Updated JA Energy Intelligence 2026_Redacted.pdf

DEFENSE LOGISTICS AGENCY

HEADQUARTERS

8725 JOHN J. KINGMAN ROAD

FORT BELVOIR, VIRGINIA 22060-6221

Justification for Other than Full and Open Competition

1. Summary/Introduction:

The Defense Contracting Services Office (DCSO) is the contracting activity. The action is for the purchase of a subscription renewal from Energy Intelligence Group, Inc. (Energy Intelligence or "EI") for proprietary global energy data, geopolitical risk monitoring, and strategic market analysis services. This data allows agency analysts to fulfill the division's core mission:

conducting macroeconomic energy market intelligence and utilizing EI's market news, data, and analysis to provide comprehensive, technically accurate responses to Requests for Information (RFIs) from agency leadership.

This annual subscription covers a 12-month period of performance from September 1, 2026, to August 31, 2027 with 4 one-year options extending out to August 31, 2031. The requirement meets the statutory requirements for a Sole Source justification pursuant to FAR 6.103-1, as the EI platform is uniquely imperative to the division's core mission. Energy Intelligence is the sole producer and exclusive distributor of its proprietary research, analytical platforms, and consolidated legacy databases. Therefore, it is the sole responsible source for the data required, and no other company can fulfill the requirement pursuant to 10 U.S.C. 3204(a)(1).

Value of the Proposed Action:

Period of Performance: September 1, 2026 – August 31, 2031

2. Nature and/or description of the action being approved:

The action being approved will be a contract with Energy Intelligence to provide dedicated seat license access to its web-based platform, real-time reporting feeds, and digital archives. These resources are utilized directly by agency personnel to conduct macroeconomic energy market intelligence and support strategic decision-making. This action will use Fiscal Year 2026 (FY26) funding.

3. Description of supplies or services required to meet the agency’s need (including estimated value):

Energy Intelligence provides specialized, high-impact analytical data services tracking global crude oil and refined products, infrastructure vulnerabilities, and international petroleum policy.

This requirement is exclusively for access to a targeted suite of proprietary intelligence products focused on oil and oil products that have been consolidated under EI's newly rebranded, single-source platform:

Justification for Other Than Full and Open Competition (Cont’d) Energy Intelligence Group, Inc.

The Oil Markets Service (comprising the unified integration of Energy Intelligence News/Oil Daily, Petroleum Intelligence Weekly (PIW), Jet Fuel Intelligence, and Oil Market Intelligence).

The EI platform is uniquely imperative to DLA Energy’s Office of Market Intelligence’s (BPM) core mission. DLA Energy BPM relies on EI's proprietary market news, data, and specialized analysis to generate comprehensive responses to high-priority RFIs from leadership. Energy Intelligence relies on its exclusive, proprietary network of global energy insiders, institutional trust with sovereign entities, and independent journalistic verification to source, compile, and publish its specialized market reporting.

The value of this requirement is This is a follow-on action to maintain analytical continuity. The agency has determined that the services provided are entirely commercial in nature.

4. Identification of the statutory authority permitting other than full and open competition:

The statutory authority permitting other than full and open competition is 10 U.S.C. 3204(a)(1), as implemented by FAR Part 6.103-1(b):

"Agencies may contract without providing for full and open competition when the supplies or services required by the agency are available from only one responsible source and no other type of supplies or services will satisfy agency requirements. For DoD, NASA, and the Coast Guard, this authority extends to situations where only a limited number of responsible sources can satisfy agency requirements."

Energy Intelligence is the only source able to provide the unique data services, copyrighted reporting, and strategic analytical frameworks required by agency personnel. The specialized publications within the Oil Markets Service are generated natively by Energy Intelligence analysts and are not licensed out to third-party information brokers or news aggregators for corporate/government subscription resale. Therefore, in accordance with 10 U.S.C. 3204(a)(1), Energy Intelligence is the only source that can meet this specific agency requirement.

5. Demonstration that the proposed contractor’s unique qualifications or the nature of the acquisition requires use of the authority cited:

Energy Intelligence provides highly specialized analytical services that are uniquely imperative to DLA Energy BPM’s core mission. Based on the platform's proprietary capabilities, soliciting this requirement competitively would result in an immediate capability gap. No other vendor provides this specific strategic, jet-fuel specific, and National Oil Company (NOC)-level oil data suite, driven by the following unique characteristics:

Strategic Intelligence vs. Price Reporting: Primary industry alternatives, such as S&P Global (Platts) and Argus Media, function strictly as Price Reporting Agencies (PRAs) focused on short-term spot-price discovery. Conversely, EI does not focus on daily transactional pricing; instead, they provide proprietary strategic intelligence on the geopolitical contexts, macroeconomic shifts, and state corporate strategies that drive those prices. No other commercial platform offers this executive-level "why" analysis for global petroleum.

Official OPEC "Secondary Source" Status: Global oil supply and baseline pricing are heavily dictated by OPEC+ production quotas. Because member nations can misreport extraction data, OPEC officially relies on an elite, selective group of independent "Secondary Sources" to verify actual global output. EI holds this official designation.

Access to EI's data via the Oil Markets Service is mandatory for the division to track the exact same verified supply metrics used by global policymakers and trading algorithms.

Exclusive National Oil Company (NOC) Access: Mainstream financial media (e.g., Bloomberg, Reuters) predominantly tracks Western, publicly traded legacy majors (such as ExxonMobil or Chevron). However, over 70% of global petroleum reserves are controlled by state-owned NOCs (such as Saudi Aramco, ADNOC, and QatarEnergy).

Due to decades of institutional trust, global energy ministers and sovereign wealth funds routinely utilize EI as their primary communication channel to signal long-term strategic shifts in crude supply.

Specialized, Non-Consumer Analysis: Unlike public news wires designed for general financial markets, EI’s platform features highly specialized, peer-level analysis tailored to institutional energy insiders, specifically via tools like Petroleum Intelligence Weekly and Jet Fuel Intelligence. This filtering avoids speculative retail market noise and provides the technically accurate qualitative data and insider reporting required for federal defense petroleum planning and high-level leadership briefs.

6. Description of the efforts made to ensure that offers are/were solicited from as many potential sources as is/was practicable:

DLA Energy continuously monitors industry developments, publications, and commercial market intelligence offerings to identify potential alternatives to the Energy Intelligence platform. To date, this ongoing technical surveillance has confirmed that no other commercial platform provides the highly specialized strategic analysis, verified OPEC secondary-source metrics, and direct National Oil Company (NOC) insights required for leadership RFIs. There are no known sources for comparable energy industry news and analysis capable of meeting this requirement.

7. Determination by the contracting officer that the anticipated cost to the Government will be fair and reasonable:

The contracting officer finds that the proposed price is fair and reasonable using the techniques in FAR 15.404-1. Pursuant to FAR 15.404-1(b)(2), the contracting officer may make a “[c]omparison of proposed prices to historical prices paid, whether by the Government or other than the Government, for the same or similar items. The contracting officer may also, pursuant to FAR 15.404-1(b)(4), make a “[c]omparison with competitive price lists, published market prices of commodities, similar indexes, and discount or rebate arrangements.” EI provided the list price

Not applicable

10. A listing of the sources, if any, that expressed, in writing, an interest in the acquisition (FAR 6.104-1(a)(10)):

To date, no other sources have expressed a written interest in this specific acquisition.

11. Actions that may be taken to remove or overcome barriers to competition before any subsequent acquisition for the supplies or services are required (FAR 6.104-1(a)(11)):

For the reasons set forth in Section 5, the agency has no plans at this time to compete future iterations of this contract, as the requirement relies on exclusively copyrighted intellectual property and distinct geopolitical access frameworks within the global oil sector. The agency's technical experts will continue to perform annual market research to survey the market for emerging petroleum security publications. If another potential vendor demonstrates equivalent global analytical depth, independent forecasting capabilities, and institutional OPEC secondary source status, the agency will assess whether future competition is practical.

CERTIFICATIONS AND APPROVAL

TECHNICAL/REQUIREMENTS CERTIFICATION

I certify that the facts and representations under my cognizance which are included in this Justification and its supporting acquisition planning documents, except as noted herein are complete and accurate to the best of my knowledge and belief.

Technical/Requirements Cognizance:

CONTRACTING OFFICER CERTIFICATION

I certify that this Justification is accurate and complete to the best of my knowledge and belief.