EUROPE - The UK Pensions Regulator (TPR) has signed a framework agreement with 11 consultancies to advise it on administration and governance issues, should the organisation be unable to perform these duties internally.

Of the appointed companies, some were asked to offer advice on one aspect, while more than half - including LCP and PwC - will potentially advise on both governance and administration.

In the mandate, the regulator said: "TPR has a number of requirements over time for administration and pension scheme governance services to supplement the resources of the in-house team."

It added: "Requirements may stem from either insufficient in-house resources for a particular task or the need for capability that is not available in-house."

Barnett Waddingham, Hymans Robertson, JLT Benefit Solutions and Independent Transition Management have been selected to advise on administration issues, while Governance Integrity Solutions has been chosen for the second lot only.

Additionally, LCP, Capita Hartshead, Deloitte, PwC, R Jackson Consulting and Kim Gubler Consulting were selected to provide advice on both areas.

The framework agreement, first tendered last year, follows on from an earlier agreement with more than 20 consultancies, which would see them act as expert witnesses on TPR's determinations panel if needed.

Meanwhile, a European pension fund is tendering two mandates for global credit portfolios worth a combined £300m, using IPE Quest.

In Quest search QN1176, the scheme is looking to invest £150m in credit.

It does not specify an investment style or a benchmark, but asks that it be managed from the top down.

While asset managers are not required to have previous experience, the scheme would prefer a company with at least a three-year track record.

The second search, QN1177, is identical to the first, but requires a bottom-up approach.

Interested parties should submit their performance to the end of last year, both net and gross of fees, by 22 April.

Finally, the Swedish local authority of Botkyrka is tendering for providers of pension fund management, as well as investment services and pension provision.

Interested parties can request more information from the authority directly and have until 16 May to apply.

The IPE.com news team is unable to answer any further questions about IPE Quest tender notices to protect the interests of clients conducting the search. To obtain information direct from IPE Quest, please contact Jayna Vishram on +44 (0) 20 7261 4630 or email jayna.vishram@ipe-quest.com