The Electricity (Competitive Tenders for Offshore Transmission Licences) Regulations 2015

PART 12 PREFERRED BIDDER STAGE

Notification of preferred bidder and reserve bidder

21.—(1) As soon as reasonably practicable after the Authority has determined the preferred bidder in respect of a particular qualifying project in accordance with regulation 19(1)(a) or 20(4), it must publish a notice to that effect.

(2) As soon as reasonably practicable after the Authority has determined the reserve bidder in respect of a particular qualifying project in accordance with regulation 19(3) or 20(5), it must give notice to that effect to that reserve bidder.

(3) The notice referred to in paragraph (1) must—

(a) specify the name and address of the preferred bidder; and

(b) describe, in general terms, the matters to be resolved by the preferred bidder to the Authority’s satisfaction as specified in paragraph (4)(a) or (b), as the case may be, before that preferred bidder becomes the successful bidder in accordance with regulation 28(1).

(4) The matters referred to in paragraph (3)(b) must include—

(a) in the case of a generator build tender exercise—

(i) that the preferred bidder has established necessary arrangements to provide transmission services for that particular qualifying project;

(ii) that the preferred bidder has in place a bilateral agreement with the holder of a co-ordination licence to provide transmission services for that particular qualifying project;

(iii) that the preferred bidder has acceded to the contractual framework which defines the relationship between the holder of a co-ordination licence and any provider of transmission services that the co-ordination licence requires the holder of a co-ordination licence to have in force; and

(iv) any other matters which the Authority may determine are necessary in relation to that particular qualifying project, including without limitation the matter referred to in paragraph (5); or

(b) in the case of an OFTO build tender exercise—

(i) that the preferred bidder has established necessary arrangements to construct the transmission assets and to provide transmission services for that particular qualifying project;

(ii) that the preferred bidder has in place a bilateral agreement with the holder of a co-ordination licence to provide transmission services for that particular qualifying project;

(iii) that the preferred bidder has acceded to the contractual framework which defines the relationship between the holder of a co-ordination licence and any provider of transmission services that the co-ordination licence requires the holder of a co-ordination licence to have in force; and

(iv) any other matters which the Authority may determine are necessary in relation to that particular qualifying project, including without limitation the matter referred to paragraph (5).

(5) The Authority may determine that it is necessary that the preferred bidder has conducted a competition, of a kind specified by the Authority, for the purpose of securing finance for the qualifying project.

(6) As soon as reasonably practicable after the Authority has published a notice in accordance with paragraph (1), it must give notice to the preferred bidder—

(a) as to the detail of the matters referred to in paragraph (4)(a) or (b), as the case may be, how such matters must be resolved and by what date; and

(b) requiring the bidder to make a payment to the Authority of an amount determined by the Authority to be reasonable for the purpose of recovering the Authority’s tender costs.

(7) Where—

(a) the matters referred to in paragraph (4)(a) or (b), as the case may be, are not resolved by the preferred bidder to the Authority’s satisfaction in accordance with the notice issued by virtue of paragraph (6);

(b) the preferred bidder fails to make the payment referred to in paragraph (6)(b);

(c) the preferred bidder withdraws from the tender exercise in accordance with regulation 23(1); or

(d) the preferred bidder is disqualified from the tender exercise or tender round in accordance with regulation 27(1),

the Authority may withdraw the notice published in accordance with paragraph (1) by publishing a further notice to that effect.

(8) Where the Authority has published a further notice in accordance with paragraph (7), it must discontinue the tender exercise with the preferred bidder and must treat the reserve bidder (where such reserve bidder has been determined in accordance with regulation 19(3) or 20(5)), as if that reserve bidder were the preferred bidder in respect of a particular qualifying project.

(9) Paragraphs (1) and (3), (4), (6) and (7) apply where the Authority treats the reserve bidder as if it were the preferred bidder.

(10) The Authority must give notice to any qualifying bidder of the fact that it is not a preferred bidder or a reserve bidder.

Particular obligations of the developer from preferred bidder stage

22.  In order to facilitate the making of the Authority’s determination of the successful bidder to whom an offshore transmission licence is to be granted in respect of a particular qualifying project in accordance with regulation 28(2), the developer must from the date of the notice given in accordance with regulation 21(6) use its reasonable endeavours to—

(a) enable the preferred bidder to resolve the matters specified in the notice given in accordance with regulation 21(6) to the extent that the resolution of those matters depends on the actions of the developer;

(b) in respect of a generator build qualifying project, enable the transmission assets to be transferred to the successful bidder; and

(c) in respect of an OFTO build qualifying project—

(i) enable the notified preliminary works to be transferred to the successful bidder; and

(ii) enable each construction phase contract, if any, to be executed by, or novated to, or enable the benefit of that contract to be transferred to, the successful bidder or a person nominated by the successful bidder.