Eddy Covariance System Supply and Installation NEW

The South African National Space Agency (SANSA), a PFMA Schedule 3(A) public entity, is seeking a service provider to supply, install, commission and support a complete Eddy Covariance (EC) system. The system will quantify crop evapotranspiration, sensible and latent heat flux, carbon dioxide exchange and associated surface energy balance components. It will support research on crop water use, irrigation management, water productivity, climate-smart agriculture and Earth Observation model validation. The equipment must provide continuous, high-frequency measurements suitable for long-term deployment under remote field conditions at the designated site in KwaZulu-Natal.

The core technical requirements include an open-path CO2/H2O gas analyser and 3D sonic anemometer sampling at up to 20 Hz, an integrated air temperature and relative humidity sensor, a four-component net radiometer, a PAR sensor, soil heat flux plates, soil temperature and soil water content sensors, a data logger compatible with existing infrastructure, a pyranometer, a leaf wetness sensor, and a GPRS/GSM modem with remote download capability. The station must run on a solar panel and battery power supply and be housed in a waterproof, secured and fenced enclosure. The successful bidder must also supply mountings and cabling, comprehensive calibration with traceable certificates, practical hands-on user training, user manuals and maintenance schedules. A separate schedule lists OEM-approved replacement consumables and spares, including desiccant packs, filters, wicks and molecular sieve bottles, with a part-number catalogue required. Bidders must provide an onsite warranty of up to three years and valid OEM certification for the contract and warranty period.

Eligibility requires an OEM certified partner certificate, and bidders must submit at least three peer-reviewed publications that used the proposed EC system in ecosystem productivity, ecohydrology or carbon dynamics research, along with three customer reference letters or completed questionnaires covering the past five years. Bids are evaluated in two stages: functionality (reference letters, technical catalogue compliance and technical training, scored out of 100, with a minimum of 80 points required to proceed) and then the 80/20 preference point system, where price carries 80 points and specific goals carry 20 points. The estimated value is up to R50 million including VAT, and the contract period is two years. Bids must be submitted electronically via the National Treasury eTender portal by 11:00 on 8 December 2026. A non-compulsory online briefing session is scheduled for 19 November 2026 at 11:00.