Shipbuilding tenders and contracts
UK public sector, covering 600+ buyer sites
325 shipbuilding tenders and contracts, 58 this year.
Updated 4 November 2026 · compiled by BidSkim Limited · How we count
- Awarded a month£1.2m
- Contracts a month1.3
- Won by SMEs70%
- Live now4See them →
Shipbuilding contracts
Tap a region to see its contracts. Pick as many as you like.
31 contracts across the UK, of any size
Live now
4 shipbuilding opportunities are open now
- OpenCloses in 6 daysCorran Ferry New Electric Vessel (CFNEV)The Highland Council · Scotland
- Pre-market19 Oct 2026Fast Boats and Road TransportHome Office · LondonEst.£1.2m
- Pre-market12 Oct 2026
- Pre-market1 Oct 2026Est.£115m
- Awarded16 Oct 2026Marine Survey VesselNatureScot · ScotlandWon by Cheetah Marine International LTD£207k
- Awarded7 Oct 2026Supply, Delivery, Testing & Commissioning of 1 no Pilot VesselPD Ports · North EastWon by Holyhead Marine Services Ltd
- Awarded25 Sep 2026Design & Build of New Passenger VesselShetland Islands Council · Scotland
- Awarded25 Sep 2026Design & Build of New Passenger VesselShetland Islands Council · Scotland
- Awarded17 Sep 2026Port of Aberdeen - Procurement of Pilot Boat(s)Port of Aberdeen · Scotland
- Awarded9 Sep 2026Purchase of rowing launchesOxford Brookes University · South EastWon by Rowing Solutions Limited£84k
- Awarded14 Jul 2026Wycliffe boat fleetUniversity of the West of England Higher Education Corporation · South WestWon by Woodpark Limited£83k
- Awarded20 May 2026Futures AfloatTrinity House · LondonWon by Vard Group AS£193m
- Awarded18 May 2026Invitation to Tender - Pilot Boat design and buildPeterhead Port Authority · Scotland
- Awarded24 Mar 2026Shipyard Detailed Design and Build Contract “Freight Flex” Ro-Pax VesselsCaledonian Maritime Assets Ltd · ScotlandWon by Guangzhou Shipyard International Co., Ltd.£175m
- Awarded24 Mar 2026Shipyard Detailed Design and Build Contract “Freight Flex” Ro-Pax VesselsCaledonian Maritime Assets LtdWon by Guangzhou Shipyard International Co., Ltd.£175m
- Awarded5 Mar 2026Project Beehive – USV (Unmanned Surface Vessel) and GCS (Ground Control System) ProcurementMinistry of Defence · LondonWon by kraken Works Ltd£10.3m
- Awarded17 Feb 2026Purchase of WorkboatNorth Yorkshire Council · Yorkshire and the HumberWon by Capital Pleasure Boats Limited£55k
- Awarded10 Feb 2026Conventional Pilot VesselPort of Tyne Authority · North EastWon by Holyhead Marine Services Ltd£1.9m
- Awarded5 Feb 2026THV Alert replacement rigid Hull Inflatable BoatTrinity House · LondonWon by Quinquari Marine£67k
- Awarded16 Jan 2026UKRI-5607 BAS - Sea ice mooring buoy USVUK Research and Innovation (UKRI) · South WestWon by Pulsar Laboratories d.o.o£53k
- Awarded1 Dec 2025Supply of a Second Hand 24m Landing Craft Type VesselOrkney Islands Council · ScotlandWon by BK Marine Ltd.£1.5m
- Awarded10 Oct 2025School of Biology/SMRU: Bespoke 7.5M VesselUniversity of St Andrews · Scotland£380k
- Awarded18 Jul 2025Salcombe Harbour Moorings BargeSouth Hams District Council · South WestWon by Parkol Marine Engineering Ltd£1.6m
- Awarded16 Jun 2025EC1046 University Rowing FleetUniversity of Edinburgh · ScotlandWon by Hudson Boat Works UK Ltd£325k
- Awarded16 Jun 2025EC1046 University Rowing FleetUniversity of Edinburgh · ScotlandWon by Hudson Boat Works UK Ltd£325k
- Awarded4 Jun 2025Supply of VesselShetland Islands Council · ScotlandWon by Parkol Marine Engineering Ltd£5.6m
- Awarded25 Apr 2025Defence Marine Services - Support to In-Port Marine Services and Delivery of a Vessel Replacement Programme ACMinistry of Defence · South EastWon by Serco
- Awarded8 Apr 2025Purchase of workboatExeter City Council · South WestWon by Exmouth Mussel Ltd£165k
- Awarded28 Mar 2025Shipyard Detailed Design and Build Contract Vehicle and Passenger Carrying FerriesCaledonian Maritime Assets Ltd · ScotlandWon by Remontowa Shipbuilding S.A.£148m
- Awarded28 Mar 2025Shipyard Detailed Design and Build Contract Vehicle and Passenger Carrying FerriesCaledonian Maritime Assets Ltd · ScotlandWon by Remontowa Shipbuilding S.A.£148m
- Awarded16 Jan 2025ecm 7114 Montserrat Patrol VesselsForeign, Commonwealth and Development Office · South WestWon by Berthon£627k
Where to bid
Where shipbuilding tenders are run
Defence Sourcing Portal1 25%
Delta eSourcing1 25%
In-Tend1 25%- Jaggaer1 25%
Tenders published in the last year that name the bid portal they run on.
Vard Group AS won the most shipbuilding contracts by value
Each dot is one contract, coloured by who bought it.
Transport and utilitiesCouncilsCentral governmentEducation
| Rank | Contractor | Contracts won, by buyer | Contracts | Value won | Buyers | Share |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1joint | Guangzhou Shipyard International Co., Ltd. Scotland · See every contract | 2 | £175m | 1 | ||
| 1joint | Remontowa Shipbuilding S.A. Scotland · See every contract | 2 | £148m | 1 | ||
| 1joint | Parkol Marine Engineering Ltd South West · SME · See every contract | 2 | £7.2m | 2 | ||
| 1joint | Holyhead Marine Services Ltd North East · SME · See every contract | 2 | £1.9m | 2 | ||
| 1joint | Berthon South West · SME · See every contract | 2 | £1.3m | 1 | ||
| 1joint | Hudson Boat Works UK Ltd Scotland · SME · See every contract | 2 | £325k | 1 | ||
| 1joint | Serco South East · See every contract | 2 | Not published | 1 | ||
| 8joint | Vard Group AS London · See every contract | 1 | £193m | 1 | ||
| 8joint | kraken Works Ltd London · See every contract | 1 | £10.3m | 1 | ||
| 8joint | BK Marine Ltd. Scotland · SME · See every contract | 1 | £1.5m | 1 |
7 more shipbuilding contractors ranked. See the full ranking →
Win shipbuilding contracts? Share your ranking.
Who buys
Transport and utility bodies award 39% of shipbuilding contracts
Contracts with a published value in the last 2 years, from the type of buyer to the size of the contract.
6 buyers bought shipbuilding more than once in the last 2 years
Each dot is a buyer, by how many shipbuilding contracts it awarded in the last 2 years.
See who they are and when they usually buy →
Few and big, or many and small
Each dot is a buyer: how many shipbuilding contracts it awarded against what they were worth. The busiest and biggest are named.
Transport and utilitiesCouncilsCentral governmentEducation
Top buyers by contracts awarded
| Rank | Buyer | Contracts | Value |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Caledonian Maritime Assets Ltd | 4 | £645m |
| 2 | Shetland Islands Council | 4 | £5.6m |
| 3 | Ministry of Defence | 3 | £10.3m |
| 4 | Trinity House | 2 | £193m |
| 5 | Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office | 2 | £1.3m |
| 6 | University of Edinburgh | 2 | £650k |
| 7 | Port of Tyne Authority | 1 | £1.9m |
| 8 | South Hams District Council | 1 | £1.6m |
| 9 | Orkney Islands Council | 1 | £1.5m |
| 10 | University of St Andrews | 1 | £380k |
112 shipbuilding contracts awarded since 2021
- 132021
- 212022
- 302023
- 182024
- 142025
- 162026 so far
Prices
Half of shipbuilding contracts are worth less than £627k
Transport and utilitiesCouncilsCentral governmentEducation
The 10 biggest shipbuilding contracts
- Trinity HouseVard Group AS · 20 May 2026
- Caledonian Maritime Assets LtdGuangzhou Shipyard International Co., Ltd. · 24 Mar 2026
- Caledonian Maritime Assets LtdGuangzhou Shipyard International Co., Ltd. · 24 Mar 2026
- Caledonian Maritime Assets LtdRemontowa Shipbuilding S.A. · 28 Mar 2025
- Caledonian Maritime Assets LtdRemontowa Shipbuilding S.A. · 28 Mar 2025
- Ministry of Defencekraken Works Ltd · 5 Mar 2026
- Shetland Islands CouncilParkol Marine Engineering Ltd · 4 Jun 2025
- Port of Tyne AuthorityHolyhead Marine Services Ltd · 10 Feb 2026
- South Hams District CouncilParkol Marine Engineering Ltd · 18 Jul 2025
- Orkney Islands CouncilBK Marine Ltd. · 1 Dec 2025
Renewing contracts
No shipbuilding contracts come up for renewal in the next 12 months
The 11 shipbuilding contracts ending are one-off work, which is not re-let as it was.
Where and when
Scotland awards the most shipbuilding contracts. March and September are the busiest months.
Contracts by region and by month awarded. Click a region to filter the page.
FewerMore contracts
The regions as a table
| Region | Open now | Contracts | Value | Typical contract | Won the most | Bought the most | Renewing in 12 months |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Scotland | 1 | 14 | £478m | £1.5m | Remontowa Shipbuilding S.A. and Hudson Boat Works UK Ltd (2 each) | Shetland Islands Council (4) | 0 |
| South West | 0 | 5 | £2.5m | £165k | – | – | 0 |
| London | 2 | 3 | £204m | £10.3m | – | Trinity House (2) | 0 |
| North East | 0 | 2 | £1.9m | – | Holyhead Marine Services Ltd (2) | – | 0 |
| South East | 0 | 2 | £84k | – | – | – | 0 |
| Yorkshire and the Humber | 0 | 1 | £55k | – | – | – | 0 |
| North West | 0 | 0 | Not published | – | – | – | 0 |
| East Midlands | 0 | 0 | Not published | – | – | – | 0 |
| West Midlands | 0 | 0 | Not published | – | – | – | 0 |
| East of England | 0 | 0 | Not published | – | – | – | 0 |
| Wales | 0 | 0 | Not published | – | – | – | 0 |
| Northern Ireland | 0 | 0 | Not published | – | – | – | 0 |
Often bought with shipbuilding
Related services
Key findings
- £1.2m a month
of shipbuilding contracts awarded.
Typical contract £854k x 1.4 contracts a month, last 12 months. - 1.3
shipbuilding contracts are awarded in a typical month.
31 contracts in the last 2 years. - 70%
of shipbuilding contracts are won by SMEs.
As recorded by the buyer, on 20 award notices.
How many shipbuilding tenders and contracts are there?
| Since November 2021 | Last 12 months | |
|---|---|---|
| Notices published | 325 | 58 |
| Contracts awarded | 100 | 17 |
17 shipbuilding contracts and frameworks end in the next 12 months. In the last two years, 20 buyers awarded shipbuilding contracts to 17 suppliers.
Source: Find a Tender, Contracts Finder, Public Contracts Scotland, Sell2Wales and eTendersNI, to 4 November 2026. By Seamus White. How we count
Questions
How many shipbuilding contracts does the UK public sector award?
31 in the 2 years to 4 November 2026, from 20 public buyers.
How long are shipbuilding tenders open for?
The median shipbuilding tender is open for 33 days from publication to deadline.
How much is a typical public sector shipbuilding contract worth?
The median is £627k, and 32% are worth less than £250k.
Which buyers award the most shipbuilding contracts?
Transport and utility bodies award 39% of them.
Which part of the UK awards the most shipbuilding contracts?
Scotland: 14 of 31 in the 2 years to 4 November 2026, then the South West (5) and London (3).
What is included
Design and build or purchase of vessels: ferries, workboats, research and diving support boats, rigid hull inflatable boats and naval support ships.
- Cable and chain ferry design and build
- Research and diving support workboats
- RHIBs for police marine units
- Naval support ship manufacture
What is not included
- Refit of existing vessels (see Vessel and boat maintenance, repair and refit)
- Vessel charter (see Vessel charter with crew)
- Slipways and ferry landing works (see Marine construction)
- Naval architecture design consultancy (see Marine engineering and naval architecture)