‘Collaborative’ contractors wanted for £4.5bn water framework

Northumbrian Water is looking for contractors to carry out £4.5bn of work on water assets in Northumbria, Essex and Suffolk.

The water company is looking for firms to work with it “through collaboration, with meaningful incentives aligned to our business objectives”.

The work will cover assets belonging to both Northumbrian Water and Essex & Suffolk Water. The framework will cover the five years between 2025 and 2030 – a period known as AMP8.

The projects will include construction and refurbishment work on water and sewage pipelines, treatment works, wastewater pumping stations and water treatment plants.

In its documentation, Northumbrian Water said the new framework would “require a step change in how we collaborate, manage risk and coordinate our capital investment”.

The framework will include a new “enterprise” approach, which will incentivise a “collaborative process”, with interested contractors expected to have experience in collaborative delivery models.

Northumbrian Water will define the framework’s lot structure following the outcome of a market engagement questionnaire that contractors can access by emailing am*************@****co.uk.

The questionnaire will ask contractors to share how they have delivered value at handover stage in previous collaborative projects, including how they have aligned the delivery of cost, time and quality pressures with low-carbon and biodiversity priorities.

“Our objective [is] to create long-term sustainable business relationships which enable mutual success through collaboration, with meaningful incentives aligned to our business objectives,” the document adds.

The deadline to complete the questionnaire is 10 May at 2pm. Northumbrian Water expects to publish a contract notice on 1 September.