Background
Cork City is committed to building workforce capacity, systems, tools and processes that will enable them to deliver key components of the Cork City Climate Contract (CCC). This work is aligned with the city’s People Strategy and Learning and Development Framework.
During the CCC development process in 2024, the city initially explored using the Economic Model developed by the Technical University of Madrid (UPM) for their Investment Plan. However, challenges in accessing localised data and adapting national indicators led the city to engage external support from Arup. Despite this, the city is familiar with the model and its indicators.
The Economic Model has since evolved into an online tool called NetZero Planner, built and maintained by Kausal, a specialist subcontractor, which is designed to help cities in tracking progress against their emissions reduction targets. Cork City has expressed strong interest in adopting the NetZero Planner to monitor their CCC implementation and inform strategic decision-making.
In order to start integrating the tool to their day-to-day practices, Cork City requiers support to:
- Identify and access relevant local and national data sources.
- Collect and adapt data to match the NetZero Planner indicators (including scaling and normalisation), drawing on existing related work in the city including the models developed by Arup.
- Tailor the NetZero Planner to Cork’s specific use cases, including the integration of calculation modules to estimate and monetise indirect impact for different policy measures – notably in the transport, and built environment sectors.
- Integrate the tool into municipal decision-making and daily practice through capability building.
The above support will be delivered through a three-phased approach:
- Phase 01: Data Collection and Adaptation
Identifying, mapping, collecting and adapting relevant national and local data sources for compatibility with NetZero Planner indicators; and developing estimations of the monetary indirect impacts (co-benefits) of climate policies
- Phase 02: Tool Customisation
Adapting the NetZero Planner model and metrics to the data availability and use cases in Cork, where possible. In case it is not possible to adapt in the short-term the NetZero Planner model to the full spectrum of Cork’s use cases, actionable recommendations for future developments of the model will be elaborated.
- Phase 03: Capability Building and Mainstreaming
Strengthen the city’s ability to use the NetZero Planner as a decision-making aid, for evaluating different policy scenarios, and technological options based on their comparative impact, while also tracking progress toward GHG emissions reduction targets established in the CCC. Embed NetZero Planner-based monitoring into routine practice through a structured implementation and change management roadmap
Please note: The scope of this RfP defines contributions to each of these three integrated phases, and NOT the support and delivery of all three phases in their entirety. This contributory approach is elaborated below in the Scope section. . Phases 02 and 03 see the supplier selected through this RfP work with a combination of NetZeroCities consortium partners (primarily Phase 03, capability building) and Kausal who will adapt the NetZero Planner according to outcomes, insights and recommendations from Phase 01. Please note that strong coordination across all phases is expected, especially between phase 01 and 02.
About the request
The City Expert Support Facility (CESF), through NetZeroCities / Climate-KIC, are requesting quotation for expertise to support the identification, mapping, collecting and adaptation of local and national data sources for use in the development of a customised NetZero Planner. The support will include recommendations of alternative indicators where gaps in data sources are identified, alignment with CCC implementation tracking, and the development of indirect impact estimations from selected policies. In addition to this, the selected supplier will work with a technical expert on the design and adaptation of the NetZero Planner (Phase 02: Tool customisation) and contribute inputs, recommendations to, and some delivery of, Phase 03: Capability Building and Mainstreaming.
Below is a more detailed scope, with key tasks, that the selected supplier will contribute to each Phase.
Key Tasks: Phase 01: Data Collection and Adaptation
Objective: Establish a FAIR-aligned (findable, accessible, interoperable, and reusable) quality-assured data pipeline that maps directly to Cork’s Climate City Contract indicators and Investment Plan data and the NetZeroPlanner methodological framework. This will support Cork to monitor CCC implementation progress and iterate their CCC,
Scope of Work:
- Define an Indicator Taxonomy
Develop a central classification of all climate-related indicators—covering Cork’s CCC implementation tracking requirements, NetZeroPlanner requirements and emerging policy needs—fully aligned with FAIR principles. - Compile a Detailed Data Inventory
Map every indicator to potential local, national and international sources, recording origin, format, update cadence, licensing terms and custodial ownership. - Recommend Supplementary Metrics
Propose alternative or proxy indicators where primary data are unavailable, plus potential new indicators to capture gaps such as Cork-specific mitigation strategies and sectors not currently covered by NetZeroPlanner – notably nature restoration and sustainable urban drainage. - Build & Validate a Data Library
Design and deliver a centralised repository (format to be agreed at kick-off) containing all validated datapoints, each tagged with provenance and a confidence score indicating reliability. - Document Data-Processing Protocols
Publish standard operating procedures for data cleaning, transformation, scaling and normalisation to ensure consistency and reproducibility. - Establish Data-Governance Framework
Define metadata standards, data-ownership roles, access controls, GDPR safeguards and overall policies to maintain data quality, security and transparency. - Automate Update Pipelines
Create and deploy where possible ETL workflows that refresh the data library on agreed upon cycles. Deliver a user-friendly toolkit or manual that explains how to run and monitor these pipelines. - Quantify Co-Benefits
Model and estimate the financial value of indirect (co-benefit) impacts from transport and built-environment policies, thereby demonstrating the broader social and economic returns of Cork’s climate actions.
This phase will conclude with a detailed methodology report to Cork City Council – see Deliverable 1 below.
Key Tasks: Phase 02: Tool Customisation
Objective: Enable Kausal to adapt NetZeroPlanner and build a bespoke version based on Cork’s workflows, data structures, and policy scenarios.
Scope of Work:
The selected supplier will provide Deliverable 2 to the NetZeroCities Consortium, to enable custom build of the tool by Kausal. Deliverable 2 will include the following:
- Indicator Taxonomy Document
- Comprehensive Data Inventory
- Supplementary Metrics Proposal
- Validated Data Library (prototype or live instance)
- Data-Processing Procedures Manual
- Data-Governance Framework Specification
- Automated ETL Toolkit & User Guide
- Co-Benefits Valuation Report
We request you to include an outline proposal for this deliverable as part of your tender submission. As part of the kick-off process, the NetZeroCities consortium will then agree a detailed specification and handover process for the deliverable with the selected supplier and with Kausal, which will also establish the joint working process between both entities, including
- Requirements Specification: User stories, data-model extensions, policy module definitions (e.g. transport-modal shifts, building retrofit scenarios).
- Integration Architecture:
APIs or data-pipelines between municipal systems (e.g. GIS, asset registers) and NetZero Planner. - Custom Modules & Dashboards:
Implementation of custom modules following specified requirements. - Test Plan & User Acceptance Testing:
Defined test cases, acceptance criteria, bug-tracking process.
Key Tasks: Phase 03: Capability Building and Mainstreaming
Objective: Apply learnings from Phase 1 to support the NetZeroCities consortium to deliver capability building for a wider cohort of cities, including cities across Ireland and other cities who have comparable contexts.
Scope of Work:
- Through the course of Phase 1, identify and record key capability building challenges and opportunities particularly related to:
- using the Customised Tool as a decision-making aid and for evaluating different policy scenarios/ technological options based on their comparative impact,
- tracking progress toward GHG emissions reduction targets established in the CCC; and
- embedding Tool-based monitoring into routine practice.
This should recommendations on challenges and opportunities related to mainstreaming the use of a/the Customised Tool, and will be used to inform Phase 03 Capability building roadmap and delivery programme to support implementation.
- In the context of identifying and mapping national data sources (and especially the gaps thereof), high-level identification of the potential for replication and mobilisation of the outcomes and outputs of this initiative to other cities in Ireland, and opportunities to engage these cities in downstream capability building activities.
These two tasks contribute to Deliverable 3: Capability building scoping and replication opportunities.
The proposal should consider the following:
- To support the development of nuanced and cohorent proposals, prospective bidders are requested to contact Climate KIC to register their interest and be provided with limited access to the existing NetZero Planner (and any other relevant documentation). Access will be time limited and expire upon the deadline of the RfP.
- Measuring the direct emissions impact of policy measures is critical to managing the transition. Whereas Ireland has clear standards and processes for appraisal of infrastructure projects including for the changes in greenhouse gas emissions generated by a project, there is little or no guidance and applied methodology at local authority level for ecosystem and biodiversity projects.
- While Cork City has made sectoral cost estimates for the transition in several key sectors, they have not been able to quantify in absolute or financial terms the co-benefit or indirect impact of policy measures. This is important to make the case for decarbonisation in terms that their citizens care about – their health, housing, economic security and opportunity. Having robust methods and cability to estimate indirect benefits of climate action helps to build support for change.
- Communicating progress on transition through the transparent sharing of data is critical to convey a sense of positive momentum. It is also critical to enable decision-makers to determine where effort and investment is most needed. Cork City has not yet identified the metrics needed to best manage the transition, the information flows needed to maintain updated information, or a dashboard to communicate the evolving situation concisely.
- Considering the limited capacity of the Climate Action Unit within the municipality, it is essential that any tracking tool is widely adopted and integrated across different departments within the city to streamline reporting efforts and ensure effective implementation.
- Alignment and coordination with support delivery organisations in Phases 02 and 03.
- While exact needs for support and contribution to the Phase 03 capability building activities cannot be fully scoped at this time, provision for this should be priced into the proposal, and bidders should ensure to include day rates per relevant role/tasks related to capability building activities (i.e. preparation/design and delivery rates) to support any future contract iteration to reflect (agreed) delivery efforts in Phase 03.
The requested support will help Cork City to define a strategic approach to each of the above priority areas, for consideration and acceptance of senior management, and secure capabilities, skills and knowledge within the city administration for the future.
It is anticipated the work will begin in Q2 2025 and conclude in early/mid Q4 2025.
Please find all further relevant information including key tasks, foreseen timeline, full detailed scope, out of scope, milestones, and all related information below.
Timeline and additional information
Interested parties are invited to submit their proposals by 30 June 2025 to Luisa Carretti / Mateusz Hoffman [CESF@netzerocities.eu]. Proposals should include and address all specific requirements related to the request which can be found below.
