Section one: Contracting entity
one.1) Name and addresses
NATIONAL GRID ELECTRICITY SYSTEM OPERATOR LIMITED
1-3 Strand
LONDON
WC2N 5EH
Contact
Trevor Ford
box.GP.UKBuyer@nationalgrid.com
Country
United Kingdom
Region code
UK - United Kingdom
Companies House
11014226
Internet address(es)
Main address
https://www.nationalgrideso.com
one.3) Communication
Additional information can be obtained from the above-mentioned address
one.6) Main activity
Electricity
Section two: Object
two.1) Scope of the procurement
two.1.1) Title
National Grid ESO - Cyber Incident Response and Digital Forensics
Reference number
ESO_RFI_CR_DF
two.1.2) Main CPV code
- 72000000 - IT services: consulting, software development, Internet and support
two.1.3) Type of contract
Services
two.1.4) Short description
National Grid Electricity System Operator (NGESO) moves electricity around systems to keep homes and businesses supplied with the energy they need 24/7. NGESO is a separate legal entity to National Grid Plc.
NGESO has a regulatory commitment to move all IT systems and shared services away from National Grid Plc and therefore NGESO requires a partner to provide on-demand Incident Response and Digital Forensics services aligned with NGESOs own incident management processes.
Currently, National Grid Plc provide these group-level services in-house and will continue to run these services whilst NGESO and National Grid Plc's IT environments are being separated. However, once any assets are transitioned, or when new assets are productionised into the new NGESO environments, the responsibility for Incident Response and Digital Forensics will transfer to NGESO, hence requirement for a 3rd party service to protect the business and systems.
This Non-Call for Completion Request for Information Only.
RFI CONTENT
This is not a formal tender process and is not being undertaken in accordance with the Utilities Contracts Regulations 2016.
Please ensure responses to all questions and any supporting documentation is clearly referenced to the question they are answering.
NGSO will not be shortlisting suppliers based on their submissions and any future sourcing activities will be subject to a new event.
The RFI seeks for suppliers to provide answers to the points and questions detailed in the, II.2.14) Additional information, section of this document.
Please provide your response to each question in a separate Word document clearly stating the question number that your response relates to. If providing any supporting information in separate documents as appropriate, state the question reference number in the file name using the following naming convention:
ESO_CIR&DF_RFI_SUPPLIER NAME
two.1.6) Information about lots
This contract is divided into lots: No
two.2) Description
two.2.2) Additional CPV code(s)
- 72000000 - IT services: consulting, software development, Internet and support
two.2.3) Place of performance
NUTS codes
- UK - United Kingdom
two.2.4) Description of the procurement
NGESO is looking to select a partner to enable the successful separation of the cyber security Incident Response and Digital Forensics services of the NGESO away from National Grid Plc at pace, by providing services as follows:-
• Planning for Incident Response
o Help identifying the effectiveness of the service and the plugging in of missing factors
• On-demand response support in the event of a cyber incident
o 24/7 service availability
• On-demand digital forensics services
o 24/7 service availability
To enable the separation to continue at-pace, it is required for a supplier to be onboarded and services operational by January 2024.
Current State
NGESOs separation from National Grid Plc is marked by two key dates known as Day 1 (mid-2024) and Day 2 (mid-2026). To support and enable the separation programme, NGESO require the selected partner to be onboarded and services noted operational by January 2024.
Day 1 marks the date that the Future System Operator (FSO) is under new ownership and operation under transitional service agreements (TSA) for certain services. Day 2 marks the date the enduring desired operating model for an independent Future System Operator is operational, has new industry roles, and fully exited TSAs with National Grid Plc. Achieving the services within this RFI will ready NGESO for Day 2.
Under the TSAs will be the current Incident Management processes and procedures that dovetail into the NGESO Incident Management processes. Any supplier selected will need to adhere to and work with these current and future procedures.
Current Challenges
FSO is a new entity and is at the beginning of the set-up of its Cyber Security management and operational teams.
FSO and National Grid Plc, via their Transitional Service Agreements (TSAs), must work closely together to maintain security.
FSO's Incident Response, Digital Forensic and procurement processes for their new systems and assets, within their own foundation environment are new, and any 3rd party supplier engagement must align to them.
Time period; Managed Security Services Provider suppliers to be in place no later than January 2024.
At a high level, the future suppliers services should provide tools and capabilities that exceed the incumbents, complementing the platforms noted, technology, people, and processes.
two.2.14) Additional information
RFI Questions
1 Please provide details of your Incident Response and Digital Forensics services, focusing on integration and including planning and response services.
In your response, please include:
• The services offered as part of your Incident Response and Digital Forensics services, including any technical or administrative limitations of the services
• How your service integrates with existing incident management procedures and practices
• Any Service Level Agreements with regards to response times in the event of an incident
2 Please summarise your prior experience in implementing and operating a managed Incident Response and Digital Forensics service.
In your response, please include:
• How long you have been providing the services
• The experience of key individuals involved in the provision and delivery of the services
• How many clients you provide Incident Response and Digital Forensics services to, both in the UK and worldwide
3 Please summarise your experience in working with Critical National Infrastructure assets or other similar environments.
In your response, please include:
• Your approach to personnel security, including whether you employ staff subject to National Security Vetting.
• Whether your delivery would be from the UK or other country
• Your use of offshore resources, assets, or storage and how this affects your service delivery
Please do not include any confidential information in your response
4 Please provide details of any added-value services offered either as part of, or which are complementary to your Incident Response & Digital Forensics services, for example:
• On site investigations, including for non-cyber related incidents
• Production and validation of playbooks, runbooks, Standard Operating Procedures etc.
• Facilitation of incident response exercises, table-tops, walkthroughs etc.
5 Please provide at least one case-study where you have integrated with and implemented and operated a managed Incident Response and Digital Forensics service for a client.
In your response, please include:
• The nature and level of service provided, i.e. whether your service was in addition to internal incident response services or whether you provided the service in its entirety.
• The integration approach and outcome.
• The size and scale of the organisation
• Any key successes from the service, for example incidents successfully managed limiting technical or reputational damage
Please do not include any confidential information in your response. It is not required to identify any current or former clients
6 Please provide high-level details of your pricing structure.
In your response, please include:
• If applicable, the metrics on which your pricing structure is based, i.e: retainer fee, per incident charges, hourly charges, per device charges etc.
• Any minimum contract terms
two.3) Estimated date of publication of contract notice
3 August 2023
Section four. Procedure
four.1) Description
four.1.8) Information about the Government Procurement Agreement (GPA)
The procurement is covered by the Government Procurement Agreement: Yes
four.2) Administrative information
four.2.2) Time limit for receipt of expressions of interest
Date
31 August 2023
Local time
12:00pm
four.2.4) Languages in which tenders or requests to participate may be submitted
English
Section six. Complementary information
six.3) Additional information
The submission deadline for responses to this RFI is by 12:00 BST 31st August 2023.
Submissions must be received by the submission deadline, submissions received after the deadline will not be considered.
Interested parties are asked to submit their Expression of Interest to this RFI by COB on the 10th August 2023.
Submissions should be sent to the Procurement representative for this RFI, as follows:
Category Lead
Contact Details: To: trevor.ford@nationalgrid.com
cc: marie.glassborow@nationalgrid.com
All communications and queries arising from this RFI should be conducted on email through the Procurement Representative detailed above. Please ensure all emails on this RFI include the following in the subject box:
"ESO_RFI_CIR&DF_SUPPLIER NAME"
Any queries must be submitted no later than 12:00 BST 15th August 2023 for this RFI.
National Grid shall not be responsible for or pay for any costs or expenses that may be incurred by the supplier in the preparation and submission of a response to this RFI.