The East West Railway Company (EWR Co.), the body responsible for delivering the rail link between Oxford and Cambridge, is launching a preliminary market engagement process for a major new supply chain framework valued at an estimated £700 million (excluding VAT).
The investment is being made to secure key specialist contractors to accelerate readiness and de-risk the massive East West Rail (EWR) project, which involves developing new line infrastructure and structures alongside existing track.
Programme Support Works Framework
EWR Co. is seeking to establish a Programme Support Works Framework with multiple lots and multiple suppliers. This commercial model is designed to attract strong competition and incentivise collaborative working across the supply chain.
The framework is intended to maximise land access opportunities, ensure continuity of existing services, provide essential access to SMEs/Tier 2s, deliver social value and innovation, and create a learning platform for future works.
The framework’s total estimated value is £700,000,000 (excluding VAT), with a potential contract duration of up to eight years, running from an estimated start date of 4 January 2027 to 3 January 2031, with a possible four-year extension.
Five Key Lots Announced
The anticipated lot structure aims to cover a broad range of pre-construction and minor works services essential to the early stages of the rail project:
- Archaeology and Heritage
- Ground Investigations and Monitoring
- Environmental and Ecological Works
- Principal Contractor/Co-ordination/Minor Civils
- Utilities and Services
Market Engagement and Timeline
EWR Co. recognises that the scale and complexity of the EWR project require the best suppliers on board. To develop the optimal procurement strategy, the company is commencing market engagement starting with a virtual briefing session.
The initial virtual briefing session, which will set out EWR Co.’s proposed procurement strategy, will be held on 6th November 2025 at 12:30 – 13:30pm.
This session will be followed by a questionnaire inviting potential suppliers to provide feedback on key areas, including: supplier capacity, market interest, the effectiveness and fairness of the lotting strategy, proposed incentivisation mechanisms, and procurement timelines.
To register interest in the preliminary market engagement, suppliers must:
- Register on EWR Co.’s Jaggaer portal.
- Express interest on the Jaggaer portal by the 4th November 2025 at 5pm.
- Provide the names and positions of up to two representatives via the Jaggaer correspondence facility.
Invitations to the virtual briefing will be sent via email on 5th November.
