Official UK procurement notice
Leeds City Centre Heat Network
Authority: Leeds City Council (Local council)·On behalf of: OVE ARUP & PARTNERS LIMITED
What is being bought
Published requirement descriptionLeeds City Council ("LCC") is seeking via this Procurement to appoint a Development & Funding Partner to develop the Leeds City Centre Heat Network ("the Network") under a Development Agreement ("DA"). The Network will be a large-scale, low carbon heat network serving the Leeds AZP Area ("the Project").
The Development & Funding Partner will enter into the DA with LCC to undertake development activities during the Development Period. The DA is based on the template "Golden Share Development Agreement" developed by DESNZ for the Advanced Zoning Programme ("AZP") and regulates the design and development of the Network up until the point at which the Project is approved, not approved or is deemed to be unviable at the Approvals Gateway.
If the Project successfully meets the Mandatory Requirements ("MRs") set out in the DA, the Development & Funding Partner has met its relevant obligations under the DA and LCC elects to approve the Project, LCC and the Development & Funding Partner will be required to enter into a Joint Venture Partnership via a Shareholders' Agreement ("SHA").
The SHA is based on the template "Golden Share Shareholders' Agreement" developed by DESNZ for the Advanced Zoning Programme and will govern the management of the Special Purpose Vehicle ("SPV") and impose obligations on delivery and operation of the Network.
The Development & Funding Partner will be responsible for further development activities, funding and delivering the Project under the SHA, as the Development & Funding Partner. LCC will hold a Golden Share under the SHA.
LCC (in its own right and via its wholly owned subsidiary) is the owner and operator of the Leeds PIPES heat network ("Leeds PIPES"). LCC may elect to offer to transfer Leeds PIPES to the SPV on a cash or equity basis after execution of the SHA and in accordance with the terms of the SHA. The following known risk has been identified as part of this procurement:
- Future introduction of the Heat Network Zoning regulations and the appointment of the Zone Coordinator.
- How the procedure runs: This Competitive Flexible Procedure will be conducted in five (5) stages. a. Stage 1: Conditions of Participation - issuing this Tender notice and a Procurement Specific Questionnaire, which includes the Conditions of Participation. b. Stage 2: Interim Tender Response Phase - suppliers who have been successfully shortlisted at Stage 1 will be invited to submit an Interim Tender Response. This will be limited to a legal response on the Contract Documents. c. Stage 3: Dialogue Meetings - Following receipt of the Interim Tender Responses, dialogue meeting(s) will be held with each Supplier to discuss their responses in Stage 2. d. Stage 4: Invitation to Submit a Final Tender Response - Stage 4 will commence with LCC providing any documents which have been updated following Stage 3, and inviting suppliers to respond to the Technical, Commercial and Social Value questions. e. Stage 5: Preferred Supplier Stage - LCC will provide an assessment summary to all Suppliers that submitted Final Tender Responses. LCC will clarify commitments with the Supplier who LCC considers has the Most Advantageous Tender in order to finalise the Contractual Documentation. During this stage LCC will not negotiate substantive terms post final tender evaluation and award, only using this stage to clarify and confirm commitments made in the tender negotiation. This will ensure a confirmed understanding of how the contract will operate and reducing the risk of issues arising once the contract has been entered into. The conditions of participation used in Stage 1 will include: • Financial Capacity • Insurance • Data Protection • Legal Capacity • Technical Ability (relevant experience and case study examples) • Health and Safety • Requirement under section 73 of the Act • Tackling Modern Slavery in Supply Chains
- No preliminary market engagement: The preliminary market engagement notice was published.
CPV: District-heating mains construction work · Energy and related services · Heating works · Urban development construction work
The lotProcurement structure
single lot · value publishedLot #1AwardedPublished value£3,405,000,000
What it takes to wini
How this buyer will score bids.
The evaluation criteria and weights exactly as published on the notice, grouped by family (price, quality, social value and so on).
Evaluation split and conditions of participation as published; the tender pack may add morei
How this buyer will score bids.
The evaluation criteria and weights exactly as published on the notice, grouped by family (price, quality, social value and so on).
Published sub-criteria (3)
- Technical: 75%
- Commercial: 15%
- Social Value: 10%
Published award criteria (3)
- Technical: Technical quality questions
- Commercial
- Social Value: Social Value question and targets
- Price carries 15 of 100 points: a 10% discount moves about 1.5 points. The method statement decides this lot, not the discount.
Price arithmetic assumes straight proportional scoring; the tender pack may use another formula.
Procedure terms & legal framework
From the official record- Procedure method
- Competitive flexible procedure
- Legal basis
- UKPGA · 2023/54 Procurement Act 2023
- Procurement category
- Works
- Notice status
- Awarded
- Procurement threshold
- Above threshold (FTS publication)
- Regulatory regime
- Concession
- Commercial structure
- Stand-alone contract (no framework)
- Competition type
- Competitive procedure
- GPA / WTO covered
- Unspecified in notice
- Recurring procurement
- Unspecified in notice
- First published
- 14 May 2025, 08:42 BST
- Last source update
- 18 Feb 2026, 15:58 GMT
- Award evaluation window
- Submission end – 13 Feb 2026
- Authority reference
99236- FTS notice number
2025/S 000-037937- Latest notice
- Contract award notice (UK6)
- Classification (CPV)
- Delivery area
- Official registry OCID
ocds-h6vhtk-05128cFind a Tender
- How it runs
This Competitive Flexible Procedure will be conducted in five (5) stages.
a. Stage 1: Conditions of Participation - issuing this Tender notice and a Procurement Specific Questionnaire, which includes the Conditions of Participation.
b. Stage 2: Interim Tender Response Phase - suppliers who have been successfully shortlisted at Stage 1 will be invited to submit an Interim Tender Response. This will be limited to a legal response on the Contract Documents.
c. Stage 3: Dialogue Meetings - Following receipt of the Interim Tender Responses, dialogue meeting(s) will be held with each Supplier to discuss their responses in Stage 2.
d. Stage 4: Invitation to Submit a Final Tender Response - Stage 4 will commence with LCC providing any documents which have been updated following Stage 3, and inviting suppliers to respond to the Technical, Commercial and Social Value questions.
e. Stage 5: Preferred Supplier Stage - LCC will provide an assessment summary to all Suppliers that submitted Final Tender Responses. LCC will clarify commitments with the Supplier who LCC considers has the Most Advantageous Tender in order to finalise the Contractual Documentation. During this stage LCC will not negotiate substantive terms post final tender evaluation and award, only using this stage to clarify and confirm commitments made in the tender negotiation. This will ensure a confirmed understanding of how the contract will operate and reducing the risk of issues arising once the contract has been entered into.
The conditions of participation used in Stage 1 will include:
- Financial Capacity
- Insurance
- Data Protection
- Legal Capacity
- Technical Ability (relevant experience and case study examples)
- Health and Safety
- Requirement under section 73 of the Act
- Tackling Modern Slavery in Supply Chains
How it was run
Official notice- Submission deadline
- 17 Oct 2025, 12:00 BST
- Clarification deadline
- 29 Jul 2025, 12:00 BST
- Submission channel
- Official e-sourcing portal
- Electronic submission
- Allowed
- Accepted languages
- en
Bids must be submitted to the website yortender.eu-supply.com/login.asp ↗ using the contract refence number 99236, as outlined in the tender documentation.
The indicative procurement dates for this opportunity are:
29/07/2025 - Deadline for clarification questions submitted (Enquiry Deadline)
22/08/2025 - Deadline for receipt of PSQ Response (Tender Submission Deadline)
17/10/2025 - Deadline for receipt of Interim Tender Responses
19/12/2025 - Deadline for receipt of Final Tender Responses
13/03/2025 - Assessment summaries & Contract Award Notice issued
03/04/2025 - Contract signature (Contract Start Date)
Timeline
14 May 2025 → 1 Mar 2026 · 10 dates- Planning notice published14 May 2025, 08:42 BST
- Next notice expected16 Jun 2025, 23:59 BST
- Tender notice published7 Jul 2025, 15:40 BST
- Clarification questions by29 Jul 2025, 12:00 BST
- Submission deadline375 days ago17 Oct 2025, 12:00 BST
- Award decision expected by255 days ago13 Feb 2026, 23:59 GMT
- Assessment summaries sent251 days ago18 Feb 2026
- Latest notice published251 days ago18 Feb 2026, 15:58 GMT
- Standstill ends241 days ago27 Feb 2026, 23:59 GMT
- Contract starts240 days ago1 Mar 2026
Notice history
9 events · 3 releases on Find a Tender · since 14 May 2025- Pipeline notice published14 May 2025, 08:42 BSTUK1
- Tender notice published7 Jul 2025, 15:40 BSTUK4
- Published value updated to £3,405,000,0007 Jul 2025, 15:40 BSTwas £2,955,000,000
- Status changed to active7 Jul 2025, 15:40 BST
- Procurement method changed7 Jul 2025, 15:40 BST
- Deadline published: 17 Oct 2025, 12:00 BST7 Jul 2025, 15:40 BST
- Contract award notice published18 Feb 2026, 15:58 GMTUK6
- Status changed to complete18 Feb 2026, 15:58 GMT
- Contract signature expected20 Mar 2026, 23:59 GMTscheduled
Commercial outcome & contract awards
Published awards, contracts and bid statistics, not a forecast| Awarded to | Value | Date | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pinnacle Power Limited27 Mar 2026 – 1 Apr 2076 | £3,405,000,000very large published value · not counted until verified, check the notice | 18 Feb 2026standstill to 27 Feb 2026 | Standstill |
Bid statistics published by the authority
| Bids | SME | VCSE | Valid bid range |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2final-stage tenders | 1 | 0 | — |
Who bid
- wonHEMIKO LIMITED · North West England
- did not winVITAL ENERGI UTILITIES LIMITED · North West England
Bidders as named on the Procurement Act 2023 award notice. “Won” means the bidder holds an award on this notice.
Contracting authority & participating public bodies
5 public bodies on the noticeOther public bodies
- ADDLESHAW GODDARD LLPProcuring entityLegal support to the project
- ASTEROS ADVISERS LTDProcuring entityCommercial
- HERMETICA BLACK LIMITEDProcuring entityTechnical Advice
- OVE ARUP & PARTNERS LIMITEDProcuring entityProcurement support and advice
Bidders & participating suppliers
2 commercial parties on the notice · 1 awarded- HEMIKO LIMITEDAwarded supplier
- VITAL ENERGI UTILITIES LIMITEDBidder / tenderer
Official documents & specifications (3)
Official links; attachments are not copiedNotices published for this procedure
- Contract award notice Contract award notice on Find a Tender
- Tender notice Tender notice on Find a Tender
- Pipeline notice Pipeline notice on Find a Tender