📅 2 July 2026 · Water Industry Hub Intelligence · Source: Find a Tender (UK6 Award Notices)
The Biodiversity Net Gain (BNG) obligation under the Environment Act 2021 came into force for nationally significant infrastructure projects in November 2025. For the water sector, that means every AMP8 capital project that breaks ground must demonstrate a minimum 10% net gain in biodiversity value — measured, verified and maintained for 30 years.
Three water companies have now published the first publicly visible BNG contract award notices on Find a Tender. Together they represent £11.9m of spend and 12 named supplier appointments. For ecological consultancies, land managers, wildlife trusts and conservation organisations, this is the opening of a new and durable procurement category in the UK water sector supply chain.
The Three Awards
Biodiversity Net Gain (BNG) — AMP8
Covering Northumbrian Water's main licence area (Lot 1, 70%) and Essex & Suffolk Water (Lot 2, 30%). Scope: hedgerow, watercourse and area habitat units across AMP8 capital delivery sites.
Andover Link Main — Biodiversity Net Gain (BNG)
BNG credits for Southern Water's 22.8km Andover Link Main project — a new underground water main linking Crab Wood Water Service Reservoir to the network. 69.60 BNG units required across the project corridor, covering hedgerow, watercourse and area habitats.
Odour Control Unit Routine Sampling Framework
MCERTS-compliant 6-monthly routine odour monitoring across Industrial Emissions Directive permitted wastewater sites. Part of UU's AMP8 and AMP9 Odour Control Unit (OCU) capital programme. Scope: environmental monitoring rather than BNG credits per se, but published under the same environmental services procurement category.
Why These Awards Matter for the Supply Chain
Before the Environment Act 2021, water companies addressed ecological impacts on a project-by-project basis with minimal standardisation. The BNG mandate changes this structurally: every capital project must now quantify biodiversity impact, source credits or create habitat on-site, and maintain that gain for 30 years.
For a sector spending over £100bn across AMP8 (2025–2030), that is a significant and recurring procurement requirement. The Northumbrian Water framework — covering two licence areas and running through the AMP period — is a model other water companies are expected to replicate. Southern Water's project-specific BNG contract for the Andover Link Main shows that individual major schemes are also going to market separately rather than waiting for a portfolio framework.
What is Biodiversity Net Gain?
BNG is measured using Natural England's Biodiversity Metric (currently version 4.0). The metric scores habitats by type, condition and location. A development must leave biodiversity in a measurably better state than before — the 10% net gain is a legal minimum, not a target. Water companies can achieve BNG through:
| Route | Description | Typical procurement |
|---|---|---|
| On-site habitat creation | Creating or enhancing habitat within the project footprint | Landscaping / ecology contractors already on main framework |
| Off-site habitat credits | Purchasing biodiversity units from a landowner who creates and maintains habitat elsewhere | BNG credit providers (e.g. Wild Capital, Braxted Park Farms) |
| Statutory biodiversity credits | Last-resort government credits sold by Natural England | Direct purchase — no tender required |
The Northumbrian Water and Southern Water awards both use the off-site credit route, purchasing habitat units from land managers and conservation organisations. This is likely to be the dominant model for major linear infrastructure projects where on-site gains are difficult to achieve at scale.
Which Companies Will Procure BNG Next?
Every water company undertaking AMP8 capital schemes has a legal BNG obligation. Based on published AMP8 programmes, the companies with the largest capital pipelines — and therefore the highest BNG demand — are Anglian Water (£5.5bn), Thames Water (£17.5bn), Severn Trent (£12.9bn), Yorkshire Water (£6.5bn) and United Utilities (£13.3bn). None of these companies has yet published a BNG framework award.
Thames Water's scale and the complexity of its catchments (chalk streams, Special Areas of Conservation, Sites of Special Scientific Interest) mean its BNG requirements will be among the most complex and valuable in the sector. Anglian Water, operating across the flatlands of East Anglia, will likely work extensively with agricultural landowners and river catchment management organisations.
Who Are the Suppliers?
The 11 named suppliers across the three notices span a range of organisation types — from specialist BNG credit providers to wildlife trusts to agricultural businesses to large testing groups. All are now listed in the Water Industry Hub supplier directory. The mix reflects the nascent and fragmented nature of the UK BNG market: unlike civil engineering or professional services, there is no established tier of large BNG-only contractors. Water companies are assembling panels from a wide range of ecological and land management businesses.
What Should Supply Chain Businesses Do?
If your business is in any of the following categories, BNG procurement is relevant to you now:
Ecological consultancies and surveyors — Biodiversity Metric assessments, habitat surveys, condition assessments and monitoring are required at the project level before credits can be sourced. This is upstream of the credit purchase and not typically captured in framework awards — it sits inside the main civil or environmental consultancy framework.
Land managers, estate owners and farmers — If you own or manage land that could be enhanced for biodiversity, you can register as a BNG credit provider with Natural England and sell credits to developers including water companies. The Northumbrian Water award shows water companies are buying credits from farming businesses (George Thompson, Braxted Park Farms) and estate management organisations (Advance Northumberland).
Wildlife trusts and conservation charities — Northumbrian Water's framework includes Northumberland Wildlife Trust and Plantlife International. Wildlife trusts with land in water company operating areas are well-placed to supply BNG credits at scale.
BNG credit aggregators and brokers — Specialist businesses that assemble portfolios of habitat units from multiple landowners and sell packaged credits to developers. This is the fastest-growing part of the market.
Environmental monitoring businesses — The United Utilities award for MCERTS odour monitoring sits alongside BNG in the environmental services category. Water companies running large capital programmes need ongoing IED compliance monitoring throughout construction.