SNC-Lavalin and Kier Highways have progressed through the qualification stage and further dialogue will now take place between both firms and the PFI concession holder Birmingham Highways Limited.

The two competing firms will now be expected to prepare interim submissions and draft bids to help inform dialogue and progress negotiations.

Final contract bids are  expected for the end of the year and should be formally submitted in January 2023, with the new contract due to be awarded in April 2023.

Birmingham originally signed its 25-year, highways management and maintenance contract back in 2010 with Amey.

But the contractor became embroiled in a lengthy performance dispute with the council which ended in March 2020 with Amey paying £215m to extricate itself from the PFI.

Kier stepped in as interim contractor while the council and PFI special purpose vehicle owned by Equitix and PIP Infrastructure Investments worked hard to set the stage for successful reprocurement of the remaining 12 years of delivery from April 2023 to June 2035.

CEO of Birmingham Highways Limited, Natasha Rouse said: “We are excited to progress to the next stage in the procurement process with two experienced, knowledgeable and competent contractors.

“We are confident that the collaborative approach to procurement, embedded in the competitive dialogue process, will lead to an optimal and sustainable solution”.

Kevin Hicks, Assistant Director for Highways and Infrastructure at Birmingham City Council said “The City Council has worked hard with BHL to restructure the contract and ensure that it remains an exciting opportunity to deliver quality services in Britain’s second city.

“We are looking forward to this next stage of dialogue with the bidders and developing how they propose to deliver highway services on our behalf through to 2035.”