Feb. 28, 2026, 3:26 p.m.
(Oleksandr Ursolov. SCREEN SHOT: trkmart.tv)
Mykolaiv has concluded the case of a corruption scheme at the municipal enterprise GDMB, which resulted in multimillion-dollar losses for the city budget.
According to the criminal proceedings, former director of the utility Oleksandr Ursolov and his accomplices organized a scheme to inflate prices when purchasing LED lamps for the city, receiving illegal benefits for themselves and controlled private companies.
TheCenter for Public Investigations found out the details of the case.
According to the case file, in February 2023, the director of GDMB developed a plan to obtain illegal benefits through abuse of office. He ensured that selected companies won the bidding process, entered into contracts for the supply of LED lamps at inflated prices, and received the difference between the real value of the goods and the contract amount in cash.
In April 2023, Ursolov informed his accomplice of his plans to engage a controlled company, Promenergosnab LLC, to purchase 6,019 lamps and receive a kickback. The manager of several companies related to the accomplice was involved to oversee the contract. All three agreed to be accomplices to the crime.
The investigation found that in May 2023, the director of the GDMB, together with his accomplices, organized the receipt of three commercial offers from related companies - Promenergosnab LLC, Svetolux-Nikolaev PE, and Vatra-Dnipro Trading House LLC - with inflated prices. They were used to determine the expected value of the procurement at UAH 47.6 million.
The tender was held on the Prozorro platform. On May 15, the bids were opened, and on May 18, Promenergosnab LLC became the winner. From June to October, the utility company transferred UAH 44.7 million to the company. Experts found that the real cost of the lamps was overestimated by more than UAH 3.8 million - this amount was a kickback for Ursolov and his accomplices.
For the next procurement, the director again organized the receipt of overpriced proposals from Promenergosnab LLC, Tornado-A LLC, and Schroeder LLC. The expected value of the procurement was UAH 27.9 million, and Promenergosnab LLC was again the winner, but in fact UAH 26.2 million was transferred. The overpayment amounted to more than UAH 2.4 million.
In total, through both tenders, the director and his accomplices illegally benefited from the overpricing of the lamps. The damage to the local community of Mykolaiv exceeded UAH 6.2 million. The actions of the scheme participants were contrary to the interests of the service and were carefully planned: from the formation of technical requirements to the control over the execution of contracts.
On December 29, 2025, the Mykolaiv court approved plea agreements between the prosecutor and the defendants. One of the defendants was sentenced to 4 years in prison, of which the main sentence was replaced by a probationary period of 1 year, a 2-year ban on participation in public procurement, and a fine of UAH 17 thousand. He is obliged to transfer 2 EcoFlow DELTA Pro 3 charging stations to the military unit.
Another defendant received a similar sentence and must hand over 3 FPV T-Bone 5 ground control stations. The third received 4 years in prison, a 2 year ban on procurement activities, a fine of 17 thousand hryvnias with a probationary period of 1 year and is obliged to hand over 2 FPV T-Bone 5 ground stations and 1 Oukitel BP2000E PRO charging station.
However, all the defendants were released from serving their sentences with probation, and the seizures of their property, including corporate rights, houses and vehicles, were canceled.
Last year, Intent wrote that on April 8, 2025, a search was conducted at the accused's home as part of the investigation. Laptops, a mobile phone, a hard disk, a notebook and money worth 1410 euros and 137,500 hryvnias were seized. The seized items became material evidence and he was arrested. In June, the director of a company that supplied street lighting equipment to Mykolaiv was taken into custody.
Анна Бальчінос