← Back to Tenders
United Kingdom270 days leftOpen

Southampton Channel Deepening - The provision of dredging services at the Port of Southampton

Tender Overview

LOCATION

Inner London - West, United Kingdom

VALUE

Not disclosed

DEADLINE

October 31, 2026 at 00:00

CATEGORY

Other

CPV CODE

45252124

REFERENCE

002310-2026

Project Timeline

▼

Contact Information

▼
View Original

Original Tender Description

Associated British Ports (ABP) is the UK's largest ports group with 21 ports across the UK, providing essential gateways for trade and enabling the green infrastructure essential for the UK's energy transition. ABP directly employs over 2,400 individuals across the UK and handle approximately a quarter of the country's seaborne trade. The Port of Southampton is largest UK export port and a critical gateway handling container, automotive, cruise, and bulks. ABP is looking to appoint a suitably qualified Principal Contractor to provide capital dredging services for proposed channel deepening works at the Port of Southampton and in the Nab Deep Water Channel. The works involve dredging for disposal at sea, and the relevant enabling activities including mitigation measures for the risk of marine UXO. The works will include dredging adjacent to an operational quay wall and in areas with buried pipelines for which the Contractor will be required to have the appropriate plant and equipment, and proven experience of similar scale works. The works are to be planned by the Contractor to avoid disruption to Port navigation traffic and quayside operations. A Competitive Flexible Procedure will be issued, with the Procurement Specific Questionnaire (PSQ) due to be released to the market in mid-January 2026. This notice services to notify the market of this upcoming procurement.
⚠️

MANDATORY EXCLUSION GROUNDS

  • No specific mandatory exclusion grounds are detailed in this market notification.
✓

ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS

  • The bidder must be a suitably qualified Principal Contractor.
🔧

TECHNICAL CAPABILITY REQUIREMENTS

  • The bidder must be capable of providing capital dredging services.
  • The bidder must be capable of performing dredging for disposal at sea.
  • The bidder must be capable of providing relevant enabling activities, including mitigation measures for the risk of marine UXO.
  • The bidder must possess appropriate plant and equipment for the works.
  • The bidder must have proven experience of similar scale works.
  • The bidder must be capable of performing dredging adjacent to an operational quay wall.
  • The bidder must be capable of performing dredging in areas with buried pipelines.
  • The bidder must plan the works to avoid disruption to Port navigation traffic.
  • The bidder must plan the works to avoid disruption to quayside operations.
💰

FINANCIAL REQUIREMENTS

  • No specific financial requirements are detailed in this market notification.
📋

SUBMISSION REQUIREMENTS

  • Bidders must await the release of the Procurement Specific Questionnaire (PSQ) in mid-January 2026.
  • Bidders will be required to complete and submit the PSQ as part of the Competitive Flexible Procedure.
  • The final submission deadline for the tender is 2026-10-31 00:00:00.

Requirements Preview

Sign up to view complete requirements and analysis

AI-powered requirement analysis
Complete compliance breakdown
Strategic bidding insights
Instant eligibility check

No credit card required • Setup in 2 minutes

PDF
Official PDF Version
PDF002310-2026_official.pdf
Summary:
This notice announces Associated British Ports' upcoming restricted tender for capital dredging services at the Port of Southampton, requiring a suitably qualified Principal Contractor with proven experience and appropriate equipment to avoid disruption to port operations.

Documents Preview

Sign up to view document summaries and analysis

AI document summaries
Key requirement extraction
Risk & compliance alerts
Strategic document insights

No credit card required • Setup in 2 minutes

65
Good

Tender Quality Score

This market notification for a complex dredging project provides clear initial information but suffers from significant transparency gaps, including a classified value and missing evaluation criteria, alongside critical data inconsistencies and a lack of modern e-procurement features.

Score Breakdown

Legal Compliance75/100

The tender defines a competitive flexible procedure and uses appropriate CPV/NUTS codes. However, the classified value and the 'Over Sum Limit: No' for a project of this scale raise questions regarding full compliance with transparency requirements, especially if ABP falls under utility sector regulations. The missing reveal date for full tender documents is a minor concern.

•Estimated value is classified, potentially non-compliant with full disclosure requirements for public/utility procurements.
•Missing reveal date for the full tender documents.
Clarity80/100

The description of the works, location, and required contractor capabilities is very clear and unambiguous for a market notification. The AI-extracted requirements are also well-defined. The absence of evaluation criteria is noted but expected at this preliminary stage.

Completeness70/100

Basic information, deadlines, and duration are provided. However, the estimated value is not disclosed, and evaluation criteria are missing. The contract start date is critically inconsistent with the submission deadline, indicating a significant data error.

•Estimated value is not disclosed.
•Evaluation criteria are not specified.
Fairness60/100

The classified value significantly hinders fair competition as bidders cannot properly assess the project's scale. The absence of e-submission creates an unequal playing field. While the technical requirements are specific, they appear justified by the project's complexity rather than being tailored to a single company. Evaluation criteria are not yet specified, which is a future fairness concern.

•Estimated value is classified, reducing transparency and fair assessment.
•No electronic submission option, hindering equal access and efficiency.
Practicality55/100

The lack of electronic submission is a major practical drawback in modern procurement. The contract start date being identical to the submission deadline is highly impractical and indicates a data entry error, making planning difficult. Financing information is also unavailable due to the classified value.

•No electronic submission supported.
•Illogical contract start date (same as submission deadline).
Data Consistency65/100

The most significant inconsistency is the contract start date being identical to the submission deadline. The statement 'Over Sum Limit: No' while the value is classified for a major dredging project also appears inconsistent.

•Contract start date is identical to the submission deadline, indicating a critical data error.
•Inconsistency between 'Over Sum Limit: No' and 'Value Classified: Yes' for a project of this nature.
Sustainability20/100

There is no mention of green procurement, social aspects, or innovation focus within the tender information. This represents a significant missed opportunity for a large-scale infrastructure project.

•No green procurement criteria mentioned.
•No social aspects or considerations included.

Strengths

Clear and detailed description of the required services and contractor capabilities.
Appropriate CPV and NUTS codes are assigned.
Generous final submission deadline provides ample preparation time.
Proactive market notification for an upcoming complex procurement.
Explicitly states the procedure is 'Divided into Parts', potentially encouraging competition.

Concerns

Estimated contract value is not disclosed and classified, hindering bidder assessment.
No electronic submission option, which is a significant drawback for accessibility and efficiency.
Contract start date is illogical (same as submission deadline), indicating a critical data error.
Evaluation criteria are not yet specified, which is a major transparency gap for the full tender.
Lack of any sustainability (green, social, innovation) considerations.

Recommendations

1. Disclose the estimated contract value to enhance transparency and allow bidders to make informed decisions.
2. Implement an electronic submission platform to streamline the process and ensure equal access for all potential bidders.
3. Correct the contract start date to reflect a realistic timeline post-award and clearly outline evaluation criteria in subsequent documents.

AI Scoring Preview

Sign up to view complete requirements and analysis

Complete quality score analysis
Detailed sub-score breakdown
Strengths & concerns insights
Strategic recommendations

No credit card required • Setup in 2 minutes

Generate DocumentsReview Documents
B
Tender Quality Score
65/ 100 · Good
→

Tender Assistant

Ask me anything about this tender

Tender Assistant

Hello! I'm your AI assistant for this tender. I can help you understand requirements, deadlines, eligibility criteria, and provide strategic insights.

What are the main requirements?
When is the deadline?
Who is eligible to bid?

No credit card required

Setup in 2 minutes

Save with Notes