The Ministry of the Interior has informed a Jerusalem court that it is continuing to negotiate with Hewlett Packard Co. (NYSE:HPQ) over the smart ID card. A tender was cancelled in November 2007.
Last week, the ministry notified the Jerusalem Administrative Affairs Court, which is hearing HP's claim against the government over the cancellation, that it was continuing negotiations with the company. The talks are unusual, given that the tender was cancelled, and the ministry is continuing talks under special authorization to deal with a single supplier, without a bidding process.
The cancellation was the second time in five years that the smart ID card tender was cancelled. HP was the only finalist in the second tender.
The ministry and HP are negotiating over the price of the smart ID cards, which was the reason for the second cancellation of the tender. The company said in its petition to the court in January 2008 that it gave a price of NIS 64 per card in its bid. At this price, the cost of issuing five million ID cards would be NIS 320 million. The Ministry of the Interior's estimated cost is NIS 45 per card, for a total cost of NIS 225 million.
Published by Globes [online], Israel business news - www.globes-online.com - on May 11, 2008
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