Common use of Cost Reasonableness Clause in Contracts

Cost Reasonableness. The Settling Parties stipulate and agree that the Commission shall keep this docket open for the purpose of determining whether the implementation of the Platform should be built or whether it should be deferred pursuant to RSA 378:51. To facilitate this determination, the Settling Parties stipulate and agree that as soon as is practicable, but in any event no longer than one (1) year from the date of Commission approval of this Agreement (a) the NH Utilities shall utilize an RFP process as contemplated in Appendix D which the Council shall review to select one or more contractors to develop and operate the Platform Hub; (b) the Council shall review on a confidential basis all responses to the RFP; (c) the Council shall make a recommendation to select one or more contractors to develop and operate the Platform Hub; (d) the NH Utilities shall utilize an RFP process to hire a consultant to review for the Council the Utility proposals for Back-End Integration and construction of the Utility-Specific APIs for consideration as the Settling Parties balance the needs of the Platform and the NH Utility Back-End Integration; and (e) the NH Utilities and the Council shall develop for submission to the Commission an estimate of the cost of the Platform development, deployment, and operation including both Back-End Integration and the construction of the Utility-Specific APIs and Platform Hub, and an estimated range of annual operation costs to be incurred by Platform Hub operation. The Settling Parties agree to work collaboratively and in good faith to complete these tasks within a reasonable period and as soon as is practicable. The NH Utilities each provided the Settling Parties with order of magnitude preliminary estimates for price and scope of the Utility-Specific APIs and Back-End Integration, with Eversource also estimating price and scope of the Platform Hub development. The Settling Parties agree that these numbers are preliminary, were based upon the NH Utilities’ estimates for building the Platform in-house, and shall be investigated through the use of a consultant and an RFP process to further inform the Council. For purposes of transparency with the Commission, the Settling Parties agree to submit the price estimate document filed as a confidential exhibit prior to a hearing on the Settlement Agreement. The Settling Parties also agree to provide a copy of the price and scoping document when filing this Settlement Agreement. The Settling Parties further stipulate and agree that subsequent to the Council submissions required in the preceding paragraph, the Commission shall hold an evidentiary hearing to consider the submissions and to make any necessary determinations under RSA 378:51, III. The Settling Parties agree that moving forward on Platform design and development as described in this Settlement Agreement is in the public interest unless the Commission determines otherwise. Finally, the Settling Parties stipulate and agree that any determination under RSA 378:51, III to defer Platform implementation shall not preclude future proposals to develop such a Platform pursuant to RSA 378:51.