THE PROCUREMENT NOTICE WAS UPDATED ON 20 JANUARY 2016 IN RESPECT OF THE ASSIGNMENT DESCRIPTION. PLEASE SEE THE TEXT IN BOLD BELOW:
Project Description:
The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (the EBRD or the Bank) wishes to appoint a consultant to provide expert advice and assistance for the assessment and reporting of project-related greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. The EBRD has been assessing and reporting on GHGs since 2003. The extent and profile of this work has increased in recent years, and will continue to increase given the importance of tackling climate change and the Bank’s focus on financing projects that contribute to climate mitigation and adaption.
The EBRD’s Environmental and Social Policy (2014) requires that emissions are quantified for projects that are expected to produce more than 25,000 tonnes of CO2e per year. The Bank is also committed to quantifying GHG emission that are reduced or avoided as a result of investments under its Sustainable Resource Initiative (SRI). Within EBRD, the Environmental and Sustainability Department (ESD) is responsible for implementing the Environmental and Social Policy and for coordinating EBRD’s sustainability reporting, including overall GHG results. The Energy Efficiency and Climate Chance department (E2C2) is responsible for managing the SRI and quantifying GHG savings for relevant projects or components of projects.
Detailed guidance on the Bank’s methodology is available in the EBRD Methodology for Assessment of Greenhouse Gas Emissions (July 2010), which is available on the EBRD website. This guidance note is currently being updated. The Bank publishes aggregate data in its Sustainability Report for projects signed in the previous year.
The EBRD is an active member of the International Finance Institutions’ (IFIs) Technical Working Group on GHG Accounting, which aims to harmonise GHG approaches amongst the member IFIs. EBRD has adopted the Framework for a Harmonized Approach to Greenhouse Gas Accounting and has endorsed the Working Groups approach papers for the renewable energy, energy efficiency and transport sectors.
The EBRD now wishes to engage a consultant (the Consultant) to provide assistance in assessing GHG emissions for EBRD projects (the Assignment).
Assignment Description
The objective of this Assignment is to assist the Bank by:
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Ensuring that any GHG data that EBRD publishes is robust and comprehensive.
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Advising the Bank on current best practice for GHG assessment.
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Providing guidance and training for EBRD staff as required.
The selected Consultant is expected to provide the following services:
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Carrying out regular screening of project proposals and advising the EBRD’s Environmental and Sustainability Department (ESD) on which projects require GHG assessments, in line with the Bank’s policy and guidelines.
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Assisting EBRD environmental specialists with defining the scope of GHG assessments and preparing Terms of Reference for environmental due diligence consultants.
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Acting as a source of expert technical advice on GHG related issues
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Compiling and verifying the results GHG assessments at the project and portfolio level. The consultant will not be expected to undertake detailed auditing of results.
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Providing written guidance and training for ESD staff on issues related to climate change and greenhouse gases.
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Assisting ESD in the preparation of internal and external reports on the Bank’s GHG approach, methodology and overall performance, in particular for the EBRD’s annual Sustainability Report.
Almost all of the Consultant's work is expected to be carried out at the EBRD's office in London, to enable the Consultant to access documents and provide advice directly to EBRD staff. There may be some limited scope for the Consultant to work from their home office.
The Consultant is expected to typically spend two days per month on project screening and appraisal over the course of each year. Additional time will be required for end-of-year compilation, verification and reporting, and for training and capacity development. In total it is expected that the Consultant will spend 35-40 days per year on the Assignment.
Status of Selection Process: Interested individual experts or firms interested to nominate an expert are hereby invited to submit expressions of interest.
Assignment Start Date and Duration: The Assignment is expected to start in February 2016 and has an estimated overall duration of 24 months, with the possibility to extend further.
Cost Estimate for the Assignment: GBP 70,000.00 (exclusive of VAT). Subject to availability of funding, the performance of the selected Consultant and the specific needs of the Bank the Assignment may be extended beyond the current scope.
The Consultant must determine whether any VAT would be chargeable on the services and the basis for that determination, without taking into consideration the special status of the Bank as an IFI and state this to the Bank in their response to the Invitation for Expressions of Interest. To the extent that a Consultant incurs input VAT on goods and services purchased in connection with the provision of services (e.g. VAT on airline ticket) which is not otherwise recoverable by the consultant from the local tax authority, the gross cost to the consultant of such expenses shall be treated as a reimbursable expense.
Funding Source: It is expected that the Assignment will be funded by the EBRD. Please note selection and contracting will be subject to the availability of funding.
Eligibility: There are no eligibility restrictions. Individuals or consulting firms interested in nominating an expert may apply.
Consultant Profile: Individual services are required. The Consultant shall be an expert (individual expert or an expert nominated by a firm, see note 2), preferably with the following professional experience and knowledge:
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Detailed understanding of GHG assessment methodologies
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Experience of carrying out or reviewing emissions calculations across a wide range of sectors
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Up-to-date knowledge of current international initiatives related to climate change and GHG reduction
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Excellent communication skills
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Ability to provide high quality reports and briefings for internal and external stakeholders
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Experience of working with IFIs and in EBRD’s countries of operation would be an advantage.
Submission Requirements:
In order to determine the capability and experience of experts seeking to be selected for this Assignment, the information submitted should include the following:
1. Cover letter (max. 4 pages) summarising why the expert believes that they satisfy the requirements as defined in the above section Consultant Profile;
2. CV (not exceeding 6 pages) which should include full descriptions of responsibilities carried out, not just a job title, including information on contracting entity/client, project location/country, duration (mm/yy to mm/yy), expert months provided (if different from duration) , main activities, objectives.
3. Completed Consultant Declaration Form and Contact Sheet, the template for which is available from the following web-link:
http://www.ebrd.com/pages/workingwithus/procurement/notices/csu/contact_sheet.doc.
Expressions of Interest should be submitted in English electronically through e-Selection, to reach the Bank not later than the closing date. The complete expression of interest (including cover letter, CV, declaration and contact sheet etc.) shall be one file (pdf) to be uploaded to eSelection. The EBRD reserves the right to reject applications of experts submitting more than one file. Only if the permissible file size (4 MB) is exceeded, the Consultant may split the expression of interest into further files.
Bank Contact Person:
Georgia Vasiliadis (Ms)
Principal Advisor
Technical Co-operation
European Bank for Reconstruction and Development
Tel: + 44 20 7338 7750
e-mail: vasiliag@ebrd.com (submissions should be sent through eSelection and NOT to this email address)
Notes:
1. Based on responses to this notification, up to six experts following evaluation of the expressions of interest based on shortlist criteria (a), (b) and (c) will be invited to an interview with EBRD staff to discuss their experience and approach to the assignment. Experts will not be asked to submit a proposal. The highest-ranked expert following interview will be selected from a shortlist and be invited to negotiate the contract, subject to availability of funding. Experts not invited to interview will not be considered further.
2. Consulting firms (proposing individuals) and individuals may apply. Consulting Firms nominating an individual expert shall submit one complete individual application for each expert via eSelection. Single applications for a number of experts containing various CVs may result in rejection of such application and all concerned experts.
3. The shortlist criteria are:
(a) Detailed understanding of GHG assessment methodologies (15%)
(b) Experience of carrying out or reviewing emissions calculations across a wide range of sectors (50%)
(c) Up-to-date knowledge of current international initiatives related to climate change and GHG reduction (15%);
(d) Results of the interview with EBRD staff (20%)
