In January 2026 Anglian Water awarded the technical contract to develop its two upcoming desalination plants, in Lincolnshire and Norfolk, to the TYPSA-Stantec joint venture.

Anglian Water requires a partner to act as a strategic advisor to advise and direct the Desalination development programme, working alongside the Anglian Water senior management team.

The water company has provided a detailed outline of the services it is seeking from the Advisor when appointed.

Provide strategic desalination expertise, including process, sustainability (ESG considerations and energy efficiency), and lessons learned from comparable programmes

Bring market insight from contractors, investors, and supply chain to inform programme strategy and innovation

Support the definition of, and advise on, the overall strategy and delivery model for concurrent desalination projects, ensuring efficiency, scalability, and value

Aid in establishing an enduring operating model, including clear roles, responsibilities, and interfaces between Anglian Water and the CAP(s)

Identify and drive cross-project synergies, efficiencies, and portfolio prioritisation

Act as a strategic advisor to the Major Programme Delivery Senior Leadership Team, strengthening governance and decision-making frameworks

Provide independent challenge as a “critical friend” across programme strategies, partners, and delivery approaches

Provide strategic input into commercial approach, including PPP considerations and desalination-specific risks

Support business case development, options analysis, and regulatory submissions

Guide the development of stakeholder engagement and public acceptance strategies

Identify, assess, and mitigate programme risks and key development challenges, maintaining delivery momentum

Support capability development within Anglian Water through knowledge transfer, tools, and best practice frameworks

Current estimated start and end contract dates, which will be award to a single supplier, are 1 November 2026 to 1 April 2030 with a further possible extension up to to 1 April 2035. Estimated contract award decision date is currently 30 October 2026.

Deadline for requests to participate is 11:00pm on 15 July 2026.

The current procurement timeline is as follows:

RFI Shortlisting - responses will be evaluated by Anglian Water and only bidders notified that they have been short-listed to progress to the next stage should complete the RFP. Bidder RFI responses will be evaluated by Anglian Water against pre-defined scoring criteria and the three highest scoring bidders will be shortlisted to RFP.

Stages -

Stage 1a: RFI

Stage 1b: Supplier Risk Event

Stage 2: RFP

Stage 3: Contract Award

Further information, submission address and any special instructions are available through the RFI & RFP Ariba event platform – click here to access. Anglian Water has provided a series of detailed tender documents.