Award

NMS Software Licence Purchase and Support Renewal

NORTHERN IRELAND ELECTRICITY NETWORKS LIMITED

This public procurement record has 2 releases in its history.

Award

02 Sep 2025 at 14:49

Award

02 Sep 2025 at 13:31

Summary of the contracting process

Northern Ireland Electricity Networks Limited, a private utility headquartered in Belfast, has awarded a contract to Oracle Corporation UK Limited for the "NMS Software Licence Purchase and Support Renewal." This procurement falls under the services category, specifically related to license management software development services in the Northern Ireland region. The procurement used a direct award method due to Oracle's exclusive intellectual property rights for the required services, as stipulated under the Procurement Act 2023. The contract was awarded on 2nd September 2025, with the contract period commencing on 1st October 2025 and ending on 30th September 2028. The total contract value is £1,628,400 gross.

This contract presents significant opportunities for businesses involved in specialised software and IT support services, particularly those that can offer complementary services to Oracle or enhance the existing network management systems used by utilities. Large multinational companies, especially those with expertise in critical infrastructure software and ICT service solutions, stand to benefit by potentially engaging in collaborative projects or securing similar contracts through strategic partnerships or as subcontractors to Oracle. This tender also highlights the importance of intellectual property rights in procurement, suggesting opportunities for innovative software developers to protect and capitalise on their unique offerings in niche markets.

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Notice Title

NMS Software Licence Purchase and Support Renewal

Notice Description

This engagement ensures that the critial operations system, Oracle Network Management System (NMS)1 maintenance and licencing remains in place. Given NMS' integral role in NIE Networks' network operations outage management, fault and emergency response and storm escalations, it is essential to maintain NMS and ensure it is fully supported so that continuity of service can remain. As this supplier has intellectual property rights only this supplier can supply the services required, and there are no reasonable alternatives.

Procurement Information

Clause 41 "Direct Award in Special Cases" of the Procurement Act 2023, Schedule 5 where due to a particular supplier having intellectual property rights or other exclusive rights, only that supplier can supply the goods, services or works required, and there are no reasonable alternatives to those goods, services or works.

Publication & Lifecycle

Open Contracting ID
ocds-h6vhtk-05924b
Publication Source
Find A Tender Service
Latest Notice
https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/053258-2025
Current Stage
Award
All Stages
Award

Procurement Classification

Notice Type
UK6 - Contract Award Notice
Procurement Type
Standard
Procurement Category
Services
Procurement Method
Direct
Procurement Method Details
Direct award
Tender Suitability
Not specified
Awardee Scale
Large

Common Procurement Vocabulary (CPV)

CPV Divisions

72 - IT services: consulting, software development, Internet and support


CPV Codes

72212218 - License management software development services

Notice Value(s)

Tender Value
Not specified
Lots Value
Not specified
Awards Value
£1,357,000 £1M-£10M
Contracts Value
Not specified

Notice Dates

Publication Date
2 Sep 20255 months ago
Submission Deadline
Not specified
Future Notice Date
Not specified
Award Date
1 Sep 20255 months ago
Contract Period
30 Sep 2025 - 30 Sep 2028 3-4 years
Recurrence
Not specified

Notice Status

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

Contracting Authority (Buyer)

Main Buyer
NORTHERN IRELAND ELECTRICITY NETWORKS LIMITED
Contact Name
Available with D3 Tenders Premium →
Contact Email
Available with D3 Tenders Premium →
Contact Phone
Available with D3 Tenders Premium →

Buyer Location

Locality
BELFAST
Postcode
BT9 5HT
Post Town
Northern Ireland
Country
Northern Ireland

Major Region (ITL 1)
Not specified
Basic Region (ITL 2)
Not specified
Small Region (ITL 3)
Not specified
Delivery Location
Not specified

Local Authority
Electoral Ward
Westminster Constituency

Supplier Information

Number of Suppliers
1
Supplier Name

ORACLE

Further Information

Notice Documents

Open Contracting Data Standard (OCDS)

View full OCDS Record for this contracting process

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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.

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