7A--NOTICE OF INTENT TO SOLE SOURCE HITACHI ENERGY

In accordance with Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) Part 13, Simplified Acquisition Procedures, the Department of Energy (DOE), National Energy Technology Laboratory (NETL) intends to negotiate and award a purchase order on a sole source basis to Hitachi Energy to purchase Velocity Suite software and data services for one year (12-months) from 10/1/2024 to 9/30/2025.

This procurement is for a maintenance agreement for Hitachi Energy Velocity Suite software and data services. NETL currently owns equipment that uses Hitachi Energy Velocity Suite software and data services, and continued use of Hitachi Energy Velocity Suite software and data services is more cost effective than procuring new equipment. The software will continue to have a useful life and has not been identified for replacement. Failure to procure the maintenance agreement will put the NETL at risk of failure or loss of service that could severely impact the organization’s ability to operate in an efficient and effective manner. The maintenance agreement ensures continued use of the equipment and software and covers replacement units and upgrades of the system necessary to keep the units operable within the NETL operating environment. If the agreement is not procured, there will be re-certification costs, and premium costs to purchase a new agreement, resulting in unnecessary costs to the government. The maintenance agreement is proprietary to the software manufacturer further supporting the need for this service.

This service provides unlimited access to Hitachi Energy’s suite of products including Energy Velocity Power, Market-Ops, and Fuels as well as 50 active accounts for Energy Velocity Maps. It provides DOE Federal and contractor staff access to Hitachi Energy Velocity Suite databases and analysis tools, both online and locally installed, to perform assessments of the energy industry, infrastructure, and market trends. The Velocity Suite service is also required for the successful function and upkeep of additional tools licensed and developed by NETL as they rely on data from this service to operate. The vendor provides a data quality control and accuracy service not provided by other suppliers of similar software. No other vendors have been found to provide the same data development and quality control services that are consistent with the Velocity Suite data that NETL uses with a high level of confidence. Procurement of the agreement is needed for continued use in energy analyses.

Hitachi Energy Velocity Suite is a critical component of NETL analysis work. NETL has developed significant tool sets and models with designs based upon the Hitachi Energy Velocity Suite data framework to support emergency response and infrastructure analysis. These established tools and models support the Office of Electricity Delivery and Energy Reliability, the Office of Fossil Energy, the Office of Cybersecurity, Energy Security, and Emergency Response, and the West Virginia Department of Military Affairs and Public Safety. Existing tools and systems currently owned and/or developed by NETL are critically dependent on the availability of the unique architecture of the Hitachi Energy Velocity Suite data framework. NETL analysts and researchers use the products and data daily to support the mission of these organizations. Additionally, the Hitachi Energy Velocity Suite has been established on an NETL server and is now accessible to numerous analysts supporting the mission of NETL across multiple program areas. There is no known replacement that is a one-to-one match in which the government could exchange the current data architecture with another vendor's product. Therefore, due to the integrated nature of the product and the hours of redesign required to replace the Hitachi Energy Velocity Suite with another vendor's product, it is in the Government’s best interest and would provide the best value to the government to procure the agreement with Hitachi Energy for the Velocity Suite of products.

This is considered a sole source to Hitachi Energy because, to the best of the NETL’s knowledge, based on market research conducted Hitachi Energy is the only known source that can provide this type of product. No known potential alternate sources exist which could exactly satisfy NETL's requirement.

This notice of intent is not a request for quote/proposal. Any interested party that believes it is capable of meeting the NETL requirement described herein may identify themselves and must provide evidence of their capability to fulfill the requirement being requested by 4:30 PM EDT on August 30, 2024. Responses must be submitted in writing to the Contracting Specialist, Stefanie Page, via email at stefanie.page@netl.doe.gov no later than the time and date noted above. Telephone responses and requests will not be received.

A determination by the Government not to compete this requirement based on responses to this notice is solely within the discretion of the Government. Information received will be considered solely for the purpose of determining whether to conduct a competitive procurement.