Award

Ask AI about this notice

Summarise, research or assess it with AI

View Markdown

Share this notice

Send this contract to a colleague

Drive System Upgrade

Offshore Renewable Energy Catapult

This public procurement record has 2 releases in its history.

Award

29 Sep 2026 at 17:01

UK6 - Contract Award Notice
Award

29 Sep 2026 at 16:56

UK5 - Transparency Notice
Summary of the contracting process

Offshore Renewable Energy Catapult procured an upgrade to the ACS6000 drive system on the 3MW drive train at its Nautilus facility in Blyth. The work replaces the existing control platform with ABB’s latest USU-26 system and replaces hardware to improve spare-part availability and address lifecycle issues with ageing components. The requirement combines specialist drive-system engineering with the supply and installation of replacement control equipment and hardware. It is focused on maintaining and upgrading a specific ABB drive system within an offshore renewable energy test facility, rather than supplying general mechanical spares. The buying organisation is Offshore Renewable Energy Catapult, a public undertaking.

The procurement is complete and was awarded to ABB Limited through a direct award, justified on the basis that ABB manufactured the equipment and had the specific knowledge needed to upgrade the ageing 3MW drive electronics. The award date was 29 September 2026 and the gross awarded value is £605,848.80. The contract period runs from 12 October 2026 to 30 September 2028. There was one lot, covering the drive-system upgrade. The stated evaluation basis is the technical reason for using a single supplier; no separate scoring criteria are described. A contract signature was scheduled for 9 October 2026. The procurement was for goods, with the work carried out on the drive train at the Nautilus facility in Blyth.

For suppliers assessing future demand from Offshore Renewable Energy Catapult, this award shows a requirement for specialist upgrades to installed drive systems, including control-platform replacement and hardware renewal to maintain spare-part support and overcome ageing-component lifecycle constraints. A credible competitor would need demonstrated technical capability with the relevant drive technology, detailed knowledge of legacy drive electronics and the ability to deliver compatible replacement controls and hardware. The direct award rationale makes the manufacturer’s system-specific expertise central to this purchase, so a supplier seeking to compete when a comparable requirement returns would need to show equivalent expertise and a technically viable upgrade route. The requirement is tied to a 3MW drive train in a renewable-energy test facility, indicating the need to work on critical, established equipment rather than provide generic parts alone.

How relevant is this notice?

Notice Information

Notice Title

Drive System Upgrade

Notice Description

The purpose of this direct award is to contract ABB limited to carry out an upgrade to the ACS6000 drive system on the 3MW drive train located within the Nautilus facility in Blyth, the upgrade in inclusive of two key elements: Replacement of the existing control platform with ABB's latest USU-26 system Hardware replacement to improve spare part availability, removing life cycle issues with the currently aging components

Procurement Information

The equipment within the drive unit was manufactured by ABB, and currently there are no other companies who have the specific knowledge of the aging electronic drives of both 3MW, and are able to provide an upgrade to the system.

Notice Details

Publication & Lifecycle

Open Contracting ID
ocds-h6vhtk-077cea
Publication Source
Find A Tender Service
Latest Notice
https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/092066-2026
Current Stage
Award
All Stages
Award

Procurement Classification

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

Common Procurement Vocabulary (CPV)

CPV Divisions

34 - Transport equipment and auxiliary products to transportation

CPV Codes

34320000 - Mechanical spare parts except engines and engine parts

Notice Value(s)

Tender Value
Not specified
Lots Value
Not specified
Awards Value
£605,848 £500K-£1M
Contracts Value
Not specified

Notice Dates

Publication Date
29 Sep 20261 weeks ago
Submission Deadline
Not specified
Future Notice Date
Not specified
Award Date
29 Sep 20261 weeks ago
Contract Period
12 Oct 2026 - 30 Sep 2028 1-2 years
Recurrence
Not specified

Notice Status

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

Buyer & Supplier

Contracting Authority (Buyer)

Main Buyer
Offshore Renewable Energy Catapult
Contact Name
Available with D3 Tenders Premium →
Contact Email
Available with D3 Tenders Premium →
Contact Phone
Available with D3 Tenders Premium →

Buyer Location

Locality
GLASGOW
Postcode
G1 1RD
Postcode Area
Glasgow
Country
Scotland
Major Region (ITL 1)
TLM Scotland
Basic Region (ITL 2)
TLM3 West Central Scotland
Small Region (ITL 3)
TLM32 Glasgow City
Delivery Location
Not specified
Local Authority
Glasgow City
Electoral Ward
Anderston/City/Yorkhill
Westminster Constituency
Glasgow East

Supplier Information

Number of Suppliers
1
Supplier Name

ABB Limited

Further Information

Notice Documents

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...