The firm will handle all technical aspects of production, including printing.
A spokesman for The Home Office said that for production of the main body of cards would be put out to tender once trials had been completed.
A consortium of companies including NEC, Identix, Iridian and SchlumbergerSema were involved in the initial UK trails. The pilot ID card programme will issue 10,000 volunteers with personalised smart cards to trial.
The ID cards will test the use of three biometric identity patterns facial recognition, iris pattern and fingerprint images nominated as the most suitable for use at border controls.
Besides validity dates, the card will contain the holders name, age, nationality and unique numbers.
A secure chip will contain one of the three biometric identities of the recipient. Initial trials will take place in London, with further trials set to follow in Leicester, Newcastle and Glasgow.
Atos Origin, which owns SchlumbergerSema, one of the initial UK trial firms, was responsible for a biometric Medicaid identity card scheme for the state of Texas in March this year.
Once 80% of the population has identity cards, theoretically envisaged by 2013, parliament will then vote on whether to make the scheme compulsory.
Story by Andy Scott
