Odesa Oblast Contracts Worth ₴6.5 Billion Bypassed Prozorro System

Last year, organizations and institutions in Odesa Oblast concluded 3,219 contracts without using the Prozorro electronic system for a total of UAH 6.5 billion.

The most expensive contracts were concluded by the Service for Infrastructure Restoration and Development in Odesa Oblast, the Center for Public Investigations found out.

The service signed two agreements worth 2.5 billion with Rostdorstroy LLC and Automagistral-Pivden LLC for the construction of pipelines, communication and power lines, highways, roads, airfields and railways; and surface leveling. As a justification for the billion-dollar purchase being made without a tender, the customer cited "protection of critical infrastructure facilities in the fuel and energy sector of critical infrastructure." Both companies that received these orders are linked by the media to Odesa Mayor Gennadiy Trukhanov.

The Department of Capital Construction and Roads of the Odesa Regional State Administration bypassed Prozorro and signed 112 contracts worth UAH 2.8 billion. 59 contracts worth 2.7 billion were signed for the construction of fortifications and 53 contracts worth 36.5 million for construction supervision. The procurement was conducted without a tender because it relates to defense. Due to these restrictions, the contracting authority did not disclose the names of the contractors.

In addition, 139 contracts worth UAH 164.2 million were signed in the region without auctions for the construction and arrangement of shelters. In justifying the procurement without Prozorro, contracting authorities explained it as an urgent need, lack of bids, or additional work at a facility whose contractor was selected as a result of a tender earlier.

For example, the regional council's property relations department signed a UAH 22.1 million contract with DD-Stroy LLC to repair shelters at Odesa Regional Lyceum No. 6 due to an urgent need.

And Usativ village council entered into a contract worth UAH 22.3 million directly with PJSC Mobile Mechanized Column-15 Dunayvodbud (PJSC PMC-15 DVB) because no bids were submitted for the open tender for the construction of a shelter for 200 people.

An agreement between the Education Department of the Vyzyr Village Council and LLC "Anmaxinvest" on the construction of a sheltered educational building of the Vyzyr Lyceum worth UAH 22.9 million was signed because "there was a need for additional similar works that were not provided for in the original design and estimate documentation." That is, Anmaxinvest had already performed work at this facility.

The million-dollar procurement was also made without a tender by the Odesa City Heat Supply utility company. In August 2024, it signed an agreement to dismantle a part of the chimney of the Severnaya-1 district boiler house in Odesa on Heroiv Odoniiv Street. The deal is worth UAH 41.9 million. The work was carried out by Energy and Road Construction LLC (EDB). The utilities explained the urgency by the fact that, according to the inspection, there is a possibility of "collapse of a part of the chimney at any time, which may cause accidents and lead to the boiler house being taken out of operation, as the chimney's tilt is directed towards the boilers."

In total, organizations and institutions of Odesa, Mykolaiv and Kherson regions made 5,624 procurements last year without using the Prozorro electronic system for a total of UAH 18.3 billion.

Кирило Бойко