SITA Switzerland wins SriLankan Airlines network contract as sole bidder

Cabinet has approved the award of a five-year contract for global network infrastructure services to SriLankan Airlines to SITA Switzerland SARL, the only company that bid for the work, the Daily Mirror reported.

The contract is worth US$4.01 million and runs from 1 October 2026 to 30 September 2031, Cabinet Spokesman and Minister Nalinda Jayatissa said, according to EconomyNext. That works out to roughly US$802,000 a year across the term.

What the network carries

The platform interconnects the systems an airline cannot operate without: passenger processing, departure control, ticketing and seat reservations, cargo management, and airport terminal operations.

“A global network infrastructure platform is essential to connect critical aviation services, including passenger processing systems, departure control, ticketing and seat reservations, cargo management, and airport operations systems,” Jayatissa said.

One bid

The tender went out under International Competitive Bidding after the existing service agreement expired. Both outlets agree on the outcome: only one bid was received.

Cabinet approved the award on the recommendation of the High-Level Standing Procurement Committee, acting on a proposal submitted by the Minister of Ports and Civil Aviation. The Daily Mirror describes SITA Switzerland SARL as the sole bidder that “substantially met the requirements” — wording that leaves open whether the bid met every requirement outright.

SITA is an established aviation-industry IT and communications provider, and the incumbent relationship means the award continues existing arrangements rather than starting a new one. But a competitive process that draws a single response provides no price benchmark, and neither report indicates what the expiring contract cost or whether the new price is higher or lower.

Neither outlet says how many suppliers collected tender documents, why only one bid materialised, what the previous agreement was worth, or whether the procurement committee considered re-tendering before recommending the award.