Three municipal enterprise executives in Odesa allowed the free use of city property

The Odesa community may have lost out on more than 594 million hryvnias due to the official negligence of three executives of a municipal enterprise. They allowed a private company to use city property free of charge.

According to the Odesa Regional Prosecutor’s Office, the case involves the current director of the municipal enterprise and two of its former directors.

The officials have been notified that they are suspected of official negligence resulting in serious consequences.

<picture></picture>PHOTO: Odesa Regional Prosecutor’s Office

The case involves facilities of Odesa’s water supply system—two sewage pumping stations, a tunnel sewage collector, and a pressure sewer. In 2013, due to their technical condition, the facilities were removed from the list of assets leased to a private company and transferred to the municipal utility’s balance sheet for reconstruction.

More than 45 million U.S. dollars from an international loan were spent on the repair and construction of these facilities. The loan was repaid using funds from the Odesa municipal budget.

After the reconstruction, the private company continued to use these facilities to provide water supply and wastewater disposal services to Odesa and surrounding communities. However, according to the investigation, no rent was charged for the use of the property.

<picture></picture>PHOTO: Odesa Regional Prosecutor’s Office

The prosecutor’s office noted that from January 2020 to October 2025, three heads of the municipal enterprise failed to ensure that the use of the property was properly documented. In effect, the private company used the municipal facilities without a lease agreement that would have required payment.

After the renovation, the value and technical condition of the property improved, so it was supposed to be returned to the water supply complex, and the rent was supposed to increase.

However, this was not done. The use of the facilities was formalized through a contract for their maintenance.

A forensic economic analysis determined that, as a result, the local budget lost more than 594 million hryvnias in rent.

At the request of the prosecutor’s office, preventive measures have already been imposed on the suspects.

Ірина Глухова