Project record

UK Navy Future Dredging Contract

Aerial view of Plymouth Naval Base in 2005 showing enclosed basins, dock infrastructure, warships, and operational waterfronts

Royal Navy / LA(PHOT) Paul A'Barrow / MOD, 2005

The UK Ministry of Defence has published its decision to award the Navy Future Dredging Contract Main Works to Boskalis Westminster Limited. The £9.2 million contract is intended to cover dredging in and around UK naval ports, focused initially on Plymouth and Portsmouth, for two years with two optional one-year extensions.

Project signal

Award in United Kingdom

Treat this as a published award decision under the Procurement Act 2023, not as proof of contract signature, notice to proceed, vessel mobilisation, completed dredging, or accepted navigation depth. The award notice establishes the supplier, price, initial locations, term, option logic, and two-tender competition; it does not disclose quantities, work areas, dredging methods, placement routes, or campaign dates.

Current status Award decision published to Boskalis Westminster; contract signature and start not evidenced Source confidence Confirmed

Location

United Kingdom / Europe

Segment

Dredging

Status

Award decision published to Boskalis Westminster; contract signature and start not evidenced / Confirmed

Evidence reviewed

17 July 2026

Controlled taxonomy

Related sectors

The detailed segment above is the primary work classification. These broader sector links connect the project to related delivery and market research.

Knowledge context

Related knowledge topics

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Project anatomy

Scope, counterparties, and execution logic

Client / authority
UK Ministry of Defence / Defence Infrastructure Organisation
Delivery parties
Boskalis Westminster Limited
Contract route
Competitive flexible procedure under the defence and security regime. The tender used a 70% quality and technical weighting and 30% price weighting. Two tenders were received and assessed; Boskalis Westminster was selected and Van den Herik UK was identified as the unsuccessful supplier.
Execution window
The 6 March 2026 award notice gave 27 March 2026 as the earliest signature date and estimated an initial term from 1 April 2026 to 31 March 2028. Two optional one-year extensions could take the programme to 31 March 2030, subject to contractor performance and continuing operational requirements. Signature and commencement have not been confirmed through a UK7 contract-details notice or a direct owner or contractor statement.
Works package
Dredging works in and around UK naval ports, primarily Plymouth and Portsmouth during the initial period. The reviewed notices do not publish dredged quantities, design or maintenance depths, named basins or berths, sediment characteristics, treatment or placement routes, plant requirements, hydrographic acceptance criteria, or an individual campaign schedule.
Marine interfaces
Delivery will have to be coordinated inside live and security-controlled naval ports where navigation access, berth availability, vessel movements, survey control, environmental compliance, dredging plant, sediment routing, and operational windows can constrain each other. Those interface requirements are decision-relevant, but their project-specific controls are not disclosed in the public notice chain.
Commercial read
The £9.2 million award value is lower than the £16 million estimate in the tender notice, but neither notice explains the pricing basis, expected volumes, call-off structure, risk allocation or option value. The £6.8 million difference is not evidence of a saving or scope reduction without the executed contract and pricing documents. The extension mechanism makes performance and continuing naval requirements explicit gates to future programme value.
Next milestone
Track a UK7 contract-details notice or direct Ministry of Defence or Boskalis confirmation of signature, followed by notice to proceed, defined port or berth work packages, environmental and sediment-routing controls, hydrographic baselines, vessel mobilisation, accepted campaign outputs, and any exercise of the one-year options.

Material change register

What changed, when, and what it proves

Only source-bound events that alter phase, scope, counterparties, delivery, completion, commissioning, or acceptance are listed. A change can advance the record without proving the next gate.

The Ministry of Defence published its Boskalis award decision

The UK6 notice named Boskalis Westminster, recorded a £9.2 million value excluding VAT, two assessed tenders, an earliest signature date of 27 March 2026, and an estimated initial term to March 2028. The decision selected the supplier; signature, notice to proceed, mobilisation, dredging and accepted naval-port access remained open.

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The formal tender opened the competitive procedure

The UK4 notice set a competitive flexible procedure, a £16 million estimate, 70% quality and technical weighting, 30% price weighting, and two optional one-year extensions. The estimate described the tender, not an executed contract value, final scope or saving benchmark.

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The planned procurement notice formalised the future competition

The UK3 notice advanced the requirement from market engagement toward a stated defence dredging procurement. It did not appoint a supplier, define individual Plymouth or Portsmouth campaigns, disclose dredged quantities or sediment routes, or authorise field work.

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Preliminary market engagement tested supplier capacity

The UK2 notice opened early engagement around the Navy Future Dredging Contract requirement. Market engagement was evidence of requirement formation only; it was not a tender, award, contract, work package, mobilisation record, or delivered navigation outcome.

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Delivery watch

Evidence needed next

Track a UK7 contract-details notice or direct Ministry of Defence or Boskalis confirmation of signature, followed by notice to proceed, defined port or berth work packages, environmental and sediment-routing controls, hydrographic baselines, vessel mobilisation, accepted campaign outputs, and any exercise of the one-year options.

Decision watchpoints

  • UK7 contract-details notice or direct signature confirmation
  • Notice to proceed and first port work package
  • Dredging quantities, depths, sediment route, and acceptance criteria
  • Hydrographic baseline and post-dredge survey evidence
  • Plant mobilisation at Plymouth or Portsmouth
  • Performance review and exercise of extension options

Related records 2

Project availability status

This public project page is a tracked market record rather than a tender notice, contractual commitment, or commercial instruction. Use the status, confidence label, evidence-review date, and source note together when judging how much weight to place on the signal.

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Record control

Evidence reviewed date is not a project-event date.

IMWO changes phase, participants, scope, completion, or acceptance wording only when a dated source establishes the change. The review date records when the evidence set was checked; it does not claim that physical work changed on that date.

Evidence reviewed 17 July 2026 Sources in this record 6

Source record

The Ministry of Defence's UK6 notice published on 6 March 2026 names Boskalis Westminster, a £9.2 million value excluding VAT, an initial Plymouth and Portsmouth focus, an estimated two-year term, two optional one-year extensions, and two assessed tenders. The UK4 notice establishes the £16 million estimate, 70:30 quality-price weighting, competitive flexible procedure, and defence and security regime. UK2 and UK3 show earlier market engagement and requirement formation. The procurement stages listed in UK4 separate award, standstill, and contract execution; the reviewed chain does not contain a UK7 notice and does not prove signature, start, mobilisation, quantities, dredging locations, achieved depths, or completed work.

Phase: award. Evidence reviewed: 17 July 2026.

Project sources 6