The UK government is once more asking ferry owners to provide extra freight capacity if the country leaves the European Union without a deal on 31 October.
The last time it tried this, at the end of last year, it ended up paying out £51m ($64m) to compensate DFDS and Brittany Ferries after it tore up their contracts for routes offering an alternative to Dover.
Transport minister Chris Grayling also attracted ridicule for awarding a £13.8m deal to a company without ships, Seaborne Freight, which later pulled out.
And the state had to settle a court case with Eurotunnel for £34m over the lack of a public tender.
This is in turn prompted legal action from P&O Ferries, which had also been left out in the cold.
Now the tender process will be open, the BBC reported.
"The department for transport is putting in place a freight capacity framework agreement that will provide government departments with the ability to secure freight capacity for our critical supply chains as and when required," a spokesman said.
"This framework does not commit the government to purchasing or reserving any freight capacity, but it does provide a flexible list of operators and options for the provision of the capacity that can be drawn upon if needed."
Seaborne Freight has confirmed it would not be bidding again, while Brittany Ferries said it would "carefully consider" what capacity it could offer.
