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

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

Last checked

17 July 2026

Coverage

Related sectors

Dredging is the primary work classification. Related sectors connect this record to adjacent marine delivery and market coverage.

Subject index

Related subjects

These subject pages bring together related projects, technical articles, reports, and evidence methods.

Project anatomy

Contract scope and delivery roles

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 The reviewed notices do not publish dredged quantities, design or maintenance depths, named basins or berths, sediment characteristics, treatment or placement routes, plant requirements,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 evidence boundary
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.

Project timeline

Material developments

Dated events that changed scope, counterparties, delivery, commissioning or operating status.

Open this project in the Change Log

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.

Source

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.

Source

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.

Source

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.

Source

Evidence gap

What remains unverified

Outstanding evidence

  • 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

Reporting status

Award, confirmed confidence

Last checked 17 July 2026 across 6 cited sources. The dated timeline above carries the project events.

Last checked 17 July 2026 Cited sources 6

Sources and related records

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Source collections

Project sources 6