---
title: "Supply of Aluminothermic Welding Materials and Associated Equipment"
ocid: "ocds-h6vhtk-05a154"
canonical_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/?ocid=ocds-h6vhtk-05a154"
markdown_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-05a154.md"
json_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-05a154.json"
source: "Find A Tender Service"
current_stage: "Award"
buyer: "NETWORK RAIL INFRASTRUCTURE LIMITED"
published: "2026-01-26"
---

# Supply of Aluminothermic Welding Materials and Associated Equipment

Buyer: NETWORK RAIL INFRASTRUCTURE LIMITED  
Current stage: Award  
OCID: ocds-h6vhtk-05a154

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## Summary

Network Rail Infrastructure Limited, a central government public authority based in London, has awarded a contract through a Direct Award process under the Procurement Act 2023. The contract is for the supply of Aluminothermic Welding Materials and Associated Equipment. The supplier, Thermit Welding (GB) Limited, will provide these goods over a fixed period, with the contract commencing on 9th November 2025 and lasting until 31st October 2029, with a maximum potential extension until 2033. The procurement stage has been completed, and the contract is classified under the goods category, mainly involving welding materials and equipment. The framework agreement associated with this procurement is closed, and Network Rail has opted to use a direct award method without reopening competition, due to the specialised nature of the welding process required by Network Rail's existing operations. The framework allows for a 4-year initial term with an option for an additional 4 years, subject to performance and market conditions.

This procurement provides an opportunity for businesses involved in the manufacturing and supply of industrial welding materials, particularly those specialising in Aluminothermic welding processes. The contract caters to businesses that can handle specialised requirements, and those capable of training personnel on unique welding processes specific to the supplier’s equipment. SMEs like Thermit Welding (GB) Limited, which currently holds the contract, have demonstrated the potential to scale by supporting large-scale infrastructure projects requiring high volumes of specific welding requirements. Companies with expertise in producing materials compliant with stringent industry standards will find this type of contract beneficial for establishing a niche market position and fostering long-term growth in the railway infrastructure sector.

## Notice

Network Rail has awarded a contract via Direct Award under the Procurement Act 2023 to Thermit Welding (GB) Ltd for the Supply of Aluminothermic Welding Materials and Associated Equipment.

### Procurement Information

With respect to joining rails on site, Aluminothermic Welding is the only welding process Network Rail can utilise given the number of welds installed on an annual basis (Circa 30,000 - 40,000). Other welding processes are either not suitable (enclosed arc welding) or unable to support the number of sites and welds required per year i.e. flash butt welding as only 1 machine is available in the UK to support this process. Network Rail has a number of Aluminothermic Welders in the business which are trained on the Supplier's Aluminothermic Welding Process. In order to continue using this process, Network Rail has to use the Supplier's Aluminothermic Welding Materials and associated equipment as they are specific to their processes and alternatives would be incompatible with the process. Network Rail is unable to move to another Aluminothermic Welding process as this would require retraining of all welding staff which would cause disproportionate technical difficulties in operation and maintenance. In addition to this, there are no other Suppliers in the market which have an Aluminothermic Welding process approved to the requirements of NR/L2/TRK/0032 and EN14730-1.

## Key Details

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Publication source | Find A Tender Service |
| Latest notice | https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/006705-2026 |
| Notice type | UK7 - Contract Details Notice |
| Procurement type | Framework |
| Procurement category | Goods |
| Procurement method | Direct |
| Procurement method details | Direct award |
| Tender suitability | SME, VCSE |
| Awardee scale | SME |
| All stages | Award |

## Dates

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Publication date | 26 Jan 2026 |
| Submission deadline | Not specified |
| Future notice date | Not specified |
| Award date | 24 Sep 2025 |
| Contract period | 9 Nov 2025 - 31 Oct 2029 |
| Recurrence | Not specified |

## Values

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Tender value | Not specified |
| Lots value | Not specified |
| Awards value | £10,100,000 |
| Contracts value | £10,100,000 |

## Status

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

## Buyer

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Main buyer | NETWORK RAIL INFRASTRUCTURE LIMITED |
| Locality | LONDON |
| Post town | South East London |
| Postcode | SE1 8SW |
| Country | England |
| ITL 1 | TLI London |
| ITL 2 | TLI4 Inner London - East |
| ITL 3 | TLI45 Lambeth |
| Local authority | Lambeth |
| Electoral ward | Waterloo & South Bank |
| Westminster constituency | Vauxhall and Camberwell Green |
| Delivery location | Not specified |

## Supplier

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Number of suppliers | 1 |
| Supplier names | THERMIT WELDING (GB |

## CPV Codes

### Divisions

- 42 - Industrial machinery
- 44 - Construction structures and materials; auxiliary products to construction (except electric apparatus)

### Codes

- 42662000 - Welding equipment
- 44315200 - Welding materials

## Release History

- 26 Jan 2026 at 14:13 - AwardUpdate - UK7 - Contract Details Notice - https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/006705-2026
- 2 Dec 2025 at 09:54 - Award - UK7 - Contract Details Notice - https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/078748-2025
- 10 Oct 2025 at 14:49 - Award - UK6 - Contract Award Notice - https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/064299-2025
- 24 Sep 2025 at 14:34 - Award - UK5 - Transparency Notice - https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/059362-2025

## Documents

- https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/006705-2026
  26th January 2026 - Contract details notice on Find a Tender
- https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/078748-2025
  2nd December 2025 - Contract details notice on Find a Tender
- https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/064299-2025
  10th October 2025 - Contract award notice on Find a Tender
- https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/059362-2025
  24th September 2025 - Transparency notice on Find a Tender
- https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/Attachment/A-10921

## Notice URLs

- https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2023/54/contents
- https://www.networkrail.co.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-05a154. The underlying structured data is available as OCDS JSON at https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-05a154.json.