Contract award notice – utilities
Section I: Contracting
entity
I.1) Name and addresses
NORTHERN TRAINS LIMITED
03076444
George Stephenson House
York
YO16JT
UK
Contact person: Robin Horsman
Telephone: +44 7827937566
E-mail: Robin.Horsman@northernrailway.co.uk
NUTS: UKE21
Internet address(es)
Main address: www.northernrailway.co.uk
I.6) Main activity
Railway services
Section II: Object
II.1) Scope of the procurement
II.1.1) Title
Provision of Ticketing Retailing Equipment and Support Services at station locations.
II.1.2) Main CPV code
50220000
II.1.3) Type of contract
Services
II.1.4) Short description
Extension to the current agreement for the Provision of Ticketing Retailing Equipment 'STARdesktop' and Support Services at station locations from 1st April 2026 until December 2026.
II.1.6) Information about lots
This contract is divided into lots:
No
II.1.7) Total value of the procurement
Lowest offer:
/ Highest offer:
II.2) Description
II.2.2) Additional CPV code(s)
30144200
34940000
II.2.3) Place of performance
NUTS code:
UKC
UKD
UKE
II.2.4) Description of the procurement
Extension to the current agreement for the Provision of Ticketing Retailing Equipment and Support Services at station locations from 1st April 2026 until December 2026.
This includes over 200 STARdesktop devices across 159 ticket offices for the issuing of tickets, railcards, reservations, staff discounts and journey planning information to customers of the railway
On the 12th March 2025 the current service provider published a notification of the End of Service Life (EOSL) for STARdesktop and confirmed that this system will no longer be supported for operational for use beyond the end of 2026. Ticket retailing is critical activity for Northern Trains, and other Train Operating Companies (TOC's), and continuity in support activities until December 2026 will allow time for NTL to approach the market to source a replacement onboard train ticket retailing solution.
II.2.11) Information about options
Options:
No
II.2.13) Information about European Union funds
The procurement is related to a project and/or programme financed by European Union funds:
No
Section IV: Procedure
IV.1) Description
IV.1.1) Type of procedure
Award of a contract without prior publication of a call for competition
Justification for selected award procedure:
The works, supplies or services can be provided only by a particular economic operator for the following reason: protection of exclusive rights, including intellectual property rights
Explanation
Award a contract directly as this approach is allowed under the UCR's where restrictions on the use of IPR do not trigger a requirement to conduct a new OJEU-compliant tender process.
We believe in this circumstance the following is applicable:
There are grounds where NTL as public body could award a subsequent contract to a third party using the exemptions in Regulation 50 of the UCR. This exemption is provided for under the UCR Regulation 50(1)(c) which allows Utilities to award a contract where the works, supplies or services can be supplied only by a particular supplier because competition is absent for technical reasons and where no reasonable alternative or substitute exists. The supplier owns copyright and the IPR in all the software. The absence of competition is not the result of an artificial narrowing down of the parameters of the procurement
The works, supplies or services can only be supplied only by a particular supplier because competition is absent for technical reasons and where no reasonable alternative or substitute exists. The supplier owns copyright and the IPR in all the software. The absence of competition is not the result of an artificial narrowing down of the parameters of the procurement.
IV.1.8) Information about Government Procurement Agreement (GPA)
The procurement is covered by the Government Procurement Agreement:
Yes
IV.2) Administrative information
IV.2.1) Previous publication concerning this procedure
Notice number in the OJ S:
2025/S 000-041487
Section V: Award of contract
A contract/lot is awarded:
Yes
V.2 Award of contract
V.2.1) Date of conclusion of the contract
31/07/2025
V.2.2) Information about tenders
The contract has been awarded to a group of economic operators:
No
V.2.3) Name and address of the contractor
Fujitsu Services
0096056
Bracknell
UK
NUTS: UKJ1
The contractor is an SME:
No
V.2.5) Information about subcontracting
Section VI: Complementary information
VI.4) Procedures for review
VI.4.1) Review body
Department for Transport
Great Minster House,
London
SW1P 4DR
UK
VI.5) Date of dispatch of this notice
01/08/2025