Financial and Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) Audit Services for Coillte Group

AI-generated analysis of the documents. Check the official notice and any amendments for current submission details.

1. At a glance

2. Scope of Work

Coillte CGA ran this procurement for “Financial and Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) Audit Services for Coillte Group” as an operational contract requiring implementation and sustained service execution. The extracted pack showed qualification-stage material with references to later ITT technical depth; practical activity therefore centred on building, integrating, and operating the specified service stack with compliant reporting and handover obligations where stated. Constituent activities and named work elements in the supplied extracts:

• Title: Financial and Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) Audit Services for Coillte Group
• 1 Public/Product Liability Insurance with the minimum limit of indemnity provided by the Service Provider (or on its behalf) being no less than €6,500 cover which the Service Provider is obli
• 1 Public/Product Liability Insurance with the minimum limit of indemnity provided by the Service Provider (or on its behalf) being no less than €6,500,000 in respect of each and every occurrence
• 2 Employers Liability Insurance (and Personal Accident Cover, where appropriate) with the minimum limit of indemnity provided by the Service Provider (or on its behalf) being no less than €13,000,000 in respect of each and every occurrence
• ty Insurance with the minimum limit of indemnity provided by the Service Provider (or on its behalf) being no less than €6,500
• ty Insurance with the minimum limit of indemnity provided by the Service Provider (or on its behalf) being no less than €6,500,000 in respect of each and every occurrence and unlimited in the period of insuranc
• appropriate) with the minimum limit of indemnity provided by the Service Provider (or on its behalf) being no less than €13,000,000 in respect of each and every occurrence and unlimited in the period of insuranc
• s the later) with the minimum limit of indemnity provided by the Service provider (or on its behalf) being no less than €5,000,000 in respect of each and every occurrence in the aggregate in the period of insur
• Where an authority is being relied upon in respect of the minimum requirements, the authority’s capacities may only be relied on in circumstances where the Tenderer confirms that the authority being relied upon will itself perform any services for which those capacities are re
• reement, the Service Provider shall be entitled to do so on 60 days’ prior notice to Coillte
• atisfied with the Services provided by the Service Provider 7 days after having addressed the matter, in w
• , terminate instructions or this Agreement at any time upon 30 days’ written notice to the Service Provider Non-binding monetary references in the source were treated as context only and were not used as qualification thresholds.

3. Background & buyer context

The buyer context reflected a formal Irish public-procurement route, with pre-qualification used to control entry into the tender stage.

• Coillte’s core Forestry business manages all aspects of forestry including planting, growing, managing, biodiversity protection, outdoor recreation and harvesting. This business deploys world class technologies and forestry management systems to continually improve its forestry operations and the production capacity of its estate. It works very closely with its core sawmill customers to help support their growth and expansion in existing and new markets. Coillte is the leading supplier of roundwood to the Irish wood processing sector. Over 3 million m3 of roundwood is produced by Coillte’s harvesting operations each year. Over the next ten years, the Irish forestry industry has the potential to double in size and Coillte will play a leadership role in shaping and driving this growth.
• Coillte’s Land Solutions division is responsible for seeking out opportunities to create a more sustainable future for Ireland. The division works across a portfolio of businesses that can add significant value to its through a combination of its people and forests. This includes asset development and providing innovative and sustainable solutions to activities. As part of the ongoing management of the estate, Land Solutions is responsible for acquiring new land and forests and for land sales that support local and national needs. Land is bought and sold by Coillte for a variety of reasons including the expansion of forests and supporting neighbours, local communities, schools and businesses as well as strategic national objectives such as tourism, regional development and infrastructure projects. The Land Solutions business is also responsible for managing Coillte’s interest in FuturEnergy Ireland, the renewable energy joint venture with the ESB. This joint venture has an ambition to develop 1GW of renewable energy by 2030, predominantly on Coillte lands.
• At Coillte, it is recognised that integrating sustainability into all business practices is essential. Sustainability underpins everything the organisation does – including strategic planning, decision making and operations. Coillte is committed to carrying out its operations in full compliance with all applicable laws, directives and regulations, as well as voluntary external accredited sustainable forest management certification schemes to which we subscribe. Coillte has an Environmental Policy which is available on Coillte’s website and several environmental certifications, e.g. ISO50001, ISO14001, sustainable biomass certification - SURE-EU. It regularly reports its energy usage to the Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland (SEAI), and it works closely with SEAI to drive the Group’s energy efficiency and carbon emission reductions.
• To ensure that Coillte’s forestry strategic vision and sustainability objectives were focused on the most relevant issues, a very comprehensive double materiality assessment was carried out between 2019 and 2022. This included extensive research, internal and external consultations and and public surveys. The methodology of our assessment was aligned with the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) and at that point there was no clear CSRD guidelines for double materiality. In 2025, we are refreshing the process of materiality assessment to align it with complex CSRD requirements. We are currently in the process of identification of most material Impacts, Risks and Opportunities (IRO’s) and hope to finalise the assessment by Q3 2025.

4. Eligibility & selection criteria

• Turnover requirement — — use these verbatim for insurance / turnover. If a category (insurance, turnover) has no entry here, treat it as 'not specified' for THIS tender.
• Insurance — — use these verbatim for insurance / turnover. If a category (insurance, turnover) has no entry here, treat it as 'not specified' for THIS tender.; 1 Public/Product Liability Insurance with the minimum limit of indemnity provided by the Service Provider (or on its behalf) being no less than €6,500 cover which the Service Provider is obli; 1 Public/Product Liability Insurance with the minimum limit of indemnity provided by the Service Provider (or on its behalf) being no less than €6,500,000 in respect of each and every occurrence
• Certifications — not specified for this tender
• Past experience — not specified for this tender
• Personnel — not specified for this tender
• Geographic / facility constraints — not specified for this tender Additional binding lines surfaced in the deterministic extract:
• — use these verbatim for insurance / turnover. If a category (insurance, turnover) has no entry here, treat it as 'not specified' for THIS tender.
• 1 Public/Product Liability Insurance with the minimum limit of indemnity provided by the Service Provider (or on its behalf) being no less than €6,500 cover which the Service Provider is obli
• 1 Public/Product Liability Insurance with the minimum limit of indemnity provided by the Service Provider (or on its behalf) being no less than €6,500,000 in respect of each and every occurrence
• 2 Employers Liability Insurance (and Personal Accident Cover, where appropriate) with the minimum limit of indemnity provided by the Service Provider (or on its behalf) being no less than €13,000,000 in respect of each and every occurrence

5. Award criteria & scoring

6. Submission requirements

• Method statement / response document (template/page limits) — Appendix 1 questionnaire/PQQ response was required.
• CVs (page count, named roles) — not specified in extract.
• Pricing schedule (format/template) — expected at ITT stage.
• Case studies (number/value range) — client references/comparable project evidence was referenced.
• Declarations (ESPD/Bona Fides/Tax/COI) — not specified in extract.
• Mandatory site visit — not specified in extract.
• Submission portal and formatting — eTenders portal and PDF electronic copies were referenced. Submission-related source lines:
• Appendix 1: Form of Tender 23
• Appendix 2: Bidding Schedule 25
• Appendix 3: Checklist – Response Items 26
• Appendix 4: Coillte Terms and Conditions of Contract 27
• A baseline assessment of Coillte’s greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions across the Scope 1 and 2 categories was completed in 2022 and an assessment of Scope 3 commenced in 2023. Key carbon reduction pathways were identified and targets for Scope 1 and Scope 2 emissions were also agreed. In 2023, Coillte also engaged in a pilot test of the GHG Protocol Land Sector and Removals Guidance. The GHG Protocol Pilot gave Coillte the opportunity to test the draft guidance and to provide suggestions for improvement of the final version. In 2024, Coillte submitted its carbon reduction targets for verification through the Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi).
• Please note, both Contracts are for a five (5) year period commencing in respect of the financial year end 31 December 2026 and for each financial year end thereafter up to and including 31 December 2030. Candidates may submit a tender for both financial audit services and ESG reporting audit services or for financial audit services only or for ESG reporting audit services only.

7. Key dates & process

8. Contract terms that matter

Contract duration in the extract: not stated. Payment cycle, SLA/KPI schedule, and penalty regime were not fully disclosed in the snippets unless listed below.

• VERIFIED PHRASES (deterministic regex extract from the documents — treat as authoritative for numerical claims)
• ies (Late Payments in Commercial Transactions) Regulations (S.I. No. 580/2012)
• d by Coillte (acting in good faith) shall be payable within 60 days, following receipt of the properly due
• illte (acting in good faith) shall be payable within 60 days, following receipt of the properly due
• rvice Provider, provided that such right is utilised within 10 days, following receipt by Coillte of that i
• the Coillte Representative, at any time during the Term, by 7 days’ notice in writing to the other Party h
• of termination under this Clause before the expiry of such 30 day period
• , terminate instructions or this Agreement at any time upon 30 days’ written notice to the Service Provider

9. Risks, red flags & unusuals

• Qualification gate: the deterministic extract included a turnover threshold line (— use these verbatim for insurance / turnover. If a category (insurance, turnover) has no entry here, treat it as 'not specified' for THIS tender.), which can materially narrow bidder pool composition.
• The two-step process (PQQ then ITT) shifted effort to compliance evidence early, with competitive scoring detail potentially deferred.
• Technical and contractual granularity appeared ITT-dependent, increasing ambiguity at qualification stage for non-incumbent bidders.

10. SME fit assessment

This competition looked most accessible to firms with established public-sector tender capability, documented financial capacity, and direct operational experience in the relevant service category.

• Credible bidder profile — mid-sized to large specialist with formal QA/compliance process.
• Consortium / sub-contracting — allowed or addressed in the extracts (Appendix references and reliance provisions).
• Indicative bid-prep effort — 6 to 12 working days for evidence collation, form completion, and review cycles at PQQ level.
• Pwin signal — strongest for bidders with reusable qualification artefacts, comparable references, and low-friction mobilisation capability.

11. Where to dig deeper

• Source RFT/PQQ filenames: Financial ESG Audit Services Tender 2025..docx, 10. Modification

Financial ESG Audit Services Tender 2025..docx, Appendix 1: Form of Tender 23.

• eTenders CFT / notice reference: not specified in extract.
• Clarification contact / portal: eTenders message portal (email not surfaced in extract).
• Key attachments to prioritise: Appendix 2: Bidding Schedule 25](#_Toc202278563), Appendix 3: Checklist – Response Items 26](#_Toc202278564), Appendix 4: Coillte Terms and Conditions of Contract 27](#_Toc202278565).