diff --git a/config/versions.json b/config/versions.json
index ae98cfb0..2e913f90 100644
--- a/config/versions.json
+++ b/config/versions.json
@@ -1,5 +1,5 @@
 {
     "$schema": "http://github.com/ACCESS-NRI/schema/blob/main/au.org.access-nri/model/deployment/config/versions/3-0-0.json",
     "spack": "0.22",
-    "spack-packages": "2025.08.003"
+    "spack-packages": "2026.01.000"
 }
diff --git a/spack.yaml b/spack.yaml
index ab00b837..64b82b08 100644
--- a/spack.yaml
+++ b/spack.yaml
@@ -4,14 +4,16 @@
 # configuration settings.
 # Instructions for editing this file are found in 
 # https://github.com/ACCESS-NRI/model-deployment-template/blob/main/spack.yaml
-spack:
+spack: 
   specs:
     - access-om3@git.2025.08.001
+    - 'esmf /covllzb' #for speeding up pre-release builds only, remove this line before release
+    - 'access-mocsy /ljkwzxm' #for speeding up pre-release builds only, remove this line before release
   packages:
-    # Main Dependencies
+    # Main components
     access3:
       require:
-        - '@2025.08.000'
+        - '@124294ba8393895775078b14ac5899554a880a61'
         - configurations=MOM6,MOM6-CICE6,MOM6-CICE6-WW3
         - 'fflags="-march=sapphirerapids -mtune=sapphirerapids -unroll"'
         - 'cflags="-march=sapphirerapids -mtune=sapphirerapids -unroll"'
@@ -34,13 +36,13 @@ spack:
         - '@2025.08.000'
     access3-share:
       require:
-        - '@2025.08.000'
+        - '@124294ba8393895775078b14ac5899554a880a61'
         - 'fflags="-march=sapphirerapids -mtune=sapphirerapids -unroll"'
         - 'cflags="-march=sapphirerapids -mtune=sapphirerapids -unroll"'
         - 'cxxflags="-march=sapphirerapids -mtune=sapphirerapids -unroll"'
     access-generic-tracers:
       require:
-        - '@2025.08.000'
+        - '@2025.09.000'
         - 'fflags="-march=sapphirerapids -mtune=sapphirerapids -unroll"'
         - 'cflags="-march=sapphirerapids -mtune=sapphirerapids -unroll"'
         - 'cxxflags="-march=sapphirerapids -mtune=sapphirerapids -unroll"'
@@ -73,16 +75,17 @@ spack:
         - 'cppflags="-DMAXFIELDMETHODS_=600"'
     openmpi:
       require:
-        - '@4.1.7'
+        - '@5.0.8'
     fortranxml:
       require:
         - '@4.1.2'
     gcc-runtime:
       require:
         - '%gcc'
+
     all:
       require:
-        - '%oneapi@2025.2.0'
+        - '%oneapi@2025.2.0'     # compiler
         - 'target=x86_64_v4'
   view: true
   concretizer: