Issue - meetings

Cabinet Member: Business & Customer Services

Forward Plan Ref: 2014/143

Contact:         Lawrence Bunn, Principal Strategic Procurement Manager

Tel: 07973 701827

Victoria Fletcher, Environment & Resource Efficiency Manager

Tel: (01865) 815420

Report by Director for Environment & Economy (CA11).

The paper sets out an approach to the procurement of electricity and gas for the period 2016-2020 for all of the Council's buildings, street lighting and other illuminated street furniture. The Council currently procures its energy from contracts established by LASER, a professional buying organisation, which tenders, awards and manages energy contracts on behalf of 160 local authorities and other organisations. The current energy contracts expire in 2016.

LASER has just completed a formal tender process in compliance with EU procurement rules resulting in the award of new energy contracts for the period 2016-2020.

The Council needs to decide now whether to continue to procure its energy via LASER from the new contracts commencing in 2016. This decision is needed now because LASER forward buys energy up to two years in advance in order to secure optimum energy prices.

The Cabinet is RECOMMENDED to:

(a)     approve the proposal to using the energy framework contracts established by LASER for the period 2016-20.

(b)     delegate to the Deputy Director – Commercial the authority to decide on the preferred in-contract purchasing option.

Recommendations agreed.

Cabinet considered a paper that set out an approach to the procurement of electricity and gas for the period 2016-2020 for all of the Council's buildings, street lighting and other illuminated street furniture.

Councillor Liz Brighouse, Opposition Leader queried whether it would be possible to get some idea of where the energy is generated from. Cabinet was advised that it was not about electricity from a specific company. A proportion of the energy generated would be renewable. There was an option to purchase a greater proportion of renewables and the cost of that was being investigated.

During discussion Councillor Heathcoat referred to a scheme elsewhere to power buses from bio-fuel created from human waste and queried what work was being done in Oxfordshire with partners to promote new ideas. Bev Hindle replied that there were several trials in place and they were working closely with the Universities and bus companies.

RESOLVED:           to:

(a)      approve the proposal to using the energy framework contracts established by LASER for the period 2016-20; and

(b)      delegate to the Deputy Director – Commercial the authority to decide on the preferred in-contract purchasing option.