The Spanish Space Agency tenders the operation of the S3TOC surveillance center

The Management of the Spanish Space Agency has published in the Official State Gazette the tender announcement for the service contract for the operation and maintenance of the Spanish Space Surveillance and Tracking Center (S3TOC), which will be processed through an open procedure. The announcement appears in BOE number 223, dated September 9, 2026, section V-A, page 47448, with official reference BOE-B-2026-29237 and file number 2026/00000067.

The contract, signed in Seville on September 3, 2026, by the Director of the Agency, Juan Carlos Cortés Pulido, has an estimated value of 6,496,340.94 euros and a duration of 19 months. The contracting authority, with NIF Q4101008C and headquarters at calle José Galán Merino 6 in Seville, acts as a public law body under the control of a state authority, with its main activity being general public services.

Object and scope of the contract

The S3TOC is the national infrastructure dedicated to space surveillance and tracking, a key piece for Spain’s space security. The contract covers integrated engineering services (CPV code 71340000) and is financed with European Union funds through the EUSST23-26GA program. Variants will not be accepted, and bids must be written in Spanish, with electronic submission and invoicing permitted.

Award criteria

The evaluation of bids is divided among six criteria, with the economic offer and maintenance carrying the most weight:

• Economic offer: 29%
• Maintenance: 27%
• Data processing: 13%
• Improvement in user response times: 11%
• Optimization of quality reports: 11%
• Service organization: 9%

Deadlines and opening of bids

Interested companies have until 09:30 hours on September 29, 2026, to submit their bids at the Agency’s headquarters in Seville. The opening of bids will take place on successive dates:

• September 30, 2026: opening of the administrative envelope and the technical envelope (criteria based on value judgments), in electronic format.
• October 7, 2026: opening of the economic offer envelope.

Bidders must maintain their offer for 8 months. Participation conditions include the capacity to act, preference for companies with disabled workers, compliance with Social Security and tax obligations, and accreditation of economic and technical solvency through the European Single Procurement Document (ESPD). Appeals against the procedure are directed to the Central Administrative Tribunal for Contractual Appeals, in Madrid.

The procedure is part of a process already underway: a prior information notice was sent to the TED on July 1, 2026 (published on July 3), and the contract notice was submitted to the TED on September 3, 2026. The award of this contract will ensure the operational continuity of the space surveillance center, a strategic asset for the protection of space-dependent infrastructures and services, within a context of growing interest in the security and sustainability of orbits.

Source: Official State Gazette, no. 223, September 9, 2026, Sec. V-A, page 47448 (official reference: BOE-B-2026-29237).