Contractor suspected of fraud is awarded the contract to repair tracks in Odesa port

Another tender for repairing tracks in the Odesa port was awarded to a company that is under investigation for possible misappropriation of public funds. According to the investigation, the founder of the company developed a scheme to inflate the cost of work in USPA tenders and involved USPA officials in this. She is currently under house arrest.

The Centerfor Public Investigations decided to find out what is known about the company, which traditionally wins contracts from the USPA.

In September, the Odesa branch of the State Enterprise "Ukrainian Sea Ports Authority" announced a tender for the overhaul of the tracks and turnouts of the Northern Park on Mytna Square worth almost UAH 19 million.

SCREENSHOT: Prozorro

Only Metproject LLC, a regular contractor of USPA, submitted an offer, and the auction was not held due to the lack of competitors. The works are scheduled to be completed by the end of 2026, with payment to be made upon completion.

The company was registered in Odesa in 2013 with an authorized capital of over UAH 1 million. The owner is Iryna Voloshchuk, who is currently acting as director while Oleh Voloshchuk, who is mobilized, is temporarily out of work. She also heads other Odesa-based businesses of the Voloshchuk family.

According to the YouControl system, since 2016, Metproject has received government contracts worth more than UAH 411 million, mostly from port administrations. The most successful year for the company was 2024, when it won contracts worth more than UAH 109 million.

SCREENSHOT: YouControl

Earlier, a court in Odesa seized Metproekt's property in a tax evasion case. Since 2021, the company has signed dozens of contracts with port administrations for more than UAH 155 million, some of the costs could be fictitious, and the materials did not reach the work sites. The investigation believes that such actions allowed the company to underestimate taxes and evade VAT.

According to media reports, the companies associated with the owners of Metproekt include Gradient SV, Budperspektiva, Kolorit, and Transmorservice. They have repeatedly competed in public bidding with Metproekt, which experts consider to be a manifestation of anti-competitive practices. Thus, Gradient SV has acted as a "competitor" at least 28 times, and Transmorservice - more than 30 times.

The criminal case file states that the company's owner developed a scheme to misappropriate funds by overstating the cost of work. According to the investigation, she involved her son, who heads the company, and USPA employees. Together, they submitted overpriced bids, received contracts, and sent fake documents to the Treasury with allegedly incurred expenses. The court imposed house arrest as a measure of restraint on the suspects.

Also, the contract for the overhaul of the storage facility in the Odesa port may be awarded to a new consortium founded by companies associated with a businessman who regularly wins government contracts without competition.

Анна Бальчінос