Odesa company that made millions on hospitals suspected of fraud with Kyiv residents

Odesa-based Antaro Build Construction Company has attracted the attention of the Antimonopoly Committee. It was suspected of collusion in public procurement.

This was reported by the Southern Interregional Territorial Department of the Antimonopoly Committee of Ukraine.

In particular, the antitrust authorities opened a case against Odesa-based construction company Antaro Build and Kyiv-based firm City-Bud over alleged collusion in tenders.

According to the AMCU, the two companies may have coordinated their actions in tenders, which violates antitrust laws and potentially distorts competition.

If the violation is proven, the firms could face serious fines and other sanctions.

According to the YouControl analytical platform, Antaro Build Construction Company LLC has been operating in the market for over 11 years. The owner of the company with an authorized capital of UAH 400 thousand is Yevhen Tarashchan. He is also the owner and manager of Royal Pride, a market research company.

In 2023, the company declared more than UAH 21 million in revenue, although it did not show any net profit. The year before, the revenue was even higher - over UAH 25 million. In 2020, the company had insignificant income - only about 40 thousand hryvnias.

"Antaro Build is actively involved in public procurement. Since 2021, the company has won tenders worth tens of millions of hryvnias. Its largest customer was the Capital Construction Department of the Odesa City Council, with which the total amount of contracts exceeded UAH 88 million. Other customers include medical institutions, educational departments, and other municipal organizations.

The company has changed its legal address several times and had several changes in management until 2021. In the past, other individuals and even a foreign company were among the founders.

Antaro Build LLC's activities in collusion with Cryoprom Gas Izmail LLC and officials of the Capital Construction Department of the Odesa City Council were reported by Anti-Corruption Dimension.

According to the investigation, the companies unreasonably included VAT amounts for the supply of medical oxygen generators in the acts of completion of work on the reconstruction of oxygen supply systems in Odesa hospitals, although no tax was charged on them at the time. This led to losses to the city budget.

These are projects at the City Clinical Infectious Diseases Hospital and City Hospital No. 8. In particular, in 2021, UCB held a tender for the reconstruction of the oxygen supply system in the latter of these hospitals, which was won by Antaro Build LLC. The company received UAH 14 million 120 thousand under the contract. Antaro Bild was responsible for the repair of oxygen stations not only at City Clinical Hospital No. 8. The company also reconstructed oxygen supply systems at Ovidiopol Hospital, Children's City Clinical Hospital No. 3, and Children's City Clinical Hospital No. 2. The company also received contracts for the repair of several bomb shelters in a children's hospital and a school.

Ірина Глухова