50-DAY DRY CARGO TIME CHARTER

The U.S. Department of Defense, through the Military Sealift Command in Norfolk, Virginia, is seeking industry input via a sources-sought notice for a potential 50-day dry cargo time charter operation to transport military equipment using roll-on/roll-off vessels. The primary objective is to gather market intelligence on vessel capabilities, including daily charter rates, fuel consumption, available militarily useful deck space (defined as ro/ro deck height exceeding 7’5”), and the number of supercargo units each vessel can support. The cargo requirements include bridge fixed units, tracked dozers, and cargo vans totaling approximately 400,000 square feet of deck space, with loading and unloading scheduled to occur at Tacoma, Washington, beginning on August 29, 2026. Respondents are required to provide detailed vessel specifications and indicate their business size classification under NAICS code 483111, which has a small business size standard of 1,050 employees. No formal contract award is anticipated from this notice; it is strictly for market research to determine industry capacity and interest without any government obligation to proceed with procurement. Responses must be submitted via email to the designated contracting officer no later than 11:00 a.m. Eastern Time on May 28, 2026, with no formal proposal format required beyond the specified data points. The notice explicitly states that no special contract requirements, such as security clearances, key personnel mandates, or option periods, are in effect at this stage, and there are no binding obligations for the government to issue a contract based on responses received. No detailed packaging, marking, preservation, inspection, or invoicing standards are included, as this is a pre-solicitation effort and not a request for offers. The contracting officer, Eric Hatcher, and secondary point of contact Christopher Tomlin, are the designated points of contact, and submissions should include vessel descriptions, operational metrics, and information on potential subcontracting opportunities for large businesses. All information provided will be used solely to assess the commercial market for future sealift planning.