Scope
Reference
05772-2024
Description
The UK Government's Office for Zero Emission Vehicles (OZEV) has introduced the Local Electric Vehicle Infrastructure (LEVI) fund which will support Local Authorities (LAs) in England in working with the chargepoint industry to improve the roll out and commercialisation of local charging infrastructure. This infrastructure will primarily be used to help residents without off-street parking to access affordable and reliable electric vehicle (EV) chargepoints. The LEVI Capital fund aims to:
- Deliver a step-change in the deployment of local, primarily low power, on-street charging infrastructure across England; and
- Accelerate the commercialisation of, and investment in, the local charging infrastructure sector
West Midlands Combined Authority (WMCA), as a Tier 1 authority, has been allocated £14.55m of funding and are in Tranche 1 of the LEVI Capital Fund application process. As a result, WMCA are now seeking to secure investment from the market to deliver and manage Electric Vehicle Infrastructure (EVI) across the region through a concession arrangement.
WMCA on behalf of Transport for West Midlands (TfWM) and the 7 Constituent Local Authorities of the West Midlands (Birmingham City Council, Coventry City Council, Dudley Metropolitan Borough Council, Sandwell Metropolitan Borough Council, Solihull Metropolitan Borough Council, Walsall Metropolitan Borough Council and City of Wolverhampton Council) are seeking Concessionaires of EVI to install and operate a range of EVI solutions that will support its residents who don't have the ability to charge off-street from their own residential electricity supply at home.
The Authority intend to enter into Concession Contracts with the successful Charge Point Operators (CPOs) to fund and deliver the required services for a 15-year duration (until 2041), with 2 x 12-month optional extension periods. The CPOs, in so doing, will accept the commercial, regulatory and technological obsolescence risks and opportunities of operating, throughout the contract duration, a network of publicly accessible electric vehicle charging spaces that meet the needs of local residents and demonstrably support the Authorities' EVI strategies.
EVI may be located on any suitable Public Premises, including but not limited to public highway, subject to locally required licenses and/or leases as appropriate. Public Premises for the purposes of this contract means land owned, leased or otherwise from whatsoever cause under the management, control or possession of the Authority or other Public Sector Organisation.
Total value (estimated)
- £840,000,000 including VAT
Above the relevant threshold
Contract dates (estimated)
- 1 February 2026 to 31 March 2041
- Possible extension to 31 March 2043
- 17 years, 2 months
Description of possible extension:
Contracts will include 2 x 12-month options to extend which may be invoked at WMCA's discretion to allow additional time for the Authorities to make a decision on future provision of EVI.
Main procurement category
Services
CPV classifications
- 45310000 - Electrical installation work
- 50100000 - Repair, maintenance and associated services of vehicles and related equipment
- 51110000 - Installation services of electrical equipment
Contract locations
- UKG - West Midlands (England)
Lot 1. Standalone Above Ground Asset (SAGA)
Description
e.g., Bollard / Pedestal / Wall Mounted charger, which is visible whilst not in use. AC Charging between 5kW and 25kW
Lot value (estimated)
- £600,000,000 including VAT
Same for all lots
CPV classifications, contract locations and contract dates are shown in the Scope section, because they are the same for all lots.
Lot 2. StreetLight Integrated Chargers (SLIC)
Description
Includes charging devices mounted on or integrated within streetlighting columns, standalone above ground assets using an electricity supply from an adjacent streetlighting column or equivalent electricity supply source (e.g., telecoms box), and, by exception, standalone above ground assets with a dedicated electricity supply co-located with any or all of the above. AC Charging between 5kW and 25kW.
Lot value (estimated)
- £80,000,000 including VAT
Same for all lots
CPV classifications, contract locations and contract dates are shown in the Scope section, because they are the same for all lots.
Lot 3. Minimum Impact Charging Equipment (MICE)
Description
Charging equipment which does not protrude more than 2.5cm above ground level when not in use or is otherwise integrated into other street furniture (other than streetlights) or civil engineering structures such that its presence does not present an additional visual or physical obstacle to highway users, including pedestrians, when not in use. Includes both inductive charging and ordinarily concealed conductive charging. AC Charging not less than 5kW and DC Charging with a power output of not less than 25kW.
Lot value (estimated)
- £80,000,000 including VAT
Same for all lots
CPV classifications, contract locations and contract dates are shown in the Scope section, because they are the same for all lots.
Lot 4. Higher Powered Charging (HPC)
Description
Charging equipment with a DC power output of not less than 25kW. Where installed off-highway, such as in a car park or dedicated charging hub, HPC may be co-delivered with AC charging technologies provided the aggregate nominal power output of the DC equipment is greater than the accompanying AC equipment in that location. (E.g., if two 150kW DC chargers are installed, up to thirteen 22kW AC chargers could be co-delivered).
Lot value (estimated)
- £80,000,000 including VAT
Same for all lots
CPV classifications, contract locations and contract dates are shown in the Scope section, because they are the same for all lots.
Participation
Legal and financial capacity conditions of participation
Lot 1. Standalone Above Ground Asset (SAGA)
Lot 2. StreetLight Integrated Chargers (SLIC)
Lot 3. Minimum Impact Charging Equipment (MICE)
Lot 4. Higher Powered Charging (HPC)
A Financial Risk Assessment Tool (FRAT) and accompanying guidance has been provided as part of the attachments to the PSQ. Prospective Bidders are required to read these documents thoroughly and follow the instructions in order to complete the self-assessment prior to the PSQ submission deadline.
If the Prospective Bidder has failed or flagged as a risk for any of the self-assessment metrics, they should contact WMCA via the Bravo messaging function to explain the situation and agree a range of risk mitigation measures with the WMCA Finance Team during the clarification period of the PSQ. Any Prospective Bidder that has failed or flagged as a risk for any of the self-assessment metrics and has not engaged with the WMCA Finance Team during the clarification period will be deemed to have failed the Financial Standing condition of participation.
WMCA will only engage with Prospective Bidders to discuss their Financial Risk Assessment results prior to the PSQ submission deadline.
Prospective Bidders are required to confirm whether they already have, or can commit to obtain, prior to the commencement of the contract, the levels of insurance cover indicated below:
Employer's (Compulsory) Liability Insurance = £10,000,000
Public Liability Insurance = £10,000,000
Professional Indemnity Insurance = £5,000,000
Product Liability Insurance = £10,000,000
A response of 'No' or failure to attach suitable evidence of the commitment will Fail to meet this condition of participation.
Technical ability conditions of participation
Lot 1. Standalone Above Ground Asset (SAGA)
Lot 2. StreetLight Integrated Chargers (SLIC)
Lot 3. Minimum Impact Charging Equipment (MICE)
Lot 4. Higher Powered Charging (HPC)
4 x Technical Ability questions, scored in line with the WMCA Scoring Matrix, found at Annex A of the PSQ Guidance document in the attachments to the PSQ. The score for each question will be added together to give a Total Score for each Prospective Bidder who passes the other conditions of participation. All Prospective Bidders who receive a Total Score will be ranked by score for each Lot. The top 6 ranked Prospective Bidders for each Lot will be invited to tender.
Particular suitability
Lot 1. Standalone Above Ground Asset (SAGA)
Lot 2. StreetLight Integrated Chargers (SLIC)
Lot 3. Minimum Impact Charging Equipment (MICE)
Lot 4. Higher Powered Charging (HPC)
Small and medium-sized enterprises (SME)
Submission
Enquiry deadline
30 June 2025, 12:00am
Submission type
Requests to participate
Deadline for requests to participate
9 July 2025, 12:00am
Submission address and any special instructions
All documents must be submitted through the relevant activity on Bravo Solution, WMCA's e-tendering portal.
Tenders may be submitted electronically
Yes
Languages that may be used for submission
English
Suppliers to be invited to tender
Lot 1. Standalone Above Ground Asset (SAGA)
Lot 2. StreetLight Integrated Chargers (SLIC)
Lot 3. Minimum Impact Charging Equipment (MICE)
Lot 4. Higher Powered Charging (HPC)
Maximum 6 suppliers per lot
Selection criteria:
per lot
Award decision date (estimated)
30 January 2026
Award criteria
| Name | Type | Weighting |
|---|---|---|
| Technical | Quality | 65% |
| Commercial | Cost | 20% |
| Social Value | Quality | 15% |
Other information
Description of risks to contract performance
Risk: LA partner deciding to withdraw from programme.
Impact: Change to geographical spread of chargepoints installed across the region, which could affect concessionaire's commercial model.
Risk: Changes to National Grid capacity and/or costs
Impact: Reduction in number of chargepoints installed during delivery period and increased value of funding required per chargepoint
Risk: Escalation of international conflicts / Increase of trade tariffs / Emergence of Epidemic/Pandemic
Impact: Significant rise in costs or lack of availability of equipment and materials
Applicable trade agreements
- Government Procurement Agreement (GPA)
Conflicts assessment prepared/revised
Yes
Procedure
Procedure type
Competitive flexible procedure
Special regime
Concession
Competitive flexible procedure description
This Competitive Flexible Procedure procurement will be conducted over 2 stages.
The first stage is the request to participate which will involve completion and submission of the Procurement Specific Questionnaire (PSQ). This stage is being used to down-select interested suppliers to invite to tender. Prospective Bidders who pass all Conditions of Participation included within the PSQ will have their Technical and Professional Ability questions scored to give a Total Score for their PSQ. Prospective Bidders will be ranked by Total Score in each Lot they have requested to tender for and WMCA will invite the top 6 ranked prospective bidders in each Lot to tender.
The second stage is the Invitation to Tender (ITT) stage. The ITT will be issued to the top 6 ranked prospective bidders for each Lot. Following the tender submission deadline, the evaluation panel will evaluate all tenders and WMCA will award contracts to the highest scoring tenderer for each Lot.
Documents
Associated tender documents
https://wmca.bravosolution.co.uk/go/54885504019759403934
Prospective Bidders will be required to create an account on Bravo Solution, WMCA's e-tendering portal, in order to access the documents.
They will then be required to complete the PSQ and attach the supporting documents requested.
Documents to be provided after the tender notice
Invitation to Tender documents will be provided to the successful Prospective Bidders who progress to the 2nd stage of this Competitive Flexible Procedure procurement.
Contracting authority
West Midlands Combined Authority
- Public Procurement Organisation Number: PGMD-1353-PZVX
16 Summer Lane
Birmingham
B19 3SD
United Kingdom
Email: procurement.team@wmca.org.uk
Region: UKG31 - Birmingham
Organisation type: Public authority - sub-central government
Other organisations
These organisations are carrying out the procurement, or part of it, on behalf of the contracting authorities.
Birmingham City Council
Summary of their role in this procurement: Tender Evaluation, Supporting Delivery of Chargepoints
- Public Procurement Organisation Number: PCJJ-4826-QMLZ
Council House, 1 Victoria Square
Birmingham
B1 1BB
United Kingdom
Email: etendering@birmingham.gov.uk
Region: UKG31 - Birmingham
Wolverhampton City Council
Summary of their role in this procurement: Tender Evaluation, Supporting Delivery of Chargepoints
- Public Procurement Organisation Number: PVBV-7568-LBLL
Civic Centre, St Peter's Square
Wolverhampton
WV1 1SH
United Kingdom
Region: UKG39 - Wolverhampton
Coventry City Council
Summary of their role in this procurement: Tender Evaluation, Supporting Delivery of Chargepoints
- Public Procurement Organisation Number: PMJC-6861-XJPP
Council House, Earl Street
Coventry
CV1 5RR
United Kingdom
Region: UKG33 - Coventry
Solihull Metropolitan Borough Council
Summary of their role in this procurement: Tender Evaluation, Supporting Delivery of Chargepoints
- Public Procurement Organisation Number: PGWC-7578-LYDG
Council House, Manor Square
Solihull
B91 3QB
United Kingdom
Email: procteam@solihull.gov.uk
Region: UKG32 - Solihull