Cadent awards contracts worth £600m

Cadent has announced the four winners of contracts to deliver a ten-year gas mains replacement programme.

The performance related contracts are valued at around £300 million over the first five years, from April 2021, with a second five-year term taking the overall potential value to £600 million.

The regional contracts have gone to:

• Costain for the East of England network
• Morrison Utility Services in North London
• Network Plus in the North West
• Sapphire Utility Solutions and Enzen Global Solutions’ joint venture for the West Midlands

The contracts cover the delivery of construction, operational activities and associated services within each network. The appointment of contractors in each area replaces the previous agreement with  Balfour Beatty, and tRIIO, a joint venture organisation owned by Morrison Utility Services and Skanska UK, to carry out the work across Cadent’s patch.

Local delivery partners will be appointed in the autumn to carry out the mains replacement work, contracted by Cadent but managed by each of the partners in their respective networks.

Cadent’s chief operating officer Howard Forster said: “We are delighted to be working with each of these companies. The use of a Construction Management Organisation (CMO) contract across our gas mains replacement work is a new and innovative approach for Cadent. We are utilising knowledge and experience from other sectors, regarding this type of strategic partner contract.  It is designed to allow these partners to utilise their organisation’s capability and skills to focus on driving customer and safety performance and programme efficiency across Cadent’s major investment programme on a specific network basis.”

Sean Kelly, executive director at Morrison Utility Services, said: “This is a great achievement for the team who have worked to develop a response that fully supports Cadent’s needs and objectives whilst putting customers and safety at the forefront.  During the tender process we demonstrated our ability to work in a collaborative manner and that we understand the challenges ahead. We have forged an excellent relationship over many years with Cadent and look forward to bringing our broader utilities experience to the CMO to continue to build this relationship even further as we go forward into GD2 and beyond.”

Adam Gosnold, managing director of the M Group Services utilities division, said: “This award is a fantastic result for MUS and highlights the company’s ability to be flexible and robust in line with the needs of our clients. We look forward to working with Cadent to deliver this hugely important programme to the highest safety and performance standards whilst putting the customer first.”

Colin Kelly, managing director for Sapphire Utility Solutions, said: “We are delighted to have been selected as Cadent’s partner of choice. This award is a testament to our fresh thinking, collaborative mindset and ability to develop innovative approaches that will allow us to support Cadent in meeting its annual commitments. Through the introduction of a new dynamic operating model, we will safely deliver services that delight customers and create a legacy for future generations in the local communities that we serve.”

In a joint statement Sanjay Neogi, head of UK and Europe for Enzen Global, and Manish Jamthe, chief executive of Enzen UK, said: “The confidence that Cadent has shown in the grant of this contract has made us extremely happy and is a confirmation of our deep expertise in the utilities network and construction management domain. We arrive with next-level innovation and process efficiency to steer Cadent through the regulatory and business commitments while building a best-in-class operating model.”