site.btaConstruction Chamber Refutes Allegations that Big Public Procurement Contracts Are Awarded to Handful of Companies

Construction Chamber Refutes Allegations that Big Public Procurement Contracts Are Awarded to Handful of Companies

Sofia, March 18 (BTA) - The Bulgarian Construction Chamber (BCC) on Friday refuted allegations that big public procurement contracts in the construction sector are always awarded to a handful of companies. The BCC said in a media statement that the allegations are unfounded.

The organization cited statistical data published on the official website of the Public Procurement Agency showing that 2,840 construction-related public procurement contracts totalling 2.636 billion leva were awarded in 2015. Small businesses won 1,137 of these contracts, to the total worth of 285 million leva, and medium-sized businesses received 1,222 contracts totalling 1.4 billion leva. Large companies were awarded 401 contracts totalling 1.3 billion leva. Of these, 294 contracts worth 345 million leva were awarded to 46 companies, and the remaining 107 contracts worth 985 million leva were won by 64 consortiums.

The BCC noted that not only in Bulgaria but also Europe-wide the implementation of large construction projects requires considerable amounts of money and a certain type of expertise, technology and personnel. This is reflected in the official requirements in the public procurement bidding procedures in the construction sector. In Europe, large construction projects are implemented by a limited number of big companies. In Bulgaria, as can be seen from the above-mentioned data, bidders are usually united in consortiums in order to meet the requirements, and the lead partners in these consortiums are often large foreign companies. Another important fact, according to the BCC, is that dozens of small and medium-sized enterprises are subcontracted for large infrastructure projects.

The BCC vowed to continue monitoring the bidding procedures in the construction sector and to alert the competent authorities and the public about any imperfections, citing facts and refraining from political rhetoric.