[Protest of DOE Contract Award]

A firm protested a contract award to another firm under a solicitation issued by a Department of Energy operating contractor, contending that: (1) the solicitation contained inadequate or ambiguous specifications; (2) the awardee was not a reputable firm; and (3) the product offered by the awardee was covered by a patent and the patent holder did not license the awardee to supply the product. GAO held that: (1) the portion of the protest alleging inadequate specifications was untimely filed; (2) the awardee's alleged disreputability was a matter of responsibility, which GAO will not review absent circumstances not relevant to this case; and (3) GAO does not consider protests alleging patent infringements. Accordingly, the protest was dismissed.