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The NHS is seeking a partner for a two-year mobile voice and data contract worth a potential £15m to the chosen suppliers, which will support the ongoing rollout of the Covid-19 vaccination programme.

A newly published contract notice from NHS England and NHS Improvement invites bids from mobile telephony providers from lot six of the Network Services 2 framework, which is dedicated to mobile voice and data.

This segment, which features 16 companies, covers services include “voice calls and voicemail, SMS, mobile email, mobile data connectivity and applications, value-added mobile services and mobile device management and associated equipment maintenance and support services”.

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Firms can submit bids for one or both of two lots, the first of which is dedicated to “business-as-usual”, and the second to the coronavirus vaccine rollout.

The opportunity comes with a very imprecise expected value, with spending estimated in the range of £2m to £15m.

“The value of this contract has been demonstrated as a range to consider the uncertainty regarding the future of the vaccinations programme,” the notice said.

Bids for the contract are open until 20 August, with the NHS hoping to enter into a 24-month engagement with the chosen provider, or providers, on 20 September.

The 16 companies eligible to bid for the deal are: Anywhere SIM; Cantium Business Solutions; Centiant International; Class Networks; Daisy; Fleet Mobile Communications; Gamma Telecom; GCI Network Solutions; KCOM; Maintel; MLL Telecom; O2; Virgin Media Business; Vivio; Vodafone; and Wavenet.