FOI/202500449192 · FOI · unclear
Information pertaining to Xi Engineering contracts: FOI release
Information requested
Who were the contracting parties for the work undertaken by Xi Engineering from 2000 to 2022 regarding the Eskdalemuir Seismic Array? What share of Xi Engineering’s fee did each contracting party pay (or take responsibility to pay)? Who was responsible for arranging payment to Xi Engineering? i.e. Were the payments to Xi Engineering made in aggregate (and if so by whom), or did each contracting party pay Xi Engineering directly?
I believe the relevant time frame for these questions to be 1 January 2020 through 31 December 2022. If, however, there was no activity relevant to my questions during this period, pleas answer the questions with reference to any all other time periods for which the questions could be answered.
Response
Who were the contracting parties for the work undertaken by Xi Engineering from 2000 to 2022 regarding the Eskdalemuir Seismic Array?
The Eskdalemuir Working Group (EWG) was initially set up in 2004. The EWG is a group who set out to reach a consensus on the scientific basis for the Eskdalemuir threshold and the predictive model designed to protect the Array, with a view to assessing the impact of wind farm developments in the vicinity of the Array. Its precise membership has changed over the years, but it has comprised UK and Scottish Government departments and relevant industry bodies.
Since the formation of the group in 2004 several technical studies have been commissioned. An outline of the studies completed up to September 2024 are summarised in section 5 of the “Consultation on the Ministry of Defence's approach to safeguarding the Eskdalemuir Seismological Array” published on UK Government – Consultation on the Ministry of Defence's approach to safeguarding the Eskdalemuir Seismological Array - GOV.UK.
The Scottish Government invited Xi Engineering to provide a quote on five occasions in line with the Invitation to Quote documents which included the evaluation and award criteria. The awards are listed in the table below and the notices are published on Home - Public Contracts Scotland
ID TITLE TENDER REF OCID Quotes Received 691361 Award of Wind Turbine Seismic Vibration: Calculations APR446862 ocds-r6ebe6- 0000687457 1 XI Engineering 671569 Award of Eskdalemuir Wind Turbine Seismic Vibration Phase 4 Field Audit Reports OCT431249 ocds-r6ebe6- 0000669460 1 XI Engineering 630318 Award of Eskdalemuir Seismic Array - evaluation of seismic output SEP394398 ocds-r6ebe6- 0000630195 1 XIEngineering 617730 Award of Evaluation and calculation of measured seismic output of an existing Eskdalemuir site MAR383218 ocds-r6ebe6- 0000610792 1 XI Engineering 620136 Award of Eskdalemuir Wind Turbine Seismic Vibration Headroom Assessment APR385335 ocds-r6ebe6- 0000619689 1 XI Engineering
Any other commissions were not directly procured by the Scottish Government. Other organisations such as the Aviation Investment Fund Company Ltd (AIFCL) have commissioned Xi Engineering directly. In some instances, the Scottish Government has contributed funding towards the costs.
What share of Xi Engineering’s fee did each contracting party pay (or take responsibility to pay)?
In 2012 the Scottish Government reconvened the EWG in light of the continuing interest in wind farm development in the Eskdalemuir Consultation Zone and its commitment to deliver a secure, sustainable energy future for Scotland and to re-examine the 2005 Styles predictive model.
Technical studies carried out since 2012 have been funded by the Scottish Government, UK Government, the Aviation Investment Fund Company Limited (AIFCL), and members of the renewables industry. At the time, seismic study work was commissioned which was co-funded by a mix of the parties above to a total sum of £257,744.11 (exclusive of VAT). The Scottish Government’s share of this work was £50,137.00 (exclusive of VAT).
Over the course of 2020 to 2022 the Scottish Government commissioned further technical studies to provide updated wind turbine data that can be used in the noise budget allocation calculation. This work was conducted over a series of five phases, with the total sum of work to date coming to £462,851.60 (exclusive of VAT). Of this amount, the Scottish Government have paid £171,184.94 (exclusive of VAT).
In the annex, I have enclosed a table of payments provided by AIFCL from their records which sets out each package of work from 2012 to 2022.
Who was responsible for arranging payment to Xi Engineering? i.e. Were the payments to Xi Engineering made in aggregate (and if so by whom), or did each contracting party pay Xi Engineering directly?
For the five occasions which resulted in a contract award to Xi Engineering from the Scottish Government, the payment was made directly from the Scottish Government to Xi Engineering.
Any other commissions were not directly procured by the Scottish Government. Other organisations such as the Aviation Investment Fund Company Ltd (AIFCL) have commissioned and made payment to Xi Engineering directly.
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An outline of the studies completed up to September 2024 are summarised in section 5 of the “Consultation on the Ministry of Defence's approach to safeguarding the Eskdalemuir Seismological Array” published on UK Government – Consultation on the Ministry of Defence's approach to safeguarding the Eskdalemuir Seismological Array - GOV.UK.