The Odessa Railway Leads Among UZ Branches in Questionable Tire Purchases

The "Odessa Railway" branch has become the leader among Ukrzaliznytsia's divisions in terms of the total value of rubber gasket purchases—over 28.5 million hryvnias—with virtually no competition.

This was reported by Nikcenter.

In the spring of 2026, journalists reviewed nine procurement contracts awarded by Ukrzaliznytsia’s regional branches with a total value of over 50 million hryvnias. It turned out that the largest orders in various regions were divided among three companies from the Kyiv region, whose bids matched down to the last kopeck.

The Odesa Railway signed contracts with four suppliers. One of these contracts was for a small quantity—just 300 PND-5 washers—and cost less than 25,000 hryvnias. The remaining amount, over 20 million hryvnias, was effectively divided among three companies with virtually no competition.

All procurements were announced over a four-day period in April. The contracts were awarded to Kyivguma LLC, Valtex-Guma LLC, and Ros-Guma Trading and Manufacturing Enterprise LLC.

According to an analysis of rubber gasket procurements by Ukrzaliznytsia branches from 2022 through the first half of 2026, the Odesa and Southwestern Railways, as well as the “Production Support Center” branch, were the main buyers among 204 lots on Prozorro with a total value of nearly 840 million hryvnias.

At the same time, the level of actual competition in this market segment remains critically low: in 59% of cases, only one bidder participated in the procurement.

Journalists also noted identical prices for rail pads in contracts from various suppliers across the country, including deliveries to the Odesa region. In particular, PRB-1 rail sleepers from different manufacturers cost the same price—33.36 hryvnias each—while on the open market, such a product could be purchased for 12–27 hryvnias.

Nikcenter submitted a request to Ukrzaliznytsia asking for an explanation of the price consistency among different manufacturers. As of the publication of this article, no comment had been received from Ukrzaliznytsia.

Ірина Глухова