- Id
- ocds-h6vhtk-066d9e
- Status
- complete
- Procurement Method
- direct
- Procurement Method Details
- Direct award
- Why this procedure was chosen
- Mutual Energy Limited ("Mutual") was formed to own and operate energy infrastructure for the long-term benefit of the energy consumers of Northern Ireland. The present principal
activities of Mutual and its subsidiaries are the ownership and operation of Northern Ireland's energy links with Great Britain. Mutual is a mutualised organisation, with members acting in a role similar to shareholders but specifically representing the interests
of energy consumers. Mutual (through its subsidiaries) owns and operates several subsea assets, namely:
- the Scotland to Northern Ireland Pipeline ("SNIP"), a submarine gas transmission pipeline between Northern Ireland and Scotland; and
- a gas transmission pipeline within Northern Ireland, but with some subsea sections, including Larne Lough Crossing and Belfast Lough Crossing;
Catastrophic failure of the submarine pipelines is considered to be one of our highest impact (albeit low likelihood) strategic risks and a key action item for Mutual for several years has been improved contingency planning and building an effective Emergency Pipeline Repair Strategy. The services and equipment that are likely to be required in the event of a repair of
Mutual's pipeline assets are highly complex and specialist in nature. Equinor, through their Pipeline Repair & Subsea Intervention ("PRSI") Pool solution, provides access to a number of frameworks of repair contractors, vessel owners and
supplies of repair equipment which, in the event of a repair being required, can be mobilised more efficiently and rapidly than engaging each of these required services separately and with a guaranteed response time that would be unlikely to be achievedwithout this membership in place. The PRSI pool consists of over twenty energy companies that cover their offshore pipeline
and power cable repair contingency via the pool. These companies often represent significant proportions of the expertise in what is considered a highly complex area. As a result, shared learning is also a key benefit of being a member of the pool.
Our intention is to contract directly with Equinor to become a member of the PRSI Pool in order to address the key strategic risk of a pipeline failure and to allow us to receive all required services through Equinor as a single centralised source for the contract call-offs that we envisage would be required in a pipeline repair scenario. We have been conducting market research for circa 10 years for this type of a well-established 'one stop shop' for pipeline emergency repair; including meetings with specific contractors as well as completing repair plan studies with consultants, identifying gaps and potential solutions. This market engagement has led us to believe that Equinor, through its PRSI
club, is the only potential provider capable of offering this all-inclusive service that we require in the event of a pipeline repair, in a single package. Specifically, we wish to join
the 'club' that has a mechanism by which members pool resources and share the cost of readiness, hence avoiding bearing the expense of maintaining highly specialised assets
and personnel. The services include:
• Appropriate pipeline equipment that is stored, maintained, modified and replenished as
necessary covering a range of services from concrete coating removal, pipeline handling,
hyperbaric and remote welding, repair clamps and connectors
• Access to well trained personnel capable of carrying out a submarine pipeline repair
• Access to suitable vessels with guaranteed response times.
• Pre-prepared Procedures in place for the use of the equipment and all repair methods
• Project Management of a subsea repair
Membership of the club offers the benefits of having immediate access to a pooled contingency of framework contracts capable of providing the full range of specialised services required, with overarching management by administrators under a preestablished and proven governance framework. This allows rates of repair services, outlined above, to be competitively tendered and in place for pool members in advance of
being required, as well as offering a full suite of services with regards to a pipeline repair.The pool will provide access to unique equipment, such as the world's only fully remote
diverless retrofit welded tee hot tap system and the pipeline (MIG) welding equipment spread. It will also provide access to a stock of tools that, if Mutual needed to order separately from the manufacturer and they weren't in stock could take up to a year to be delivered.
Based on the above, we believe that Equinor PRSI are the only existing provider capable of fulfilling the required services. In addition, we see no alternative goods or services that
could prepare for and enact an emergency pipeline repair as effectively (efficiently and timely) as the Pool.