---
title: "Large Scale Battery Energy Storage Systems"
ocid: "ocds-h6vhtk-060f8e"
canonical_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/?ocid=ocds-h6vhtk-060f8e"
markdown_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-060f8e.md"
json_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-060f8e.json"
source: "Find A Tender Service"
current_stage: "Planning"
buyer: "UNITED KINGDOM INDUSTRIAL FUSION SOLUTIONS"
published: "2026-01-27"
---

# Large Scale Battery Energy Storage Systems

Buyer: UNITED KINGDOM INDUSTRIAL FUSION SOLUTIONS  
Current stage: Planning  
OCID: ocds-h6vhtk-060f8e

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## Summary

United Kingdom Industrial Fusion Solutions (UKIFS) is conducting a public procurement process in planning phase to gather market insights for a future specification of a central energy storage system, vital for its STEP Electrical infrastructure. The procurement is geared towards engineering and plant design services, with a focus on large-scale battery energy storage systems, categorised under CPV code 71320000 and with delivery in the UK. This opportunity, currently set in planning, includes a market engagement stage with a due date of 23rd March 2026. Businesses are encouraged to complete and submit the Questionnaire as part of their participation in this engagement. The contract period is anticipated to start on 1st April 2029 and end on 31st March 2033.

This procurement provides an excellent business growth opportunity for companies specialising in battery energy storage technologies such as Lithium Iron Phosphate, Sodium-Sulfur, and others suitable for large-scale applications. Organisations offering expertise in engineering design services, particularly those capable of addressing the dynamic power requirements of fusion power plants, are well-suited to engage. Such businesses can leverage their knowledge to influence the future design and specification of the STEP project. There's a clear demand for expertise in high-capacity storage solutions, efficient energy management during alternating load demands, and sustaining optimal integration with the national grid standards, aligning with STEP's advanced power plant requirements. Participation in this market engagement phase can position businesses advantageously for subsequent procurement stages.

## Notice

The following summary is not intended as a complete or definitive specification of the requirement. A purpose of this engagement is to seek information from the market to help refine our understanding and aid the development of a future specification. STEP is currently in its Concept Design phase, which is expected to be completed in 2026. The electrical infrastructure of STEP will resemble that of large conventional thermal power stations; however, its design presents unique challenges: Fusion power stations like STEP have exceptionally large parasitic (auxiliary/house) loads required to initiate and sustain fusion reactions--significantly higher than those in conventional power plants. These parasitic loads must be supplied by external sources during plant start-up, before the power generation cycle begins producing electricity. The highly dynamic nature of these loads could make compliance with grid code requirements challenging. For more information, please refer to: Staying positive: producing net power | Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society A | The Royal Society UKIFS is seeking experts to support the technology selection of a central energy storage system (CESS) that is part of the STEP Electrical infrastructure. Due to the power dynamics of operating the STEP power plant and operating parameters set by the National Energy System Operator (NESO), an energy storage system is required to provide a mechanism to ensure that we remain within the NESO operating parameters. Rather than a continuous output, STEP will operate on a pulsed basis. The power dynamics of the fusion pulses are typically different to a conventional power plant, and a CESS has been identified as a critical system to the design as it provides a mechanism to compensate for the changing load dynamics throughout the pulse. This will ensure STEP remains within the NESO defined operating parameters at the point of grid connection. Current assumptions are to exploit existing Battery Energy Storage Systems (BESS) to fulfil the energy storage needs. We are interested in all battery chemistries used in large-scale energy storage systems, including Lithium Iron Phosphate (LFP), Sodium-Sulfur (NaS), Lithium Titanate (LTO), Vanadium Redox Flow Batteries (VRFB), Nickel Manganese-Cobalt (MNC), Solid State Batteries or others. Due to knowledge gaps in BESS behaviour and limitations, the decision of using a BESS system for the CESS cannot be fully justified. This PME is looking to address this. The proposed technical and operational characteristics of the BESS are: 2 operational cycles per day Pulse length will be over 1 hour (continuous) Power range larger than 300MW Energy capacity 100-300MWh Response in the millisecond range Similar charge and discharge rates. Fast response time during power swings (full charge to discharge) High round trip efficiency: 80% In conjunction the BESS will be required to be operated and maintained for the 20-year life of the STEP machine. For more information about this opportunity, please visit the Delta eSourcing portal at: https://ukifs.delta-esourcing.com/tenders/UK-UK-Culham:-Engineering-design-services./44277P4UUB To respond to this opportunity, please click here: https://ukifs.delta-esourcing.com/respond/44277P4UUB

### Planning Information

A purpose of this engagement is to seek information from the market to help refine our understanding and aid the development of a future specification. UKIFS is seeking experts to support the technology selection of a central energy storage system (CESS) that is part of the STEP Electrical infrastructure.
To participate in this exercise, please complete and submit Appendix 1: Questionnaire and return any documents via the Delta portal. We are conscious of your time (and grateful to you for taking the time to complete the questionnaire), therefore we suggest you limit your responses to a maximum of 5 pages. If there are any areas you would like to expand on, please add a note to the relevant section for future discussion. 
If you experience any difficulties with the portal, please contact the portal helpdesk helpdesk@delta-esourcing.com cc operationalprocurement.step@ukifs.uk 
Information obtained from responses to Appendix 1: Questionnaire will help UKIFS understand current market capabilities and may shape the scope, direction, and design of the future procurement activities. 
If you have any questions about this Preliminary Market Engagement, please contact UKIFS through the Delta portal. We are keen to engage with suppliers to assist with the questionnaire if needed, to ensure quality responses enabling us to shape the future requirement and procurement. 
Following the submission and review of questionnaires, UKIFS intends to run an online conference call meeting/seminar/Q&A. The closing date for the pre-market engagement is Monday 23rd March 2026, 1 pm.

## Key Details

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Publication source | Find A Tender Service |
| Latest notice | https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/007049-2026 |
| Notice type | UK2 - Preliminary Market Engagement Notice |
| Procurement type | Standard |
| Procurement category | Services |
| Procurement method | Not Specified |
| Procurement method details | Not specified |
| Tender suitability | Not specified |
| Awardee scale | Not specified |
| All stages | Planning |

## Dates

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Publication date | 27 Jan 2026 |
| Submission deadline | Not specified |
| Future notice date | 23 Mar 2026 |
| Award date | Not specified |
| Contract period | 31 Mar 2029 - 31 Mar 2033 |
| Recurrence | Not specified |

## Values

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Tender value | Not specified |
| Lots value | Not specified |
| Awards value | Not specified |
| Contracts value | Not specified |

## Status

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Tender status | Planning |
| Lots status | Planning |
| Awards status | Not specified |
| Contracts status | Not specified |

## Buyer

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Main buyer | UNITED KINGDOM INDUSTRIAL FUSION SOLUTIONS |
| Locality | CULHAM |
| Post town | Oxford |
| Postcode | OX14 3DB |
| Country | England |
| ITL 1 | TLJ South East (England) |
| ITL 2 | TLJ1 Berkshire, Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire |
| ITL 3 | TLJ14 Oxfordshire CC |
| Local authority | South Oxfordshire |
| Electoral ward | Sandford & the Wittenhams |
| Westminster constituency | Didcot and Wantage |
| Delivery location | Not specified |

## CPV Codes

### Divisions

- 71 - Architectural, construction, engineering and inspection services

### Codes

- 71320000 - Engineering design services
- 71323100 - Electrical power systems design services
- 71323200 - Plant engineering design services

## Release History

- 27 Jan 2026 at 12:05 - Planning - UK2 - Preliminary Market Engagement Notice - https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/007049-2026

## Documents

- https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/007049-2026
  27th January 2026 - Preliminary market engagement notice on Find a Tender

## Notice URLs

- https://ukifs.delta-esourcing.com/respond/44277P4UUB
- https://ukifs.delta-esourcing.com/tenders/UK-UK-Culham:-Engineering-design-services./44277P4UUB
- https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2023/54/contents

## 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-060f8e. The underlying structured data is available as OCDS JSON at https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-060f8e.json.