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PROCUREMENT OPPORTUNITY

RRSG0003 - Expansion of International Passenger Rail Depot Capacity. Potential Public Private Partnership opportunity

Department for Transport · Preliminary market engagement notice on Find a Tender

Tender information last checkedLast checked 30 Sept 2026, 10:01.

Opportunity overview

The Government is fully supportive of the growth and expansion of international rail connections between the UK and mainland Europe, as well as establishing a thriving and competitive market for international rail passenger services. We are seeing renewed interest from potential new entrants looking to enter the market to compete with Eurostar, as well as Eurostar’s own publicised plans to procure a new fleet of trains to supports its expansion plans, including opening new routes to Switzerland and Germany. All are seeking to base their fleet maintenance operations in the UK given the nature of their planned services and constraints in mainland Europe. Most new entrants have plans to procure 10-12 trainsets whilst Eurostar has announced plans to procure 30-50 trainsets across both its cross-Channel and continental Europe networks. A lack of available international passenger rail maintenance / stabling depot capacity is constraining sector growth and limiting competition. The Government is therefore considering potential interventions to address this constraint, which could facilitate market opening and significant growth. The objective of this pre-liminary market engagement is to understand potential private investor interest in and appetite for financing and delivering the expansion of international passenger rail deport capacity in the London area. The Government has assessed options for establishing a new maintenance depot and is now interested in understanding market appetite to participate in the construction and operation of a new light and/or heavy maintenance facility that would be capable of meeting the needs of multiple operators’ fleet requirements.

Classification

  • CPV34620000 — Rolling stock
  • CPV34940000 — Railway equipment
  • CPV34942000 — Signalling equipment
  • CPV45000000 — Construction work
  • CPV45200000 — Works for complete or part construction and civil engineering work
  • CPV45213320 — Construction work for buildings relating to railway transport
  • CPV45220000 — Engineering works and construction works
  • CPV45230000 — Construction work for pipelines, communication and power lines, for highways, roads, airfields and railways; flatwork
  • CPV45234100 — Railway construction works
  • CPV45234112 — Railway depot construction work
  • CPV50220000 — Repair, maintenance and associated services related to railways and other equipment
  • CPV50225000 — Railway-track maintenance services
  • CPV50700000 — Repair and maintenance services of building installations
  • CPV66122000 — Corporate finance and venture capital services
  • CPV66171000 — Financial consultancy services
  • CPV70330000 — Property management services of real estate on a fee or contract basis
  • CPV71220000 — Architectural design services
  • CPV71311230 — Railway engineering services
  • CPV71323000 — Engineering-design services for industrial process and production
  • CPV79100000 — Legal services
  • CPV79410000 — Business and management consultancy services
  • CPV79993000 — Building and facilities management services
  • CPV90911200 — Building-cleaning services

Lots

  • Lot 1Value not stated

Documents and notices

Published notice details

Additional information from the published procurement release. Fields appear only when supplied by the source; check the original notice and tender documents before acting.

Scope, procedure and submissions

Id
RRSG0003
Status
planning
Above Threshold
Yes
Main Procurement Category
services

Legal basis

Id
2023/54
Scheme
UKPGA

Communication

Future Notice Date
31 Dec 2025, 23:59

Lots and requirements

Entry 1
Id
1
Status
planning

Contract period

Ends
31 Aug 2029, 23:59
Starts
1 Sept 2027, 00:00

Items and delivery

Item 1
Id
1
Related Lot
1

Delivery locations

Entry 1
Region
UK
Country
GB
Country Name
United Kingdom

Additional Classifications

Entry 1
Id
45234112
Scheme
CPV
Description
Railway depot construction work
Entry 2
Id
45234100
Scheme
CPV
Description
Railway construction works
Entry 3
Id
45213320
Scheme
CPV
Description
Construction work for buildings relating to railway transport
Entry 4
Id
71311230
Scheme
CPV
Description
Railway engineering services
Entry 5
Id
45200000
Scheme
CPV
Description
Works for complete or part construction and civil engineering work
Entry 6
Id
71323000
Scheme
CPV
Description
Engineering-design services for industrial process and production
Entry 7
Id
71220000
Scheme
CPV
Description
Architectural design services
Entry 8
Id
34620000
Scheme
CPV
Description
Rolling stock
Entry 9
Id
34940000
Scheme
CPV
Description
Railway equipment
Entry 10
Id
34942000
Scheme
CPV
Description
Signalling equipment
Entry 11
Id
50225000
Scheme
CPV
Description
Railway-track maintenance services
Entry 12
Id
50220000
Scheme
CPV
Description
Repair, maintenance and associated services related to railways and other equipment
Entry 13
Id
45000000
Scheme
CPV
Description
Construction work
Entry 14
Id
45220000
Scheme
CPV
Description
Engineering works and construction works
Entry 15
Id
45230000
Scheme
CPV
Description
Construction work for pipelines, communication and power lines, for highways, roads, airfields and railways; flatwork
Entry 16
Id
79993000
Scheme
CPV
Description
Building and facilities management services
Entry 17
Id
70330000
Scheme
CPV
Description
Property management services of real estate on a fee or contract basis
Entry 18
Id
50700000
Scheme
CPV
Description
Repair and maintenance services of building installations
Entry 19
Id
90911200
Scheme
CPV
Description
Building-cleaning services
Entry 20
Id
66122000
Scheme
CPV
Description
Corporate finance and venture capital services
Entry 21
Id
66171000
Scheme
CPV
Description
Financial consultancy services
Entry 22
Id
79100000
Scheme
CPV
Description
Legal services
Entry 23
Id
79410000
Scheme
CPV
Description
Business and management consultancy services

Planning and budget

Documents

Entry 1
Id
060379-2025
Format
text/html
Notice Type
UK2
Description
Preliminary market engagement notice on Find a Tender
Document Type
marketEngagementNotice
Published
29 Sept 2025, 10:13

Milestones

Entry 1
Id
engagement
Type
engagement
Status
scheduled
Due
22 Oct 2025, 23:59
Description
To ensure we take the right approach, the Department for Transport would like to understand private partner investor interest in this opportunity. We plan to hold initial conversations (up to a maximum of 30 mins for each session) with potential investors over Microsoft Teams week commencing 3rd November 2025. The strength of demand in the international passenger rail market is evidenced by the significant and active interest that major rail operators have in joining the market. It is envisaged that access charges to depot facilities would generate from consistent long-term returns for an investor in international passenger rail depot capacity. The objective of this-preliminary market engagement is to understand potential private investor interest for funding the expansion of international passenger rail depot capacity in London and the Southeast. Including understanding: • Potential investors’ interest and views on the investment opportunity • Preferred commercial and delivery structures • Risk appetite and related considerations • Other related potential revenue streams, linked to investment in depot capacity expansion, that could generate investment return Organisations wishing to participate should note that engaging in this preliminary market engagement exercise, including completing and returning a questionnaire response, is not a prerequisite to participating in any subsequent competitive process. Department for Transport will review response to this engagement process and may conduct further iterative engagement processes, as it may require. In any subsequent procurement Department for Transport will make all relevant market engagement documents available to potential suppliers. Participation in this market engagement exercise (including attendance at a market engagement event) will be wholly at each responding organisation's own cost. No expenses or costs incurred by any organisation responding to this notice and/or participating in this engagement process will be reimbursed by the Department for Transport. This market engagement exercise and any associated documents or communications should not be regarded as an investment recommendation or defined opportunity. No information contained in the documents or in any communication made between Department for Transport and any organisation in connection with any aspect of this market engagement exercise shall be relied upon as constituting a contract, agreement or representation that any contract shall be awarded. Whether or not the Department for Transport subsequently commences a procurement and/or thereafter awards any contract related to this potential opportunity shall be solely at its discretion. The Department for Transport intends to issue a brief post engagement questionnaire to parties that have taken part. If you would like to take part in this engagement, you must formally express your interest via the Jaggaer online portal using the following link: https://dft.app.jaggaer.com/go/315617550199856E55A5 To register your interest in the preliminary market engagement, please ensure you: Upload a signed copy of the Non-Disclosure Agreement (NDA) – note that the NDA must be accepted in its standard form and must not be amended. Submit your completed questionnaire response. Provide the names and email addresses of up to two attendees who will represent your organisation. If you are not already registered on the Department for Transport's e-sourcing platform Jaggaer, you can register via the following link: https://dft.app.jaggaer.com/

Buyer, suppliers and contacts

Organisation 1
Id
GB-PPON-PLTC-5358-LTWZ
Name
Department for Transport

Roles

buyer

Address

Region
UKI32
Country
GB
Locality
London
Postal Code
SW1P 4DR
Country Name
United Kingdom
Street Address
Great Minster House, 33 Horseferry Road

Details

Classifications

Entry 1
Id
publicAuthorityCentralGovernment
Scheme
UK_CA_TYPE
Description
Public authority - central government

Identifier

Id
PLTC-5358-LTWZ
Scheme
GB-PPON

Contact

Recorded locations

  • Buyer location · London · UKI32 · SW1P 4DR · United Kingdom
  • Delivery location · UK · United Kingdom

Notice and amendment history

1 published notice version reviewed by ProcuraAxis.

1 VERSION
  1. ocds-h6vhtk-05a3bd-2025-09-29T10:13:50+01:00Preliminary market engagement notice on Find a Tender ·