JSC Khmelnytskyi Blenenergo has signed a contract for the supply of a power transformer worth 27 million hryvnias. Formally, the company managed to “save money”, as it was originally planned to pay more than 37 million. But even after the discount, this purchase remains significantly more expensive than similar contracts of other state-owned companies. This is reported by Nashi Groshi with reference to Prozorro data.
The supplier is the Kyiv private enterprise "Vector-A". It is to bring to Khmelnytskyi a transformer of the TMTN-16000/115/38.5/10.5-U1 type manufactured by the company "Olymp Energo". The equipment capacity is 16 MVA. The delivery is promised to be carried out within two months after the customer's request, payment is provided after the actual delivery, and the warranty is valid for half a year from the moment of commissioning.
If we look at the unit cost, one MVA for Khmelnytskyi Blennergo now costs approximately $40.4 thousand. For comparison, in September, the GTS Operator of Ukraine ordered a transformer of the same capacity for approximately $21.6 thousand per MVA, that is, almost half the price.
Initially, according to the results of the bidding, the amount of the contract with Vector-A was 37.03 million hryvnias, which was already quite high - more than 55 thousand dollars for an MVA. On October 23, the parties signed an additional agreement and reduced the cost to 27 million. At the same time, the terms were also shortened: instead of three months, the delivery is now given two. Despite this, the price still looks inflated.
In the open materials of court disputes, Olimp Energo previously appeared in conflicts with the tax authorities. There is also a mention there that in May 2024, this same Vector-A had already purchased a similar transformer from Olimp Energo for 20.3 million hryvnias. If you calculate, this is approximately 31.5 thousand dollars per MVA. That is, the supplier had already purchased similar equipment cheaper than Khmelnytskyi Blennergo is currently selling, even after the “discount”.
In addition, the terms of the tender raised questions among competitors. One of the companies stated that the delivery deadline set by the customer was unrealistic: a transformer of this class is usually manufactured no faster than half a year, and the regional energy authority demanded that everything be completed by the end of 2025. The potential supplier requested an official extension of the deadline to March 2026, but was refused. The participants also complained about the technical requirements. Khmelnytskyi Blenergo changed some of the terms, but not all.
During the selection, two other participants were rejected, including Zaporizhtransformator and Global Energo. Formally, due to the inconsistency of documents, in particular test protocols for equipment of the same winding connection scheme and the same power required by the customer. In addition, the competitors did not provide a full package of supporting certificates and letters of agreement to the contract.
The structure of relations between market participants looks closed. Vector-A, which has now received a contract, belongs to Andriy Kunynets and has won state contracts worth almost a billion hryvnias in recent years, mainly in Khmelnytskyi Blennergo. The manufacturer of the transformer, Frankivsk-based Olimp Energo, is registered under the name of Petro Savulya. He previously managed the company Global Energo, the same company that participated in this tender as a competitor but lost. That is, the supplier, manufacturer and competitor find themselves in the same circle of acquaintances.
Khmelnytskyi Blenergo is 70% owned by the state. The stake is currently managed by Ukrainian Distribution Networks, a state structure created to consolidate regional energy companies in Khmelnytskyi, Kharkiv, Zaporizhia, Cherkasy, Mykolaiv, and Ternopil. Since March 2025, Svyatoslav Kozlenko has been the CEO of Khmelnytskyi Blenergo.
In short, we have a situation in which a state-owned energy company buys a transformer from a long-time contractor at a price significantly higher than the market price and cuts off other participants due to formal inconsistencies. Even after the high-profile "savings" of 10 million hryvnia, questions about this purchase have not disappeared.
