Project record

Salcombe-Kingsbridge estuary 2026 maintenance dredging

Official Salcombe Harbour Authority view of sailing vessels at Salcombe Harbour moorings in the Kingsbridge estuary, Devon

Salcombe Harbour Authority; estuary and mooring context image, not evidence of 2026 dredging mobilisation or completion

South Hams District Council, acting for Salcombe Harbour Authority, signed Van Oord UK Limited for maintenance dredging in the Salcombe-Kingsbridge estuary. Find a Tender gives GBP 101,600 excluding VAT, GBP 121,920 including VAT, an 11 March 2026 signature and an estimated contract period through 11 May 2026. The earlier tender identified Batson Creek, Lincombe and Kingsbridge and said water injection dredging was expected. That tendered method is not by itself evidence of the plant used, mobilisation, achieved quantity, post-dredge levels or harbour acceptance.

Project signal

Award in United Kingdom

Current status South Hams District Council signed Van Oord UK Limited on 11 March 2026 for GBP 101,600 excluding VAT; water injection dredging was the tendered expectation for Batson Creek, Lincombe and Kingsbridge, but no public mobilisation, post-dredge survey or acceptance record has been located Source confidence Confirmed

Location

United Kingdom / Europe

Segment

Maintenance dredging and operating-port access

Status

South Hams District Council signed Van Oord UK Limited on 11 March 2026 for GBP 101,600 excluding VAT; water injection dredging was the tendered expectation for Batson Creek, Lincombe and Kingsbridge, but no public mobilisation, post-dredge survey or acceptance record has been located / Confirmed

Last checked

6 August 2026

Coverage

Related sectors

Maintenance dredging and operating-port access 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
South Hams District Council on behalf of Salcombe Harbour Authority
Delivery parties
Van Oord UK Limited - confirmed 2026 contractor, Companies House 01805156, Van Oord / Van Oord UK Ltd - confirmed supplier on separate 2015 and 2021 Salcombe dredging awards; those earlier contracts are context only, Hydrographic survey, environmental monitoring, marine plant and any other downstream parties for the 2026 contract - not identified in the cited sources
Contract route
Procurement reference RQ/499 used a below-threshold open competition under the Procurement Act 2023 and OCID ocds-h6vhtk-05dac3. The tender weighted price at 60% and quality at 40% and sought one supplier. The contract-details notice names Van Oord UK Limited and dates signature to 11 March 2026.
Execution window
The November 2025 tender estimated work from 15 January to 12 March 2026. The later signed-contract record instead runs from 11 March to 11 May 2026. Use the later period for the contract baseline, but do not convert its end date into physical completion or acceptance without a dated harbour or contractor record.
Works package
Maintenance dredging at Batson Creek, Lincombe and Kingsbridge within the Salcombe-Kingsbridge estuary. The tender expected water injection dredging and published no current quantity, target levels, plant, survey specification, monitoring plan or completion test. A separate 2021 contract specified at least 7,500 cubic metres at Batson and Lincombe; that quantity does not transfer to the 2026 package.
Marine interfaces
The Harbour Authority describes a busy estuary extending from the sea to Kingsbridge and used by bathers, paddlers, dinghies, yachts, power boats, superyachts, ferries and a shell-fishing fleet. The 2026 package therefore sits within live navigation and a sensitive estuary. A 2015 tender imposed method and environmental-monitoring boundaries, but those historical terms should not be represented as the current contract's conditions unless the 2026 documents are published.
Commercial evidence boundary
The tender estimate was GBP 99,999 excluding VAT and GBP 120,000 including VAT. The signed contract is GBP 101,600 excluding VAT and GBP 121,920 including VAT. Keep estimate and contract value separate; the difference is not evidence of an overrun. No payment, variation, measured quantity, final account or lower-tier allocation is public in the cited record.

Contract and delivery chain

Named roles and open packages

Named appointments are shown against the workstream they cover. Unallocated packages remain open until a project source identifies the responsible party.

2026 works contract

RQ/499 South Hams Dredging

Named party
Van Oord UK Limited
Status
Confirmed
Source position
The official OCDS record reports a GBP 101,600 excluding-VAT contract, GBP 121,920 including VAT, signature on 11 March 2026 and estimated end on 11 May 2026. Source
Tendered scope

Batson Creek, Lincombe and Kingsbridge maintenance dredging

Named party
South Hams District Council for Salcombe Harbour Authority
Status
Reported
Source position
The UK4 tender identified the three locations and said WID was expected. It did not confirm the method ultimately used or publish a current quantity. Source
Schedule baseline

Tender programme versus signed contract

Named party
South Hams District Council
Status
Confirmed
Source position
The tender estimated 15 January to 12 March 2026; the signed record instead runs 11 March to 11 May 2026. The later end date is not a completion certificate. Source
Historical recurrence

2021 Batson and Lincombe WID contract

Named party
Van Oord
Status
Confirmed
Source position
A separate Contracts Finder release records a GBP 43,250 Van Oord award and tender scope of at least 7,500 cubic metres at Batson and Lincombe by WID. It is not the 2026 quantity or completion evidence. Source
Historical method boundary

2015-2016 Salcombe Harbour estuary dredging

Named party
Van Oord UK Ltd
Status
Confirmed
Source position
A separate GBP 60,000 award followed a tender allowing water agitation, WID or an environmentally no-more-damaging alternative and requiring avoidance of persistent dense fluid mud. Those terms are historical context only. Source
Physical delivery

Mobilisation, production, survey and harbour acceptance

Named party
Salcombe Harbour Authority and Van Oord UK Limited
Status
Not evidenced
Source position
No cited current official source confirms the 2026 plant, start, measured quantity, final levels, completion, navigation release or owner acceptance.

Project timeline

Material developments

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

Open this project in the Change Log

Van Oord signed the 2026 dredging contract

The official record fixes the contractor at Van Oord UK Limited, the value at GBP 101,600 excluding VAT and the estimated contract period through 11 May 2026, while leaving execution evidence unpublished.

Source

Tender named three work areas and expected WID

South Hams identified Batson Creek, Lincombe and Kingsbridge, but the notice described the method and programme as expectations rather than completed work.

Source

A prior Batson and Lincombe WID contract went to Van Oord

The GBP 43,250 award demonstrates a recurring buyer-supplier and method history but does not establish 2026 scope, plant or completion.

Source

Van Oord UK received an earlier three-area estuary contract

The GBP 60,000 award and its environmental method boundary provide historical precedent only and must not be carried forward as current contractual evidence.

Source

Evidence gap

What remains unverified

Outstanding evidence

  • Mobilisation date and named dredger or WID plant
  • Confirmation that WID, rather than an alternative method, was used
  • Batson Creek, Lincombe and Kingsbridge work-area quantities
  • Pre- and post-dredge hydrographic levels
  • Environmental monitoring and any sediment-dispersion controls
  • Harbour notices, navigation restrictions and reopening
  • Completion, owner acceptance, payment and final account
  • Survey, monitoring, support-vessel and other downstream parties

Related records 2

Reporting status

Award, confirmed confidence

Last checked 6 August 2026 across 8 cited sources. The dated timeline above carries the project events.

Last checked 6 August 2026 Cited sources 8

Sources and related records

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Source collections

Project sources 8