Reconsideration of Request for Correction of Contract Price

The protester requested reconsideration of a prior decision which concluded that there was no legal basis to grant the protester's request for a correction of its contract price. The prior decision was affirmed since: (1) the contracting officer's telegraphic request for bid verification satisfied procurement requirements; (2) the contracting officer's statement that the request for verification disclosed other bid prices must be accepted as correct in the absence of evidence to the contrary; (3) although the bidder's verification of its bid responded to only one suggested area of possible mistake, the contracting officer was satisfied that all other cost elements of the bid had been reviewed and confirmed the fact that prices were in line with average bid prices for past solicitations; (4) the contract awarded to the low bidder where the percentage difference between its price and the next low bidder's was 53percent was not unconscionable; (5) the award cannot be set aside at the contractor's insistence that it was not entitled to the award since it was nonresponsible since that ground was not available to a party which benefited by an award; and (6) where nearly a month elapsed between the request for bid verification and the award, the bidder had sufficient time to verify its bid.