---
title: "Space Weather R2O2R - University of Reading"
ocid: "ocds-h6vhtk-05944f"
canonical_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/?ocid=ocds-h6vhtk-05944f"
markdown_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-05944f.md"
json_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-05944f.json"
source: "Find A Tender Service"
current_stage: "Award"
buyer: "MET OFFICE"
published: "2026-04-02"
---

# Space Weather R2O2R - University of Reading

Buyer: MET OFFICE  
Current stage: Award  
OCID: ocds-h6vhtk-05944f

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## Summary

The procurement process titled "Space Weather R2O2R - University of Reading" is overseen by the Met Office, a central government public authority based in Exeter, United Kingdom. This tender falls under the industry category of research and experimental development services and involves collaboration with the University of Reading. The process is currently at the "award" stage as of April 2026, with a direct procurement method being employed, indicating that it falls below the competitive threshold. Key dates include the contract signing on 15th September 2025, with services spanning from 16th September 2025 to 1st April 2026. The project aims to advance capabilities in space weather forecasting through research and operational integration.

This tender presents substantial opportunities for businesses specialising in scientific research and modelling, particularly those focusing on space weather phenomena such as solar wind and geomagnetic storm predictions. Companies with proficiency in developing and validating scientific models for operational use are well-suited to engage in this programme. Collaboration between academic institutions and governmental agencies like the Met Office fosters innovation and extends business growth into the scientific and meteorological sectors. With a total contract value of £80,400, it encourages partnerships that can enhance sector-specific expertise and expand service offerings in research and development areas.

## Notice

Space Weather Implementation, Measurement, Modelling and Risk' (SWIMMR), was a PS19.9m UKRI SPF funded programme led by STFC from 2019, and which largely concluded in 2023. Several of the projects were targeted at space weather scientific modelling gaps, with the aim of bringing them into operation for forecast capabilities in the Met Office Space Weather Operations Centre (MOSWOC). The project 'S3' stood up systems and enabled collaboration between academic partners and the Met Office space weather programme, bringing a platform 'sandbox environment' and portal for monitoring outputs into use at the Met Office (MO) where our scientists worked with several academic partners to bring their models into use. Whilst the original SWIMMR programme made this collaboration possible, there is much work remaining to bring the models into working operational use by the target date of September 2026, the Research to Operations to Research (R2O2R) project is the next stage in this Programme. The Space Weather CSA with the Department for Science and Technology (DSIT) sets out a required output for the Met Office to Support the validation, integration and exploitation of new capabilities and data delivered through the SPF SWIMMR Programme. Met Office Space Weather (MOSW) has agreed with funding partner DSIT to deliver several targets for the next phase of work: Evidence of user need and user requirement to shape model use and output (MOSWOC being the primary user, with several end-users being the recipients of forecasting products). Technical and scientific requirements within MOSW for fully onboarding, working with and supporting the models and/or their outputs in operational settings. (Whilst the 'S3' platform and portal were helpful for the early stages of model collaboration, they are not able to support long term model and output development and operation). In terms of the projects to achieve modelling capability, we have agreed a number of these and their priority levels with the academic institutions who own the models. The partner, University of Reading, led the S4 projects in the SWIMMR Programme (2019-2025). The university of Reading developed the HUXt solar wind model ensemble aimed at quantifying the uncertainties in CME arrival times, which can lead to large geomagnetic storms impacting a range of sectors (e.g. power grids,..)

## Key Details

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Publication source | Find A Tender Service |
| Latest notice | https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/030926-2026 |
| Notice type | UK7 - Contract Details Notice |
| Procurement type | Standard |
| Procurement category | Services |
| Procurement method | Direct |
| Procurement method details | Below threshold - without competition |
| Tender suitability | Not specified |
| Awardee scale | Large |
| All stages | Award |

## Dates

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Publication date | 2 Apr 2026 |
| Submission deadline | Not specified |
| Future notice date | Not specified |
| Award date | 3 Sep 2025 |
| Contract period | 15 Sep 2025 - 1 Apr 2026 |
| Recurrence | Not specified |

## Values

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Tender value | Not specified |
| Lots value | Not specified |
| Awards value | £67,000 |
| Contracts value | £67,000 |

## Status

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Tender status | Complete |
| Lots status | Complete |
| Awards status | Active |
| Contracts status | Active |

## Buyer

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Main buyer | MET OFFICE |
| Locality | EXETER |
| Post town | Exeter |
| Postcode | EX1 3PB |
| Country | England |
| ITL 1 | TLK South West (England) |
| ITL 2 | TLK4 Devon |
| ITL 3 | TLK43 Devon CC |
| Local authority | Exeter |
| Electoral ward | Pinhoe |
| Westminster constituency | Exmouth and Exeter East |
| Delivery location | Not specified |

## Supplier

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Number of suppliers | 2 |
| Supplier names | THE UNIVERSITY OF READING; UNIVERSITY OF READING |

## CPV Codes

### Divisions

- 73 - Research and development services and related consultancy services

### Codes

- 73100000 - Research and experimental development services

## Release History

- 2 Apr 2026 at 13:08 - Award - UK7 - Contract Details Notice - https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/030926-2026
- 4 Sep 2025 at 14:48 - Award - UK6 - Contract Award Notice - https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/054021-2025
- 4 Sep 2025 at 14:11 - Award - UK5 - Transparency Notice - https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/053995-2025

## Documents

- https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/030926-2026
  2nd April 2026 - Contract details notice on Find a Tender
- https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/054021-2025
  4th September 2025 - Contract award notice on Find a Tender
- https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/053995-2025
  4th September 2025 - Transparency notice on Find a Tender

## Notice URLs

- http://www.reading.ac.uk
- https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2023/54/contents
- https://www.metoffice.gov.uk/

## Provenance

This Markdown file is an alternate public rendering of the D3 Tenders contract record. The canonical page is https://d3tenders.com/contract/?ocid=ocds-h6vhtk-05944f. The underlying structured data is available as OCDS JSON at https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-05944f.json.