Antares-Bud LLC, which has been associated with scandals, questionable construction work, and criminal proceedings for many years, has won a tender for the reconstruction of the regional children's hospital in Mykolaiv. The project cost is 614 million hryvnias.
The history of this company has long been questionable. Since 2016, it has been involved in the reconstruction of facilities in the children's town "Kazka". The results are extremely dubious: a ship, the cost of which doubled during construction, as well as a swimming pool, the decoration of which collapsed shortly after renovation. A similar situation occurred with the emergency room of the emergency hospital, the reconstruction of which dragged on for years, despite public criticism from the mayor.
The new decision on the tender also looks strange. Antares-Bud submitted documents for the competition just six minutes after its announcement, and one of the key documents was created the day before - and with the exact amount of the security specified.
The company's competitor, Riola-Modul LTD, was rejected due to alleged “technical inconsistencies.” This decision was made on Friday evening, and Antares-Bud was declared the winner on Monday.
The terms of the contract open up ample opportunities for price inflating. For example, the estimated price of rebar is UAH 49,474 per ton – 45% more than the market price at the time of the contract.
Journalists and public organizations have repeatedly drawn attention to the company's dubious actions, as well as to the discriminatory conditions of tenders that effectively limited competition. Complaints have already been filed with law enforcement agencies, but the customer - the Mykolaiv Regional Military Administration - publicly sees nothing suspicious in the situation.
The story of Antares-Bud once again raises the question: how does a company with debts, scandals, and a dubious reputation get million-dollar contracts for strategically important facilities for children?
