Tender Summary: Appointment of Qualified and Experienced Service Provider to Render Professional Notarial Services

Objectives

The primary objective is to appoint a suitably qualified Notary Public to witness, notarise, and facilitate the registration of notarial deeds supporting SANPC’s Technical Cooperation Permit (TCP) applications. The appointed provider must ensure strict compliance with all applicable legislative and regulatory frameworks while managing the end-to-end registration process with the relevant government authority.

Scope of Work

• Document Review & Verification: Examine all documentation provided by the Petroleum Agency South Africa (PASA) and SANPC to verify compliance with statutory requirements.
• Notarial Execution: Prepare, witness, and notarise the required deeds in accordance with South African law.
• Registration Management: Lodge executed deeds with the Department of Mineral and Petroleum Resources (DMPR), track processing status, follow up as necessary, and obtain official proof of registration.
• Delivery & Payment: Deliver all registered documents and proof of lodging to SANPC. Payment is disbursed solely upon successful lodging at the DMPR with verified proof submitted.
• Duration & Pricing: Services commence upon appointment and conclude once all deeds are registered and delivered. Quoted prices must be all-inclusive in South African Rand (ZAR), covering all operational costs, software/hardware licences, and disbursements. Quotes must remain valid for six months.

Technical Requirements

• Must hold a valid admission as both an attorney and a Notary Public in South Africa.
• Must be in good standing with the Legal Practice Council (LPC), supported by a current Fidelity Fund Certificate or official LPC confirmation.
• Must demonstrate documented experience over the past five years in executing and registering notarial deeds specifically for mineral and petroleum rights, including prior submissions to the DMPR (formerly DMRE).
• Must provide three verifiable references, purchase orders, or contracts issued within the last five years confirming similar notarial services.
• Failure to satisfy any elimination criterion results in immediate disqualification from further evaluation.

Skills Requirements

• Legal & Regulatory Expertise: Comprehensive knowledge of South African notarial law, property/mineral rights registration procedures, and compliance standards.
• Document Analysis: Ability to critically review complex legal documentation, identify discrepancies, and ensure alignment with statutory requirements.
• Government Liaison & Tracking: Proven capability to navigate DMPR filing systems, maintain effective communication with registry officials, and monitor application timelines.
• Project Management: Strong organisational skills to handle multiple deed executions, coordinate stakeholder inputs, and deliver results within agreed timeframes.
• Independence & Accuracy: Capacity to work autonomously with meticulous attention to detail, maintaining strict confidentiality and professional standards throughout the engagement.

Key Terms & Unusual Services Explained

• Technical Cooperation Permit (TCP): Specialised regulatory permits required for petroleum exploration activities. Upon approval, formal notarial deeds must be executed before registration can proceed.
• DMPR/DMRE: The state department responsible for mineral and petroleum title registrations. Familiarity with its specific procedural workflows and submission formats is essential.
• Fidelity Fund Certificate (FFC): A mandatory annual certificate issued by the Legal Practice Council confirming that a legal practitioner has fulfilled financial obligations to the Fidelity Fund, ensuring client protection and professional compliance.
• 80/20 Preference Point System: A public procurement scoring model where 80 points are allocated to price competitiveness and 20 points to Broad-Based Black Economic Empowerment (B-BBEE) goals, specifically rewarding black-owned and black-women-owned enterprises.
• Post-Tender Negotiation: SANPC reserves the right to conduct sequential pricing discussions with top-ranked bidders if initial quotations are deemed non-market-related, allowing for potential cost optimisation before contract award.