Request for Information (RFI) for for Storage of Northeast Home Heating Oil Reserve Supply Reserve

Background

The Department of Energy (Department) established the Northeast Home Heating Oil Reserve (NEHHOR) in 2000, to provide an emergency stock of Heating Oil in the event of a winter supply shortage.  The DOE, Office of Fossil Energy – Strategic Petroleum Reserve is soliciting offers on behalf of DOE for the storage and potential distribution of its 1,000,000 barrel Northeast Home Heating Oil Reserve (NEHHOR) – Ultra Low Sulfur Diesel (ULSD).  The current NEHHOR storage contracts expire on March 31, 2024.

The DOE is issuing a Request  For Informaiton (RFI) for the soliciting for the storage in the following locations: 300,000 barrels in the coastal areas of New York Harbor, 400,000 barrels in the New England harbor area, and 300,000 barrels in the coastal areas of Connecticut and Rhode Island.

The NEHHOR is a one million barrel supply of ultra low sulfur distillate (diesel) that provides protection for homes and businesses in the northeastern United States should a disruption in supplies occur. Of all the households in the United States that use heating oil to heat their homes, the majority reside in the Northeast region of the country - making this area especially vulnerable to fuel oil disruptions. The Northeast Home Heating Oil Reserve, a one million barrel supply of ultra low sulfur distillate (diesel), provides protection for homes and businesses in the northeastern United States should a disruption in supplies occur.it

The Department provides operational oversight of the NEHHOR, to include contract management, independent product quality and quantity assurance certifications, annual audits, establishment of sales procedures and a sales platform, and coordination with each of the NEHHOR storage contractors to ensure availability and accessibility of the NEHHOR.

The NEHHOR storage contractors are responsible for maintaining both the quantity and quality of the refined product, to include any seasonal changeover of NEHHOR that is required to comply with requirements under the Clean Air Act. Additionally, the NEHHOR storage contractors are obligated to ensure that their specific facility is available in the event that a release from the NEHHOR is required, to include meeting the Department’s release requirements in the aftermath of an event that disrupts commercial electric power.  The NEHHOR storage contractors are required to provide detailed information on inventories, activities, and distribution capabilities at the request of the Department if conditions exist for a potential release.

With the existing NEHHOR storage contracts expiring at the end of March 2024, the Department is requesting information or ideas regarding the emergency stock of Heating Oil the most of 1 million barrels million barrel supply of ultra low sulfur distillate (diesel) in the in the coastal areas of Connecticut and Rhode Island. The Department is interested in any other ideas that allow the Government to improve the capabilities of the product reserve system that continues to meet all the legal requirements contained in the Energy Policy and Conservation Act (42 U.S.C. 6201 et seq.) while lowering the total cost of storing.  Please provide your ideas and answers to the questions above to Patrick Koehler, Contracting Officer Representative for the NEHHOR for the Office of Petroleum Reserves, at ProductReserve@hq.doe.gov no later than 15 calendar days from the release of this RFI.