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谢谢你的有趣问题。

我近年没有你问题中所讲的租约招投标的经验，但大原则应该都是一样。第一大原则就是有订约自由，第二大原则就是合约的成立需要有无条件与目前的要约与接受。另一个有关招标的大原则就通常只是要约邀请，它本身并不是一个要约，而你们的标书才是要约。国外租家如果通知你们中标就是一个表示接受的行为。

但由于有订约自由，会有情况是招标会被视为是要约或必须去接受某一类的标书（例如标书出价最高或最低）。这是考虑到有时候去投标某项工程会涉及耗费大量的工作与金钱才能去制作出标书，发出招标的一方以此来显示诚意与确定性。

在你所说的招标文件中是否有可以约束招标方的文字而令招标由要约邀请变为要约是要具体看招标文件是否满足构成一个要约的条件。

假设你的招标文件是一般情况的要约邀请，这样一来在你们的标书加入“subject vessel available”的措辞会有以下几种情况：

1、就是你说的因为太不确定而是一个虚盘，从而不被外国租家考虑
2、外国租家回来与你们进行进一步的谈判，因为其他投标的条件太差劲或没有其他投标
3、外国租家接受你们的条件，导致“subject vessel available”成为你们合约的一个后续条件（condition subsequent）。

在我粗略的感觉，（1）的可能性最大，因为“subject vessel available”实在是太虚了。

最后可去节录英国著名的《Chitty on Contract》2010年第30版有关招标一般性法律的说法，在2-022段如下：“Tenders. At common law, a statement that goods are to be sold by tender is not normally an offer to sell to the person making the highest tender; it merely indicates a readiness to receive offers. Similarly, an invitation for tenders for the supply of goods or for the execution of works is, generally, not an offer, even thought the preparation fo the tender may involve very considerable expense. The offer comes from the person who submits the tender and there is no contract until the person asking for the tenders accepts one of them. These rules may, however, be excluded by evidence of contrary intention: e.g. where the person who invites the tenders states in the invitation that he binds himself to accept the highest offer to buy (or, as the case may be, lowest offer to sell or to provide the specified services). In such cases, the invitation for tenders may be regarded either as itself an offer or as an invitation to submit offers coupled with an undertaking to accept the highest (or, as the case may be, the lowest) offer; and the contract is concluded as soon as the highest offer to buy (or lowest offer to sell, etc）is communicated. There is also an intermediate possibility. This is illustrated by a case in which an invitation to submit tenders was sent by a local authority to seven parties; the invitation stated that tenders submitted after a specified deadline would not be considered. It was held that the authority was contractually bound to consider (though not to accept) a tender submitted before the deadline."

杨良宜/司嘉