In the Urals, officials without bidding gave their company state contracts for 2.6 billion rubles

Now this company itself is looking for contractors to perform the work.

Alexander Dybin

The recipient of a huge package of government contracts was South Ural Corporation for Housing Construction and Potek. It is 100 percent owned by the government of the Chelyabinsk region. In recent years, the structure has been building apartment buildings for sale and for resettlement from a dilapidated fund and providing housing for orphans. But in 2022, a waterfall of money hit KZhSI.

In 2021, the state-owned company received 17 contracts worth 380 million rubles, with most of the contracts related to the purchase of finished apartments in houses built by KZhSI. In 2022, the situation changed dramatically, the company received state contracts for 2.7 billion rubles. moreover, the contracts were concluded without bidding, KZhSI acted as the only supplier. This became possible due to changes in local legislation, which made it possible to place government orders for construction directly without bidding from government contractors.

Thus, the largest purchases are the development of a project and the construction of a surgical building for the Nyazepetrovsk hospital - 634 million, the construction of a polyclinic in the village of Miasskoe - 447 million, the preparation of a polyclinic project - 110 million, the overhaul of the hospital in Katav-Ivanovsk - 236 million, the construction of a school in the village Uvelsky - 161 million. KZhSI received more than a dozen such contracts. And now she must develop projects from small rural FAPs to polyclinics. At the same time, earlier KZhSI itself was not engaged in designing, especially medical institutions, there are simply no such specialists in its staff. According to the interlocutor of Novye Izvestiya in the government of the Chelyabinsk region, the authorities do not see the risk of disruption of important contracts due to lack of competence.

“Most of the projects will be subcontracted to specialized companies,” the source said.

So KZhSI has already announced tenders for the performance of works that were previously entrusted to the corporation. At the same time, with a slight price reduction, KZhSI keeps about 4 million rubles for itself, in fact, for acting as an intermediary. For example, the state-owned company received a contract for the design of a hospital in Kopeysk for 82 million, and the subcontractor is offered to take it on for 78 million. For the hospital project in Kyshtym, KZhSI receives 66 million, and its subcontractor is promised 62 million. At the same time, the form of the KZhSI legal entity allows trading not according to the rigid FZ-44 with a lot of restrictions and transparency, but according to the softer FZ-223, in addition, the winners of such auctions will be hidden. Why was it necessary to insert a spacer in the form of KZhSI between the regional government and the real performers? An interlocutor of Novye Izvestia from among the players in the construction market of the Chelyabinsk region believes that they want to “pump” the company with money and help it survive the crisis.

“The authorities say that all work under these contracts will be without advance payment, that is, there is no risk of losing budget money,” the source says, “but the scheme is too complicated and risky. In a short time it is necessary to receive a large number of projects that have passed the state examination, as well as all the accounting between all participants must converge. It would be easier to win back these contracts directly in the old fashioned way. But KZhSI does not have the best financial position, otherwise it will be able to rectify the situation.”

The government of the Chelyabinsk region and the corporation itself, in response to a request from Novye Izvestia, replied that they did not see a violation of the law in this situation, and the contracts were given to the KZhSI, since earlier there was no one interested in them at an open tender.

“The need to conclude contracts for the construction and overhaul of medical facilities with South University KZhSI is due, first of all, to the needs of residents of the districts in obtaining medical care. Most of these works were previously won at open tenders, but there were no contractors willing to perform work for the specified amounts. Realizing the high importance of healthcare facilities, it was decided to transfer the work to KZhSI, the press service of the government of the Chelyabinsk region reported. - In the field of procurement, the corporation is guided by the norms of 223-FZ and searches for contractors through open competitive procedures (auctions, tenders, etc.). According to the results of already held tenders, most of the contracts involve representatives of small businesses - local contractors located directly in the areas of construction of facilities.

The situation with an unexpected wave of government orders for a state-owned company did not go unnoticed by the regulatory authorities. The head of the Chelyabinsk branch of Yabloko, Yaroslav Shcherbakov, turned to the local department of the Federal Antimonopoly Service of Russia with a statement about the violation of antimonopoly law.

“I already expressed my doubts when the regional government adopted a resolution allowing contracts to be signed with the only contractors - joint-stock companies 100% owned by the Chelyabinsk region,” says Shcherbakov, “the practical application of this preference was not long in coming. Without bidding, 74 state contracts were concluded with JSC "Southern University KZhSI" for contract work for the construction and overhaul of healthcare facilities in all regions for a total of 1.89 billion rubles. What prevented state customers from placing tenders for whitewashing walls and replacing skirting boards in hospitals? There would be some help and an opportunity to earn money for small businesses. How is the use of UU KZhSI, which is likely to freely distribute work among its subcontractors, related to sanctions and the protection of the national interests of the country?”

As Novye Izvestia was informed by the press service of the Federal Antimonopoly Service of Russia for the Chelyabinsk Region, at the moment, KZhSI contracts are being tested.

As Novye Izvestia previously reported, KZhSI was involved in yet another scandalous situation. So, one of these days the arbitration court declared the regional investment development agency (AIR) bankrupt. This structure of the government of the Chelyabinsk region owed the tax inspectorate more than 400 million rubles. The debt arose due to the fact that the AIR bought mortgage certificates and bonds of KZhSI several years ago. Then the state-owned construction company was on the verge of bankruptcy and the authorities saved it by issuing debt securities. But none of the private business began to buy them, so I had to buy out AIR, but the tax authorities regarded this deal as a commercial one and charged additional tax, which led to bankruptcy.