Official UK procurement notice
Heavy Haulage Vehicles - Battery Locomotives
Authority: Docklands Light Railway Limited (Public body)
What is being bought
Published requirement descriptionTransport for London (TfL) plans to procure 29 bespoke battery locomotives to replace its life expired fleet.
The new locomotives will:
- Operate across the entire TfL network.
- Support four signalling systems.
- Deliver increased haulage capacity from 400 to 600 tonnes per vehicle pair.
This programme is critical to TfL's infrastructure works, ensuring improved reliability, zero-emission technology, and operational efficiency.
Early engagement will help shape technical requirements and delivery timelines.
CPV: Locomotives · Railway maintenance or service vehicles
The lotProcurement structure
single lot · no lot value publishedProcedure terms & legal framework
From the official record- Legal basis
- UKPGA · 2023/54 Procurement Act 2023
- Procurement category
- Goods
- Notice status
- Past planning notice
- Procurement threshold
- Unspecified in notice
- Regulatory regime
- Standard
- Commercial structure
- Stand-alone contract (no framework)
- Competition type
- Competitive procedure
- GPA / WTO covered
- Unspecified in notice
- Recurring procurement
- Unspecified in notice
- First published
- 21 May 2025, 15:11 BST
- Last source update
- 13 Apr 2026, 12:14 BST
- Authority reference
WS2094311281- FTS notice number
2026/S 000-033226- Latest notice
- Preliminary market engagement notice (UK2)
- Classification (CPV)
- Delivery area
- Not published
- Official registry OCID
ocds-h6vhtk-051b57Find a Tender
How it was run
Official notice- Submission deadline
- —
Timeline
21 May 2025 → 12 Mar 2029 · 5 dates- Planning notice published21 May 2025, 15:11 BST
- Latest notice published198 days ago13 Apr 2026, 12:14 BST
- Market engagement191 days ago20 Apr 2026, 23:59 BST
Purpose
The contracting authority intends to conduct preliminary market engagement to inform a forthcoming procurement of Heavy Haulage Vehicles (HHV) Battery Locomotives.
This engagement aims to validate technical requirements, understand market capability, ascertain potential options/innovations to meet requirements and ensure the tender is clear, proportionate, and deliverable.
Compliance Note
This notice is published in accordance with sections 16-17 of the Procurement Act 2023. Some engagement activities (initial questionnaires and one-to-one supplier meetings) have already taken place. This notice ensures transparency and equal treatment by inviting suppliers to participate in remaining activities and by committing to share any material information from earlier engagement in a non-confidential form with all participants.
Engagement Activities
Completed:
- Initial market questionnaire (technical and commercial)
- Further questionnaire (technical and commercial)
- One-to-one supplier meetings
Upcoming:
- Supplier visit to the authority's depot to view the current fleet and associated infrastructure.
Location: Ruislip Depot
- One iterative test of draft technical requirements (feedback round)
TfL may add further engagement activities, if required, to support a robust and effective PME process. Any such activities will be communicated to participating suppliers in due course.
How to Participate
Suitably qualified and experienced suppliers with the capability and capacity to deliver the full scope of the required services and have not yet engaged, are invited to join the engagement.
Contact for further information: Phillippa Ratcliffe - [email protected]
Fairness and Transparency
All suppliers will have access to the same core information. Any material insights from earlier activities will be shared in an appropriate, non-confidential form.
Participation does not constitute pre-qualification nor guarantee invitation to tender.
If the authority alters the engagement plan or timetable, an update notice will be issued on Find a Tender.
- Tender notice expected149 days ago1 Jun 2026, 23:59 BST
- Today29 Oct 2026
- Contract starts12 Mar 2029
Notice history
2 events · 2 releases on Find a Tender · since 21 May 2025- Pipeline notice published21 May 2025, 15:11 BSTUK1
- Preliminary market engagement notice published13 Apr 2026, 12:14 BSTUK2
Commercial outcome & contract awards
Pipeline notice- Awards (0)
- No award published
- Contracts (0)
- No contract published
- Bid statistics
- No aggregate bid statistics published
Contracting authority & participating public bodies
Official documents & specifications (2)
Official links; attachments are not copiedNotices published for this procedure
- Preliminary market engagement notice Preliminary market engagement notice on Find a Tender
- Pipeline notice Pipeline notice on Find a Tender