A new round of contract awards – here’s a quick roundup of the latest across transport and infrastructure.
Back To Insights
Network Rail has announced suppliers on a five-year, £1.1bn framework—extendable by up to two years—for reactive and small-scale works across its building and civil assets in the Anglia and North & East routes. The framework is divided into four lots:
The maximum value of the framework is higher than the combined value of the individual lots because it includes the estimated value of the optional extension periods.
Additionally, Network Rail has awarded up to £1.1bn in eight-year contracts (from April 2025 to March 2033) to four suppliers – Balfour Beatty Rail, Colas Rail, Swietelsky Babcock Rail, and VolkerRail – to provide c70 On Track Machines, including tampers and ballast regulators. The contracts can be extended for a further two years.
Four contracts have been appointed by Network Rail to a new framework for reactive and minor works across the Wales and Western region, estimated at £750m. The framework will run for five years, with the option of a further three-year extension in one-year increments. It covers emergency response and planned maintenance for buildings and civils assets.
The framework is divided into four lots:
Network Rail has also appointed Skanska for the £43m Clifton Bridge replacement in Penrith. Skanska will design, build, and install a new 130-metre single-span steel bridge on the West Coast Main Line over the M6. The new bridge will be constructed near the existing one and moved into place during a 15-day line closure starting 31 December, following demolition of the current structure.
In addition, Network Rail have awarded £850m in contracts to operate its autumn and winter rail treatment trains over five years from August 2025, with possible extensions of up to three years.
GB Railfreight will run Multi-Purpose Vehicles (MPVs) in the North and Balfour Beatty in South.
Colas and GB Railfreight will operate 29 Rail Head Treatment Trains, while GB Railfreight will manage 10 snow and ice treatment trains, and Colas will handle snow clearance.
Telent has been awarded a contract by Network Rail to deliver a telecoms renewal programme for the Wales and Western Region in the first telecoms-only framework to be awarded for CP7. The programme is set to be completed by the end of CP7.
TII and NTA have launched a public consultation on the Emerging Preferred Route for Luas Cork, an 18km light rail line from Ballincollig to Mahon Point with up to 25 stops.
Plans also include a new public transport bridge, improved cycling infrastructure, a 1,000-space Park & Ride in Ballincollig, and a Mobility Hub in Mahon.
Public feedback is invited via www.luascork.ie until 5:30 PM on 9 June 2025, with several open days planned across the city.
Transport for Greater Manchester (TfGM) has started the procurement process for the next operating and maintenance contract for Metrolink. The contract is estimated to be worth c£1.6bn over a period of 11 years maximum.
The current contract, held by KeolisAmey Metrolink, is set to expire in 2027.
TfGM will host a market engagement day on Tuesday 10th of June.
The Kenaidan Murphy Joint Venture, alongside lead design partner Arup, has been awarded the development phase of the c$1.5bn (£813m) Bloor Yonge Capacity Improvements Project for the Toronto Transit Commission, a major rail station upgrade in central Toronto.
UK Power Networks Services have been awarded a £24m contract to upgrade the High Voltage power network on London Underground’s Piccadilly line. This initiative is part of a broader infrastructure programme to support the introduction of 94 new trains, replacing the current fleet of 86, and to increase service frequency from 24 to 27 trains per hour by 2027.
The upgrade work, which commenced on 25th March 2025, is scheduled for completion in 2027. It builds upon UK Power Networks’ previous £40m contract awarded in June 2022 for the Picadilly line.
Pell Frischmann and Egis have been appointed to the light and heavy rail lots of the South Yorkshire Mayoral Combined Authority’s (SYMCA) Engineers Consultancy Services Framework.
The firms will provide technical services across planning, design, operations, and maintenance for light and heavy rail projects. One key project includes design coordination for the new Magna supertram station, set to open by December 2026.
The framework includes five lots covering Highways/Park and Ride/Interchanges, Light Rail, Heavy Rail, Facilities Management and Sustainability, and Strategy & Policy.
NIEN has launched a procurement process for a £434.4 million framework for new transmission substations, set to begin in April 2026. The eight-year framework, extendable to 2034, is divided into two lots:
It includes turnkey delivery of electrical, mechanical, civil, and enabling works, as well as on-site cabling and overhead lines. Contracts may be awarded under Design and Build or EPC models, with up to six contractors appointed per lot.
Bids must be submitted by 16 May 2025, with contract awards expected by February 2026.
Further details here.
Liverpool Bay CCS, a subsidiary of energy company Eni, has awarded United Living Energy a £250m contract to design and build more than 34km of new carbon dioxide (CO₂) pipeline infrastructure for the HyNet North West project. The contract forms a key part of HyNet’s wider carbon capture and storage programme, which aims to transport CO₂ emissions from industrial sites to secure storage beneath Liverpool Bay.
United Living Energy will deliver the pipeline section running between Ince in Cheshire and Flintshire in North Wales, where it will connect with 24km of repurposed existing pipeline
Construction is expected to begin in 2025 and continue over a three-year period.
London Gatwick has appointed 16 engineering and architecture firms to a new design services framework supporting its capital works programme. The framework is structured across five lots – large multi-disciplinary, airfield, baggage, SME multi-disciplinary, and fire engineering – with three to six firms in each.
The lots and selected firms are:
Wessex Water has appointed over 40 firms to a new £65m Civils Support Framework to deliver a wide range of water and wastewater infrastructure works. The five-year framework, extendable by up to three years, is divided into five lots covering site works, mainlaying, potable and wastewater infrastructure, and reservoir projects.
Contractors will support Wessex Water’s engineering teams with tasks including groundworks, leak repairs, sewer collapses, directional drilling, and reservoir refurbishment. The framework is part of Wessex Water’s preparation for a projected £3.65bn investment in 2025-2030, more than double its previous funding cycle.
Find the list of winning contractors here.
United Utilities has appointed Turner & Townsend as the Independent Technical Adviser (ITA) for the Haweswater Aqueduct Resilience Programme (HARP).
Turner & Townsend will provide independent oversight on cost and project delivery throughout the life of the programme. Earlier this year, United Utilities also named the STRABAG Equitix Consortium as the preferred bidder for the Competitively Appointed Provider (CAP) role, responsible for designing, building, financing, and maintaining the replacement tunnel sections.
NI Water has awarded a contract valued up to £240m to Meridian Utilities, McAllister Bros and Road Safety Contracts to provide strategic support in the delivery of sewer network maintenance activities.
Marlborough Highways has won a £170m contract to deliver highways maintenance and street lighting upgrades across the London Borough of Havering. The contract is split into two lots: £145m for highways and capital works, and £25m for street lighting and minor improvements. Procured under a competitive negotiation process, the deal runs for six years with the potential for a four-year extension based on performance.
Marlborough will manage all routine, reactive, and planned works across Havering’s road network and lighting infrastructure.
The Royal Borough of Windsor & Maidenhead has launched procurement for a highways maintenance and capital works contract worth up to £114.8m.
Planned to begin on the 1st of April 2026, the contract will run for seven years with the option to extend for up to a further seven.
Bids must be submitted by 1pm on the 24th of June 2025. The estimated award date is the 13th of October 2025.
Bowmer + Kirkland has been appointed to deliver the £190m Fabrica scheme in central Oxford, the city’s largest commercial science project.
Construction begins at the end of May following groundworks by Colemans, with completion expected in early 2027.
Bowmer + Kirkland will prioritise local labour and supply chains, further cementing its presence in the science and innovation sector.
Peel Ports Group has appointed 18 contractors to a new multi-lot construction framework supporting a major £750m investment programme across its UK and Ireland sites.
The framework, which may run for up to eight years, is split into three lots: General Construction, Marine Construction, and National Lot for Major Projects.
The appointed contractors are: A E Yates, C Spencer, Charles Brand, Erith Contractors, Glencar, GPS Marine & Civil Services, J Murphy & Sons, Jackson Framework, John Graham Construction, JT Mackley & Co, Lagan Aviation & Infrastructure, Mackenzie Construction, McLaughlin & Harvey, Octavius, RJ McLeod, Southbay Civil Engineering, Story Contracting, and Taziker Industrial.
Further details here.
Is your company involved in any of these projects? Email me on jn@newsomconsulting.co.uk if you'd like to discuss how we can support you with the right talent.
