling process, was set at $531 per MT.

For the 25 percent brokens category, the bid was set at $520.50 per MT. The Philippines requires 50,000 MT of 15 percent brokens and 200,000 MT of 25 percent brokens.

Vietnam’s first offer was $526.50 for 50,000 MT of 15 percent brokens and $517.50 for the first shipment of 25 percent brokens by May 31 and $517.50 for the second shipment to be delivered no later than June 15. The total offer covered 80,000 MT.

Thailand placed its only offer of $520 for 120,000 MT of 25 percent brokens.

The bidding was temporarily halted to allow the NFA’s Special Bids and Awards Committee to discuss the bids.

NFA Deputy Administrator Judy Carol Dansal, chairperson of the Special Bids and Awards Committee, noted the bidding process was opened to the media for the purposes of transparency and legality.

President Rodrigo Duterte removed the limits on rice importation since the distribution of NFA rice was suspended due to low buffer stock as a result of previous reallocations to calamity victims and other emergencies.

Hours after Thailand and Vietnam failed to meet the NFA’s reference price, Vietnam supposedly made a commitment to sell quality rice at an affordable price to the Philippines. —VDS, GMA News