Opportunity: Request for Information

PURPOSE OF THIS REQUEST FOR INFORMATION (RFI) This notice constitutes a Request for Information (RFI) as contemplated by FAR 10.002. INTRODUCTION: The Department of Energy (DOE) is conducting market research to determine industry interest in competing for award of a management and operating (M&O) contract for the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL). NREL is a DOE Federally Funded Research and Development Center (FFRDC) and is the nation’s primary laboratory dedicated to renewable energy and energy efficiency research, development, and deployment (RD&D). NREL’s mission is to develop renewable energy and energy efficiency technologies and practices, advance related science and engineering, and transfer knowledge and technologies to the private sector where commercialization can occur to address the nation's energy and environmental goals. NREL is presently operated under M&O contract DE-AC36-08GO28308, which will expire September 30, 2018. The complete NREL M&O contract (including the Statement of Work) can be found at: http://www.energy.gov/eere/golden-field-office-reading-room DOE is considering whether to conduct a competitive acquisition for a new NREL M&O contract, and industry input is of significant interest to DOE as the acquisition strategy is developed. A new M&O contract of up to ten years and three months is contemplated (a three-month transition period, with a five-year base term, plus option(s) for up to five additional years). The applicable North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) code for this acquisition is 541712. SPECIFIC AREAS OF INTEREST: DOE is seeking input from interested organizations concerning their capability to manage and operate NREL, and the likelihood they would submit an offer in response to a solicitation for a follow-on M&O contract. DOE also requests industry input on any physical, financial, legal, or technological barriers to full and open competition or other risks DOE should consider in planning for a possible competition. Interested organizations are further invited to provide suggestions for improvement to the current contract and to the solicitation process. DOE is interested in all aspects of such suggested improvements, including but not limited to: a. Suggestions for improving the competitive process.. Examples of suggestions include industry days,, methods to improve team/partnership building, and length of time draft solicitations are made available. b. Recommendations for meaningful cost estimating information that should be included in proposals and used in evaluating cost to the Government, given the nature and funding processes for DOE M&O contracts. c. Methods to maximize small business participation. SUBMITTAL INSTRUCTIONS: 1. FAR 52.215-3 Request for Information or Solicitation for Planning Purposes (Oct 1997) (a) The Government does not intend to award a contract on the basis of this solicitation or to otherwise pay for the information solicited except as an allowable cost under other contracts as provided in subsection 31.205-18, Bid and proposal costs, of the Federal Acquisition Regulation. (b) Although "proposal" and "offeror" are used in this Request for Information, your response will be treated as information only. It shall not be used as a proposal. (c) This solicitation is issued for the purpose of: determining whether there are interested organizations capable of managing and operating NREL, and obtaining information to assist the DOE in developing an acquisition strategy regarding NREL’s management and operation. 2. All proprietary material in the submission package shall be clearly identified and will be treated in accordance with FAR 15.207. 3. This RFI is issued solely for information and planning purposes and does not constitute a request for proposal. In accordance with FAR 15.201(e), responses to this notice are not offers and cannot be accepted by the Government to form a binding contract. Respondents are solely responsible for all expenses associated with responding to this RFI and responses to this RFI will not be returned. 4. This is a RFI and not a Request for Proposal (RFP). Therefore the Government makes no guarantees that a RFP for your capability will be issued at a later date. 5. Written responses to this RFI addressing the items above (interest and capability in managing and operating NREL; any physical, financial, legal, or technological barriers to full and open competition or other risks DOE should consider in planning for a possible competition; and suggestions for improvement to the current contract and to the solicitation process) are limited to 20 pages and should be submitted to GOInformationRequest@ee.doe.gov no later than October 9, 2015 at 5:00 p.m. MDT.