[Protest of Los Alamos National Laboratory Contract Award for Cryogenic Refrigerator System]

A firm protested a Department of Energy (DOE) contract award for a cryogenic refrigerator system, contending that DOE: (1) improperly evaluated its proposal; (2) conducted the procurement in favor of the awardee; and (3) made errors in calculating its total offered price, which adversely affected its competitive standing. GAO held that: (1) the award was proper, since it met the needs of the government; (2) the alleged misinterpretation of the protester's proposal did not adversely affect its competitive standing, since price was the determinative factor and the protester's offer was not low; (3) DOE did not evaluate the cost of upgrading the awardee's equipment because the solicitation did not provide for such an evaluation; (4) the protester untimely protested after bid opening that the solicitation restricted competition; and (5) the protester failed to prove that DOE conducted the procurement in favor of the awardee. Accordingly, the protest was denied in part and dismissed in part.