Legal Support Services for the Celtic Interconnector Project

EirGrid plc

The purpose of the Pre-Qualification Questionnaire is to invite qualification applications from interested parties (Candidates) for the provision to the Companies, acting together, of Legal Support Services for the Celtic Interconnector project and in particular regarding the Engineer, Procure and Construct (EPC) contracts that will be awarded to design and build the Celtic Interconnector Project.
This procurement is being run by EirGrid on behalf of EirGrid and RTE.
See the Information Memorandum and Pre-Qualification Questionnaire for full details. This is attached to the etenders notice for this tender at http://www.etenders.gov.ie/

Deadline

The time limit for receipt of tenders was 2018-07-02. The procurement was published on 2018-05-24.

Suppliers

The following suppliers are mentioned in award decisions or other procurement documents:

• Eversheds

Who?

• EirGrid plc

What?

• Legal advisory and representation services › Legal advisory services

Where?

• France
• Éire/Ireland

Procurement history

Date	Document
2018-05-24	Contract notice
2019-12-19	Contract award notice

Contract notice (2018-05-24)
Object
Scope of the procurement
Title: Legal services
Reference number: ENQEIR615
Short description:

The purpose of the Pre-Qualification Questionnaire is to invite qualification applications from interested parties (Candidates) for the provision to the Companies, acting together, of Legal Support Services for the Celtic Interconnector project and in particular regarding the Engineer, Procure and Construct (EPC) contracts that will be awarded to design and build the Celtic Interconnector Project. This procurement is being run by EirGrid on behalf of EirGrid and RTE. See the Information Memorandum and Pre-Qualification Questionnaire for full details. This is attached to the etenders notice for this tender at http://www.etenders.gov.ie/

Notice metadata
Original language: English 🗣️
Document type: Contract notice
Nature of contract: Services
Regulation: European Union, with participation of GPA countries
Common procurement vocabulary (CPV)
Code: Legal services 📦
Additional CPV: Legal advisory services 📦
Place of performance
NUTS region: Éire/Ireland 🏙️

Procedure
Procedure type: Negotiated procedure
Type of bid: Submission for all lots
Award criteria
The most economic tender

Contracting authority
Identity
Country: Ireland 🇮🇪
Awarding authority type: Utilities entity
Awarding authority name: Eirgrid plc
Postal address: Block 2 — The Oval, 160 Shelbourne Road
Postal code: Dublin 4
Postal town: Ballsbridge
Contact
Internet address: http://www.eirgrid.com 🌏
E-mail: anthony.flood@eirgrid.com 📧
Phone: +353 12370123 📞
Fax: +353 16615375 📠
URL for documents: http://irl.eu-supply.com/app/rfq/rwlentrance_s.asp?PID=129481&B=ETENDERS_SIMPLE 🌏
URL for participation: http://irl.eu-supply.com/app/rfq/rwlentrance_s.asp?PID=129481&B=ETENDERS_SIMPLE 🌏

Reference
Dates
Date dispatched: 2018-05-24 📅
Submission deadline: 2018-07-02 📅
Publication date: 2018-05-25 📅
Identifiers
Notice number: 2018/S 098-224724
OJ-S issue: 98
Additional information

See the Information Memorandum and Pre-Qualification Questionnaire for full details. This is attached to the etenders notice for this tender at http://www.etenders.gov.ie/

Object
Scope of the procurement
Short description:

This procurement is being run by EirGrid on behalf of EirGrid and RTE.

See the Information Memorandum and Pre-Qualification Questionnaire for full details. This is attached to the etenders notice for this tender at http://www.etenders.gov.ie/

EirGrid is the Transmission System Operator (TSO) and Market Operator (MO) in the wholesale trading system in Ireland, and is the owner of the System Operator Northern Ireland (SONI Ltd), the licensed TSO and market operator in Northern Ireland.

Réseau de Transport d'Électricité (RTE) is the French TSO; it owns, operates and develops the French Electricity Transmission System with the primary objectives of balancing electricity generation with consumption and guaranteeing the secure operation of the power system.

RTE and EirGrid, together referred to herein as “the Companies”, have been engaged in exploring the feasibility of an interconnector project between Ireland and France, which will hereafter be referred to as either the ”Celtic Interconnector Project” and/or “Project”.

The Companies intend to establish a single supplier framework agreement (Framework Agreement) for the provision of these Legal Support Services.

The Companies shall require the successful Tenderer to provide legal advice and support relating to legal issues regarding the Celtic Interconnector Project. The required services will mainly comprise of legal advice on and assistance with the legal elements of the EPC procurement process. The EPC contractor will likely be sourced through the Negotiated Procedure as set out in Council Directive 2014/25/EU.

The EPC contracts may be a form of FIDIC contract and may be governed by French law.

The general requirements will include working with the Companies’ Legal and Procurement teams, including external advisers, to provide advice on all Legal Support Services required for the Project including:

— EPC contracts strategy,

— EPC contracts preparation (drafting of the EPC and other relevant contracts and updating after each round of negotiation and final tuning),

— EPC contracts negotiations with preferred suppliers,

— legal market intelligence on EPC contracts,

— other third party contracts arising from EPC contracts strategy related to this scope,

— any other ancillary legal services (under Irish law, French law or both) as may be required by the Companies or the IJV as appropriate.

The successful Tenderer shall be required to have suitably qualified and experienced personnel to carry out the required tasks.

The range of work within the scope of requirements will change from year to year depending on the project requirements. It is anticipated that the scope will be confirmed at the beginning of each stage of the project although, it should be noted that there may be a requirement to increase / decrease the scope of work during the specific stages depending on project requirements.

Estimated value excluding VAT: 2 000 000 EUR 💰
Duration: 96 months
Description of options:

The initial Framework Agreement period will be from Framework Agreement start date to EPC award date, currently estimated to be mid 2021, with the option to extend annually for a period afterwards, the total of which will not exceed 8 years.

Name of EU-financed project or programme: Celtic Interconnector Project.
Additional information:

See the Information Memorandum and Pre-Qualification Questionnaire for full details. This is attached to the etenders notice for this tender at http://www.etenders.gov.ie/

Place of performance
Main site or place of performance: Ireland and France.

Legal, economic, financial and technical information
Conditions for participation
Suitability to pursue the professional activity:

See the Information Memorandum and Pre-Qualification Questionnaire for full details. This is attached to the etenders notice for this tender at http://www.etenders.gov.ie/

Economic and financial standing:

See the Information Memorandum and Pre-Qualification Questionnaire for full details. This is attached to the etenders notice for this tender at http://www.etenders.gov.ie/

Minimum level(s) of standards:

See the Information Memorandum and Pre-Qualification Questionnaire for full details. This is attached to the etenders notice for this tender at http://www.etenders.gov.ie/

Technical and professional ability:

See the Information Memorandum and Pre-Qualification Questionnaire for full details. This is attached to the etenders notice for this tender at http://www.etenders.gov.ie/

List and brief description of rules and criteria:

See the Information Memorandum and Pre-Qualification Questionnaire for full details. This is attached to the etenders notice for this tender at http://www.etenders.gov.ie/

Contract execution
Deposits and guarantees required:

See the Information Memorandum and Pre-Qualification Questionnaire for full details. This is attached to the etenders notice for this tender at http://www.etenders.gov.ie/

Main financing conditions and payment arrangements and/or reference to the relevant provisions governing them:

See the Information Memorandum and Pre-Qualification Questionnaire for full details. This is attached to the etenders notice for this tender at http://www.etenders.gov.ie/

Legal form to be taken by the group of economic operators to whom the contract is to be awarded:

See the Information Memorandum and Pre-Qualification Questionnaire for full details. This is attached to the etenders notice for this tender at http://www.etenders.gov.ie/

Contract performance conditions:

See the Information Memorandum and Pre-Qualification Questionnaire for full details. This is attached to the etenders notice for this tender at http://www.etenders.gov.ie/

Procedure
Applicable procurement law: Irish.
Envisaged number of candidates: 5
Objective criteria for choosing the limited number of candidates:

See the Information Memorandum and Pre-Qualification Questionnaire for full details. This is attached to the etenders notice for this tender at http://www.etenders.gov.ie/

Time of receipt of tenders: 12:00
Date of dispatch of invitations: 2018-07-31 📅
Languages in which tenders or requests to participate may be submitted: English 🗣️
Irish 🗣️
Tender validity period: 9 months

Contracting authority
Identity
National registration number: N/a
Awarding authority name: Réseau de Transport d'Electricité
Postal address: Direction achats, Immeuble Coeur Défense — Tour B, 100 esplanade du Général de Gaulle
Postal town: Paris La Défense Cedex
Country: France 🇫🇷
Contact
Contact point: Anthony Flood
Address of the buyer profile: https://irl.eu-supply.com/ctm/Company/CompanyInformation/Index/219 🌏
Phone: +353 012370123 📞
Internet address: www.rte-france.com 🌏
Documents URL: http://irl.eu-supply.com/app/rfq/rwlentrance_s.asp?PID=129481&B=ETENDERS_SIMPLE 🌏

Reference
Additional information

1) Interested parties must register their interest on the eTenders website: http://www.etenders.gov.ie/ in order to be included on the mailing list for clarifications. All information relating to attachments, including clarifications and changes, will be published on the Irish Government Procurement Opportunities Portal: http://www.etenders.gov.ie/ only. Registration is free of charge. The Contracting Authority will not accept responsibility for information relayed (or not relayed) via third parties.

2) This is the sole call for competition for this service.

3) The Contracting Authority will not be responsible for any costs, charges or expenses incurred by candidates or tenderers.

4) Contract award will be subject to the approval of the competent authorities.

5) It will be a condition of award that candidates are tax compliant and are in a position to produce a valid tax clearance certificate or e-Tax Clearance from the Revenue Commissioners when requested.

6) The Framework Member will be required to comply with all applicable laws in connection with the delivery of the services under the Framework Agreement.

In the event the Framework Member intends to subcontract any part of the services under this Framework Agreement, the Framework Member shall undertake to comply with the French law nº 75-1334 of 31.12.1975 as amended.

7) At its absolute discretion, the contracting authority may elect to terminate this procurement process or any contract awarded.

8) Please note in relation to all documents, that where reference is made to a particular standard, make, source, process, trademark, type or patent, that this is not to be regarded as a de facto requirement. In all such cases it should be understood that such indications are to be treated strictly and solely for reference purposes only, to which the words “or equivalent” will always be appended.

9) Without prejudice to the principle of equal treatment, the Contracting Authority is not obliged to engage in a clarification process in respect of questionnaires with missing or incomplete information. Therefore, candidates are advised to ensure that they return fully completed questionnaires in order to avoid the risk of elimination from the competition.

See attached Information Memorandum and Pre-Qualification Questionnaire for full details. This is available on etenders http://www.etenders.gov.ie/

Complementary information
Review body
Name: The High Court
Postal address: Four Courts
Postal town: Dublin
Postal code: 7
Country: Ireland 🇮🇪
Phone: +353 18886000 📞
Internet address: http://www.courts.ie/ 🌏
Information about review deadlines:

Precise information on deadline(s) for lodging appeals: The Contracting Authority will not conclude this contract to which a standstill period applies in accordance with Irish Statutory Instrument SI 130 of 2010, until after the expiry of the standstill period which commences on the day following the date of notification on concerned candidates and tenderers. The duration of the standstill period will be 14 calendar days where notifications are sent electronically or by fax and 16 calendar days where these are sent by any other means. The Statutory Instrument mentioned above provides that review procedures are available in the High Court to a person who has or has had an interest in obtaining the reviewable public contract and alleges that he or she has been harmed or is at risk of being harmed by an infringement of the law in relation in this contract.

Source: OJS 2018/S 098-224724 (2018-05-24)

Contract award notice (2019-12-19)
Object
Scope of the procurement
Short description:

Legal support services for the Celtic Interconnector Project and in particular regarding the Engineer, Procure and Construct (EPC) contracts that will be awarded to design and build the Celtic Interconnector Project.

Notice metadata
Document type: Contract award notice

Procedure
Type of bid: Not applicable

Reference
Dates
Date dispatched: 2019-12-19 📅
Publication date: 2019-12-23 📅
Identifiers
Notice number: 2019/S 247-610994
Refers to notice: 2018/S 098-224724
OJ-S issue: 247
Additional information
This is a framework agreement and fees shall depend on the work required.

Object
Scope of the procurement
Short description:

Réseau de Transport d'Électricité (RTE) is the French TSO; it owns, operates and develops the french electricity transmission system with the primary objectives of balancing electricity generation with consumption and guaranteeing the secure operation of the power system.

RTE and EirGrid, together referred to herein as ‘the Companies’, have been engaged in exploring the feasibility of an interconnector project between Ireland and France, which will hereafter be referred to as either the ‘Celtic Interconnector Project’ and/or ‘Project’.

The companies shall require the successful tenderer to provide legal advice and support relating to legal issues regarding the Celtic Interconnector Project. The required services will mainly comprise of legal advice on and assistance with the legal elements of the EPC procurement process. The EPC contractor will likely be sourced through the negotiated procedure as set out in Council Directive 2014/25/EU.

The general requirements will include working with the companies’ legal and procurement teams, including external advisers, to provide advice on all legal support services required for the project including:

The range of work within the scope of requirements will change from year to year depending on the project requirements. It is anticipated that the scope will be confirmed at the beginning of each stage of the project although, it should be noted that there may be a requirement to increase/decrease the scope of work during the specific stages depending on project requirements.

Description of options:

The initial framework agreement period will be from framework agreement start date to EPC award date, currently estimated to be mid 2021, with the option to extend annually for a period afterwards, the total of which will not exceed 8 years.

Additional information: This is a framework agreement and fees shall depend on the work required.
Place of performance
Main site or place of performance: IRELAND and FRANCE.

Procedure
Award criteria
Quality criterion (name): Resources
Quality criterion (weighting): 40 %
Quality criterion (name): Approach and methodology
Quality criterion (weighting): 10 %
Quality criterion (name): Legal
Quality criterion (weighting): 5 %
Price (weighting): 45 %

Award of contract
Date of contract conclusion: 2019-12-12 📅
Name: Eversheds
Postal address: One Earlsfort Centre, Earlsfort Terrace
Postal town: Dublin
Postal code: 2
Country: Ireland 🇮🇪
Information about tenders
Number of tenders received: 4

Contracting authority
Identity
Postal address: Direction achats, immeuble Coeur Défense — tour B, 100 esplanade du Général de Gaulle

Complementary information
Review body
Information about review deadlines:

The contracting authority will not conclude this contract to which a standstill period applies in accordance with Irish Statutory Instrument SI 130 of 2010, until after the expiry of the standstill period which commences on the day following the date of notification on concerned candidates and tenderers. The duration of the standstill period will be 14 calendar days where notifications are sent electronically or by fax and 16 calendar days where these are sent by any other means. The Statutory Instrument mentioned above provides that review procedures are available in the High Court to a person who has or has had an interest in obtaining the reviewable public contract and alleges that he or she has been harmed or is at risk of being harmed by an infringement of the law in relation in this contract.

Source: OJS 2019/S 247-610994 (2019-12-19)

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