Ukraine’s Cabinet of Ministers temporarily suspended auctions on the ProZorro public procurement system, the Economy Ministry reported, citing the government’s resolution from Dec. 30.
The ministry said that the measure is needed because Russia’s continuous attacks on Ukraine’s energy infrastructure led to scheduled and emergency power outages, often impeding access to the internet.
“Not all bidders in the ProZorro electronic procurement system have the opportunity to participate in auctions,” the statement said.
Auctions won’t be held during the period of martial law and within 90 days from the moment of its termination, the Economy Ministry announced. The martial law has been enacted on Feb. 24, when Russia invaded Ukraine. It has been prolonged every few months ever since.
“Starting today, all bids that will be announced in ProZorro will be conducted without an auction. That is, the (initial) tender offer of the participant is final, and the winner is the one who gave the lowest price during the submission of the offers,” Economy Minister Yulia Svyrydenko said on Jan. 3.
“We will bring back the auctions as soon as the situation stabilizes,” she said.
ProZorro is Ukraine’s electronic public procurement system, designed to increase transparency and competition in the bidding process. Launched in 2016, it has become the go-to platform for conducting procurement procedures in the country. ProZorro streamlines the process for companies to participate in bids and tracks the entire procurement process electronically, helping to reduce corruption and improve efficiency.
At the same time, its sister platform Prozorro.Sale, an online auction system for the sale and lease of property, will continue to hold auctions.
