Award

Ask AI about this notice

Summarise, research or assess it with AI

View Markdown

Share this notice

Send this contract to a colleague

Production and Installation of Integrated UHF SATCOM & EFMTE 4.2 Baseline Equipment for the Royal Navy's Type 26 Batch 2 Ships

Ministry of Defence

This public procurement record has 3 releases in its history.

Award

03 Dec 2025 at 15:45

Award Notice
TenderUpdate

19 Sep 2024 at 15:36

Tender Notice
Award

12 Sep 2024 at 13:22

Award Notice
Summary of the contracting process

Defence Digital Commercial, a division of the Ministry of Defence (MoD) of the United Kingdom, recently awarded a contract to STS Defence Ltd for the production and installation of integrated UHF SATCOM & EFMTE 4.2 baseline satellite communications equipment for the Royal Navy's Type 26 fleet Ships 4 to 8, focusing on Gosport, Hampshire. This procurement falls under the industry category of "goods," specifically satellite communications equipment, leveraging a limited procurement method due to technical reasons ensuring compatibility with MoD standards. This contract, began on 4th November 2025, carries a seven-year duration with embedded contractual timelines and a value of £1,166,772,105, signed within the broader Type 26 Ship Building Contract framework. The process is currently in the award stage, indicating the close of the formal procurement competition.

This strategic defence contract provides a significant growth opportunity for STS Defence Ltd and businesses with technical expertise in bespoke satellite communications systems. It strengthens partnerships and employs highly skilled technicians familiar with Ministry of Defence’s accreditation and operational requirements, presenting unique prospects for the specialised defence sector SMEs that can seamlessly collaborate on such technologically advanced projects. Companies engaged in defence communications and equipment design, particularly those with expertise or existing relationships within MoD frameworks, are well-positioned to compete in this highly specialised market. This endeavour encourages further innovation and advancement in national defence capabilities, though competition is limited due to the intricacies of technical standards and operational timelines essential for mission-critical defence applications.

How relevant is this notice?

Notice Information

Notice Title

Production and Installation of Integrated UHF SATCOM & EFMTE 4.2 Baseline Equipment for the Royal Navy's Type 26 Batch 2 Ships

Notice Description

The production and installation of Integrated UHF SATCOM & EFMTE 4.2 baseline satellite communications equipment for the Royal Navy's T26 fleet Ships 4 to 8.

Lot Information

Lot 1

The production and installation of Integrated UHF SATCOM & EFMTE 4.2 baseline equipment (which consist of bespoke integrated satellite communications equipment) for the Royal Navy's T26 fleet Ships 4 to 8.

Procurement Information

Defence Digital Commercial, part of the United Kingdom Ministry of Defence (MoD), has awarded a contract for the production and installation of Integrated UHF SATCOM & EFMTE 4.2 baseline satellite communications equipment for the Royal Navy's T26 fleet Ships 4 to 8 to STS Defence Ltd. This equipment will provide a communications service to support Information Exchange Requirements (IER) for simultaneous voice and data. Please note, a Voluntary ex ante transparency notice has previously been published for this contract on the Find a Tender website, which can be seen here: https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/029245-2024 STS Defence Limited have previously designed a bespoke UHF SATCOM 4.2 Design capability in partnership with SNXP Limited which is accredited for use by the MoD on the T26 Fleet. The installation of this capability in T26 Ship 1 was carried out by STS Defence Limited under a task on an existing MoD Contract. This Contract was competed, and STS Defence Limited was awarded the contract. Thereafter, the installation of this capability in T26 Ships 2 and 3 was directly awarded to STS Defence Limited under a separate contract for Technical Reasons pursuant to Regulation 16(1)(a)(ii) of the DSPCR 2011, which is also applicable to this contract. Contractual timelines for the delivery of this Integrated UHF SATCOM & EFMTE 4.2 baseline equipment capability into T26 Ships 4 to 8 are already embedded within the existing Type 26 Ship Building Contract (Contract Ref. No. SHIPACQ036) as a requirement to enable repeat supply and fit. Only STS Defence and SNXP Limited have the technical ability and experience necessary to produce and install this Integrated UHF SATCOM & EFMTE 4.2 baseline equipment capability into T26 Ships 4 to 8 in a manner that is accredited for use by the MoD and meets the required timescales. It is not viable for another supplier to deliver an alternative design that meets the MoD's technical requirements within the necessary timescales. Further, the STS Defence/SNXP SATCOM design has been approved by Naval Command Headquarters (NCHQ) to ensure it is fit for use. This design and accreditation process took several years to complete. To bring in a third-party supplier to design new equipment, obtain MoD approval and accreditation for the new design and then build and install it on T26 Ships 4 to 8 would incur significant and disproportionate additional time and cost consequences to the MoD, which would also result in significant delays to Vessel Acceptance Date (the date by which MoD are required to have agreed that the newly built T26 Ship has been delivered to an acceptable level against the requirements defined in the T26 Ship Building Contract (Contract Ref. No. SHIPACQ036)), thereby causing an unacceptable capability gap to the Royal Navy.

Notice Details

Publication & Lifecycle

Open Contracting ID
ocds-h6vhtk-049a56
Publication Source
Find A Tender Service
Latest Notice
https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/079452-2025
Current Stage
Award
All Stages
Tender, Award

Procurement Classification

Notice Type
Tender Notice
Procurement Type
Standard
Procurement Category
Goods
Procurement Method
Limited
Procurement Method Details
Negotiated without publication of a contract notice
Tender Suitability
Not specified
Awardee Scale
SME

Common Procurement Vocabulary (CPV)

CPV Divisions

32 - Radio, television, communication, telecommunication and related equipment

CPV Codes

32531000 - Satellite communications equipment

Notice Value(s)

Tender Value
Not specified
Lots Value
Not specified
Awards Value
Not specified
Contracts Value
£1,178,772,105 £1B-£10B

Notice Dates

Publication Date
3 Dec 20258 months ago
Submission Deadline
Not specified
Future Notice Date
Not specified
Award Date
12 Sep 20241 years ago
Contract Period
Not specified - Not specified
Recurrence
Not specified

Notice Status

Tender Status
Complete
Lots Status
Not Specified
Awards Status
Active
Contracts Status
Active

Buyer & Supplier

Contracting Authority (Buyer)

Main Buyer
Ministry of Defence
Contact Name
Available with D3 Tenders Premium →
Contact Email
Available with D3 Tenders Premium →
Contact Phone
Available with D3 Tenders Premium →

Buyer Location

Locality
CORSHAM
Postcode
Not specified
Postcode Area
Not specified
Country
Not specified
Major Region (ITL 1)
Not specified
Basic Region (ITL 2)
Not specified
Small Region (ITL 3)
Not specified
Delivery Location
Not specified
Local Authority
Not specified
Electoral Ward
Not specified
Westminster Constituency
Not specified

Supplier Information

Number of Suppliers
2
Supplier Names

STS Defence

STS Defence Ltd

Further Information

Open Contracting Data Standard (OCDS)

View full OCDS Record for this contracting process

JSON Markdown

The Open Contracting Data Standard (OCDS) is a framework designed to increase transparency and access to public procurement data in the public sector. It is widely used by governments and organisations worldwide to report on procurement processes and contracts.

Loading OCDS record...