Official UK procurement notice
DfI TRAM - Supply and Delivery of Spare and Replacement Parts and Specialist Engineering Services for Voith Schneider Propulsion Systems
Authority: DfI Transport and Road Asset Management (TRAM) (Central government)
What is being bought
Published requirement descriptionThe Department for Infrastructure (DfI), Public Transport Operations, is directly responsible for the operation of Strangford Lough Ferry Service utilising two large passenger vessels: MV Portaferry II and MV Strangford II. Both vessels are owned by the Department and must undergo an annual inspection by Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA) prior to the issuing of a Passenger Ship Safety Certificate (PSSC) - required for the ferry service to be legally operated. Part of this inspection focuses on the vessel machinery and compliance with manufacturer maintenance schedule.
It is the Department's intention to award a 3-year contract for the supply of spare and replacement parts (including the provision of support) for the Voith Propulsion Systems in the vessels at a total cost of up to £702k.
The lotProcurement structure
single lot · no lot value publishedProcedure terms & legal framework
From the official record- Procedure method
- Direct award
- Legal basis
- UKPGA · 2023/54 Procurement Act 2023
- Notice status
- Awarded without competition
- Procurement threshold
- Unspecified in notice
- Regulatory regime
- Standard
- Commercial structure
- Stand-alone contract (no framework)
- Competition type
- Direct award (no call for competition)
- GPA / WTO covered
- Yes (GPA)
- Recurring procurement
- Unspecified in notice
- First published
- 19 Jul 2026, 10:22 BST
- Last source update
- 8 Sept 2026, 12:00 BST
- Authority reference
DAC-0195- FTS notice number
2026/S 000-084822- Latest notice
- Contract details notice (UK7)
- Delivery area
- Official registry OCID
ocds-h6vhtk-06ce57Find a Tender
- Why no open competition
- Single Suppliers Intellectual Property Exclusive Rights; Single Suppliers Technical Reasons
- Published justification
Section 41 and paragraph 6 of Schedule 5 of the Procurement Act 2023 provides justification of a Direct Award when the following conditions are met in relation to the public contract -
(a)due to an absence of competition for technical reasons, only a particular supplier can supply the goods, services or works required, and
(b)there are no reasonable alternatives to those goods, services or works.
Both vessels must undergo an annual inspection by Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA) prior to the issuing of a Passenger Ship Safety Certificate (PSSC) - required for the ferry service to be legally operated. Part of this inspection focuses on the vessel machinery and compliance with manufacturer maintenance schedule.
Due to the specialist parts and services required for the maintenance of Voith Propulsion Systems in the vessel, Voith Turbo Limited are the only Supplier to ensure the vessels meet requirements necessary to ensure continued passenger ship operation in accordance with legislation as set by MCA.
Notice history
4 events · 3 releases on Find a Tender · since 19 Jul 2026- Transparency notice published19 Jul 2026, 10:22 BSTUK5
- Contract award notice published20 Jul 2026, 15:18 BSTUK6
- Contract signature expected30 Jul 2026, 23:59 BSTscheduled
- Contract details notice published8 Sept 2026, 12:00 BSTUK7
Commercial outcome & contract awards
Published awards, contracts and bid statistics, not a forecast| Awarded to | Value | Date | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| Voith Turbo Limited31 Jul 2026 – 30 Jul 2029 | £702,000 | 19 Jul 2026 | Awarded |
Contracts
Contract 1 · Voith Turbo Limited
- Signed
- 4 Sept 2026
- Value
- £702,000
- Period
- 7 Sept 2026 – 6 Sept 2029
- Status
- active
No agreed KPIs: The contract value is below £5 million including VAT. There are robust Conditions of Contract in place to address any performance issues.
Contracting authority & participating public bodies
Bidders & participating suppliers
1 commercial party on the notice- VOITH TURBO LIMITEDAwarded supplier
Official documents & specifications (3)
Official links; attachments are not copiedNotices published for this procedure
- Contract details notice Contract details notice on Find a Tender
- Contract award notice Contract award notice on Find a Tender
- Transparency notice Transparency notice on Find a Tender