The following have been invited to negotiate with United Utilities for the deal which is currently estimated to be worth £1.75bn.

• HARP Community Connectors: comprising of Acciona, Dragados and Iridium
• More Water: comprising of FCC Construcción, SNC-Lavalin, FCC Aqualia, Webuild and BeMo Tunnelling
• Strabag Equitix Consortium: comprising of Equitix and Strabag

HARP will be the largest infrastructure project undertaken by United Utilities since privatisation.

The original aqueduct was completed in the 1950s to increase supplies of water into Manchester and the Pennines from the Lake District. The project will see the replacement of six tunnel sections along the 80-mile aqueduct route.

United Utilities is seeking to appoint a Competitively Appointed Provider (CAP) to design, build, finance and maintain the replacement of the six tunnels sections (approximately 50km) of the Haweswater Aqueduct.  The next stage of the tender process will identify the preferred bidder that will then be appointed as the CAP.

Neil Gillespie, Director of Strategic Programmes at United Utilities, said: “This is a significant milestone on our long journey to replace an important part of our water infrastructure.  There have been many years of careful planning to get us to this point and I am extremely proud of the whole team who have worked tirelessly to get us here.

“We are embracing the new Direct Procurement for Customers (DPC) delivery approach introduced by Ofwat who we have worked with closely over the last few years to develop the commercial arrangements for this model.

“The new aqueduct will create a resilient water supply for our customers in Manchester and the Pennine region for many generations to come.”

The CAP will deliver the replacement of the six tunnel sections of the existing Haweswater Aqueduct, connections to existing multiline siphons between the tunnel sections and associated facilities. The CAP will also undertake the commissioning and ongoing maintenance of these works for a period of approximately 25 years after completion.