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Spearfish Development Contract (SHDC)

Defence Equipment and Support · Central government

In brief

Defence Equipment and Support has announced plans to buy research work. This is an early notice: there is nothing to bid on yet, but it tells you a tender may follow.

The estimated value is £30,000,000 excluding VAT.

The contract runs for 5 years, up to 8 years with extensions, starting 1 June 2027.

Built from the notice's own fields. Always check the official notice before you bid.

Can I win this?

Competition

Typical: a median of 2.5 bids per contract for this buyer (from 16 awards in the last 12 months).

What the notice says

The Ministry of Defence is considering placing a Single Source contract (the “Spearfish Development Contract” (SFDC)) with BAE Systems Limited for development work in support of the Spearfish torpedo. The contract would be awarded via Direct Award to BAE Systems, based on their being the Design Authority for the Spearfish system. The justification for Direct Award is based on Procurement Act 2023, Schedule 5 paragraphs 6a and 6b. This will be a Qualifying Defence Contract (QDC) under the Defence Reform Act 2014 and the Single Source Contract Regulations 2014 The proposed contract would commence April 2027 with a five year duration (i.e. to end March 2032), and an estimated value of £30M during that period. The contract would contain three one year options to extend, giving a maximum duration of eight years (5+1+1+1)(i.e. to March 2035).

How to bid

  1. Read the full notice on Find a Tender, including any tender documents it links to.
  2. Register your organisation on the Central Digital Platform (through Find a Tender) if you have not already. Suppliers need to be registered to take part in procurements under the Procurement Act 2023.
  3. Follow the submission instructions in the notice; it does not name an e-tendering portal.

Timeline

  1. Pipeline notice · UK1, notice 101971-2026

About the buyer

Defence Equipment and SupportLast 12 months

Procurements

243

Awards

93

Suppliers it has used most for research

All tenders and awards from Defence Equipment and Support

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From notice 101971-2026 on Find a Tender, first published 28 October 2026. We last checked for changes on 28 October 2026.