Mersey Gateway Project Calls for Final Tenders

  • Rock Infra

Halton Borough Council, the procuring authority for the Mersey Gateway Bridge PPP Project, has invited the 3 bidding consortia to submit their final tenders.

The Mersey Gateway Bridge PPP Project is a major scheme to build a new six lane free-flow toll bridge over the Mersey between the towns of Runcorn and Widnes. It is the largest local authority infrastructure project that is currently in procurement and was identified as one of the UK government’s Top 40 priority projects in the National Infrastructure Plan.

The project is being procured under the competitive dialogue process and the dialogue period was concluded on 22 February as contemplated in the procurement programme. Final tenders are due by 10 April and the project is on track to reach financial close as scheduled in October.

Rock has worked with Halton Borough Council as its experienced development partner for the project. Mark Swindell, in his role as the project’s Commercial Director, and Matthew Allen, as leader of the commercial team, have provided leadership in the legal, commercial and financial aspects of the project. This has involved:

  • negotiating the funding terms for the project with central government;
  • developing the Project’s innovative procurement strategy to deliver the best value for money DBFO for the new crossing and a commercial partner for Halton Borough Council that is incentivised to optimise toll revenues from the open road tolling system;
  • playing a leading role in discussions with central government regarding the use by the project of the UK Guarantees Scheme to enhance deliverability and the adoption of PF2 principles; and
  • working with Halton Borough Council, the Department for Transport and HM Treasury to develop the bespoke governance arrangements for the Mersey Gateway Crossings Board, the arms-length subsidiary of Halton Borough Council that will manage the project as the Council’s agent over its lifetime. Celia Carlisle has led Rock’s involvement in this area.

David Parr, CEO of Halton Borough Council, comments:

“Rock have been instrumental in helping Halton bring the Mersey Gateway to market. Mark, Matthew and Celia have worked with our experienced group of advisers to ensure the project is both attractive to the market place, achieves the very best value for money and will achieve our project deliverables.

Mersey Gateway is a complex and ground-breaking infrastructure project and Rock have been both innovative and effective in addressing a number of challenging areas, ensuring the project remains on time and on budget.”

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Driving Net Zero: How Rock Road 
Is Funding the UK’s Bus Transition

Accelerating the shift to clean, affordable, zero-emission transport

Year
2025
Category
Rock Road
Share

The Challenge

The UK bus network is at the heart of everyday travel – but over 30,000 diesel buses still need replacing to achieve a fully zero-emission fleet.

While around 5,000 battery-electric buses are already on the road, the high upfront cost of electric vehicles and depot electrification continues to slow the transition. Traditional funding routes — such as government grants or short-term bank finance – have helped start the journey but cannot support decarbonisation at the scale required.

A new, sustainable funding model was needed: one that could attract long-term capital, spread costs fairly, and give operators and authorities confidence in the future.

The Solution

In 2021, Rock launched Rock Road to deliver exactly that –  applying its proven infrastructure financing approach from the rail sector to the UK’s clean bus revolution.

Working with Aviva, the National Wealth Fund, and HSBC, Rock created a dedicated investment platform that channels infrastructure-style finance from pension funds and institutional investors directly into zero-emission bus projects.

This model provides:
  • Access to billions in long-term private capital for fleets and depot electrification.
  • Low-cost, sustainable finance tailored to public-sector needs.
  • Comprehensive risk transfer, including residual value and battery performance, supported by Rock’s in-house team of engineers and asset managers.

Impact

The platform has already raised £100 million, with capacity to scale to £1 billion per year over the next decade – providing a consistent source of affordable capital for local authorities and operators.

Rock’s model ensures that the total cost of ownership (TCO) of electric buses can now be lower than diesel equivalents, thanks to both cheaper long-term finance and reduced operating costs.

In London, Rock has financed 120 zero-emission buses under 7-year leases aligned with Transport for London’s contract lengths. This structure gives operators flexibility and certainty:

  • Buses can be returned, renewed, or upgraded at the end of term.
  • Lease rates are predictable and capped.
  • Ownership and residual risks sit with Rock, not the operator.

The Future

Rock Road’s ambition is to support the rollout of zero-emission fleets across the UK – helping local authorities and operators meet climate goals without overextending public budgets.

By leveraging limited government funding to attract large-scale private capital – for example, £10 million of public investment unlocking over £250 million in total funding – Rock’s model accelerates decarbonisation while keeping costs low for the public sector.

Our ambition is to make electric buses the default choice - not because of subsidy, but because they are the best economic and environmental option.
Louis Swindell
Commercial Director, Rock Road