Attachment 2- Sole Source Justification for NITS on OASIS.pdf

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JUSTIFICATION FOR

OTHER THAN FULL & OPEN COMPETITION

PROJECT NAME:

NITS on OASIS via webFERC

The following Justification for Other than Full & Open Competition (JOFOC) is prepared in accordance with FAR Subpart 6.302.

1. ORGANIZATION:

Federal Energy Regulatory Commission Office of the Executive Director Acquisitions Services Division 888 1st Street, NE Washington, DC 20426

2. NATURE AND/OR DESCRIPTION OF ACTION BEING APPROVED:

The Office of Enforcement (OE) requests that the Commission contract with to provide NITS on OASIS (NITS) data to supplement (1) eTag, (2) Transmission Service Request (TSR) and Available Transfer Capacity Audit (ATC Audit), and (3) Bonneville Power Administration Transmission's (BPAT) Equivalent Available Transfer Capability (Equivalent ATC) and Equivalent Total Transfer Capability (Equivalent TTC) (collectively known as BPAT Equivalent ATC/TTC) data that the Commission already receives from under the webFERC solution. The NITS data will be used with other webFERC data to support the Commission's efforts to detect market manipulation and anti-competitive behavior, monitor the efficiency of markets, and better inform Commission policies and decision-making.

Currently, NITS data is available only in disparate OASIS sites. The usability of each data source is limited because it is stored separately and inconsistently across transmission providers. In order to perform comprehensive and robust analysis, staff requires data from many transmission providers over periods of one or more years. Purchasing the complete database from will save significant staff time downloading, standardizing, and aggregating the data in preparation for analysis.

3. DESCRIPTION OF REQUIREMENT & VALUE:

DESCRIPTION: Since March 2013, has provided the Commission access to eTag-related data products via a hosted solution called webFERC. The scope of work for this procurement includes but is not limited to labor, materials, hardware, software, administration, and management necessary to operate, support, maintain and improve/upgrade one additional data package in webFERC solution, NITS.

ANTICIPATED DOLLAR VALUE:

4. STATUTORY AUTHORITY:

The statutory authority permitting other than full and open competition is 41 U.S.C. 253(c)(2) in accordance with: (mark only one authority)

[ ] FAR 6.302-1, only one responsible source and no other supplies and services will satisfy Agency Requirements;

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[ ] FAR 6.302-2, Unusual and compelling urgency;

[ ] Other, define below:

5. DEMONSTRATE PROPOSED CONTRACTOR’S UNIQUE QUALIFICATIONS:

The Open Access Same-Time Information System (OASIS), is an Internet-based system for obtaining services related to electric power transmission in North America. It is the primary means by which high-voltage transmission lines are reserved for moving wholesale quantities of electricity. The OASIS concept was originally conceived with the Energy Policy Act of 1992, and formalized in 1996 through Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) Orders 888 and 889. OASIS “nodes” are secure, web-based interfaces to each transmission system’s market offerings and transmission availability announcements.

Each OASIS node is to be the single point of information dissemination to the market as well as the customer portal for NITS, and TSR and ATC Audit data. is the largest commercial provider of OASIS nodes, servicing over 140 Transmission Providers, which represents 85% of the market. Based on staff research, no other vendor in the market provides this level of NITS data coverage.

NITS data will often be used in conjunction with eTag data and other data, which the Commission currently accesses via webFERC solution. In March 2013, via open competition, the Commission selected to provide eTag data to the Commission under the access requirements formulated in Order No. 771. Since then, Commission staff has invested significant resources developing processes using webFERC. The proposed NITS solution leverages off this investment. These automated processes have taken many years to develop and the use of another vendor at this point would result in significant cost to Program Offices. Integration with the existing system also provides greater ease of use when combining NITS data with the existing eTag, ATC, and TSR data. Furthermore, Commission staff has trust, a high degree of satisfaction, and a thorough understanding of complicated eTag data and data structures in using webFERC solution.

7. DETERMINATION OF FAIR & REASONABLE PRICING:

eTag data services were previously acquired through open competition. The service they have provided met or exceeded previous contract specifications. Staff determined fair and reasonable value by reviewing previous contract pricing. The prior contract included setup costs which would be incurred again by using new vendors with a new system. Further, staff has attempted over the previous several years to replicate the services that would be provided under this offering and determined developing such a process from scratch would be cost prohibitive.

8. DESCRIPTION OF MARKET RESEARCH CONDUCTED & RESULTS:

Staff review during the initial contracting period for eTag data determined that no other options were commercially available. Similarly, is the only commercial vendor that collects Oasis, including NITS on OASIS, data for nearly all transmission providers and balancing area authorities. As such, it is unlikely any other vendor could provide comparable commercial offering.

9. ANY OTHER FACTORS SUPPORTING THE USE OF OTHER THAN FULL AND OPEN COMPETITION:

In the development of the Commission’s market monitoring and surveillance programs, Staff has built screening routines around current eTag, ATC, TSR, and BPA Equivalent ATC/TTC data offerings. OE staff would like to utilize NITS data offering in conjunction with this data already provided by

Even if NITS data were available from an alternative vendor, changing the source would likely require significant effort to reprogram those routines. Additionally, NITS data provided by will likely be easier to join to other data offered by in the webFERC product as opposed to another commercial vendor.