Stoke-on-Trent Sustainability Park Energy Recovery Facility - Design, Build and Operate

Stoke-on-Trent City Council (the Authority) seeks to procure a replacement Energy Recovery Facility (ERF) in Hanford, Stoke-on-Trent.

The Authority intends to procure a new ERF with a capacity of 230,000-290,000 tonnes per annum on an 80% Council / 20% private sector ownership basis. The procurement encompasses Design and Build (D&B) and a 25-year Operations and Maintenance (O&M) contract. The Authority will submit a planning application in due course for the future Facility.

Key requirements:

• Design and build of a new ERF with moving grate combustion technology (or equivalent) and advanced flue-gas treatment systems

• Integration of Combined Heat and Power (CHP) technology to deliver low-carbon heat to the city's District Heat Network to supply Local Sector anchor loads.

• Heat to be delivered to the ERF site boundary for onward distribution by the Heat Network Provider

• The facility must be Carbon Capture Ready and aligned with the Authority's Net Zero 2050 strategy

• Full 25-year operations and maintenance service post-commissioning, including planned and reactive maintenance, lifecycle asset replacement, environmental monitoring and community education services

The Contracting Authority previously published a Prior Information Notice (PIN) under the Public Contracts Regulations 2015 (PCR 2015) reference 037025 to signal its intention to undertake preliminary engagement with the market in relation to this requirement. As the procurement will now proceed under the Procurement Act 2023, this UK2 Preliminary Market Engagement Notice is being issued to ensure alignment with the new legislative framework and to maintain transparency regarding the market engagement undertaken.

The purpose of the engagement was to understand market capability, capacity, delivery models, and potential risks/opportunities ahead of the forthcoming procurement. The engagement activities included (but were not limited to):

• circulation of early‑stage information;

• supplier briefing sessions and/or soft‑market testing activities; and

• receipt of informal feedback from interested suppliers.

No selection or shortlisting took place during this engagement, and participation conferred no advantage or disadvantage in the future procurement process.

This notice confirms:

that preliminary market engagement has been conducted in relation to the proposed procurement; and

that a Tender Notice (UK4) will be published in due course in line with the requirements of the Procurement Act 2023.

Suppliers who did not participate in the earlier PIN‑related activity are not prejudiced and will have full opportunity to tender once the procurement formally commences under the new legislation.