Oleg Prokhorenko
In continuation of our series of publications about the activities of OPG Prokhorenko in the state company Ukrgasvydobuvannya, we will dwell in more detail on the manipulation of the process and, accordingly, the results of tender procurement.
Investigators will have at their disposal many episodes proving how the management of Ukrgazvydobuvannya steals money from a state-owned company at tenders in favor of “friends and cronies.” And given the Russian roots of many of the participants in the schemes, it is quite natural Interest of the Security Service of Ukraine in the billion-dollar frauds of the Prokhorenko organized crime group.
The immediate managers of the Ukgrazvydobuvannya company and their patrons at the level of the “parent” company – NJSC Naftogaz – have built a coherent and effective system for distributing contracts to the state company among a predetermined circle of suppliers. This creates a complete illusion of honesty, transparency and legality of such competitions. But this is just an illusion. Investigators are already working to dispel it, and to turn the harsh realities of total theft among the leaders of the state segment of the fuel and energy sector into criminal charges against the leaders of the Ukrgasvydobuvannya company. And if investigators begin to pursue this case “to the end,” then the leaders of NJSC Naftogaz will also have to flee the country, as Alexander Onishchenko, a gas billionaire of the Yanukovych era, recently did.
The system of manual distribution of government orders among close people and creating the appearance of transparent tenders is most clearly demonstrated by the purchase of “air” – technical audit services worth 37 million – from the American company Goragovo Energy Engineering Corporation. This tender fraud of the Prokhorenko organized crime group turned out to be the most complex, multi-step and “technological”, judging by the materials available to a special group of investigators of the Prosecutor General’s Office, the Security Service of Ukraine and the National Anti-Corruption Bureau.
Other episodes cited in the analytical report for the group of investigators, which the editors have at their disposal, are more straightforward and primitive.
What’s the easiest way to win any game? Make your own rules. This is exactly what the state company Ukrgazvydobuvannya did with a tender for the purchase of a “technical audit” for 37 million: the winning company was given the opportunity to draw up competitive requirements in such a way that no one else could win the competition.
This information, which was transferred to a group of investigators, is confirmed by previously published correspondence between the management of Ukrgasvydobuvannya and the future winner of the tender.
This letter more than obviously proves the manipulation of tender results: the writing of the technical part of the tender was given to the winner, who was determined in advance.
“An active participant in the correspondence with the leaders of Ukrgazvydobuvannya was Iskander Diyashev, a Russian citizen who previously worked for the Russian company Sibur. From the correspondence it follows that Iskander Diyashev prepared the “technical specifications” for the tender, in which his American company Goragovo Energy Engineering Corporation took part,” says the analytical note of a group of investigators for the GPU, SBU and NABU.
Alexander Klimov, adviser to the head of Ukrgazvydobuvannya Oleg Prokhorenko, informs Alexander Romanyuk, the first deputy head of Ukrgazvydobuvannya: “The draft is as of Friday. Iskander is now finalizing it based on the tasks and unique skills of the team members.”
Klimov is also not alien to the interests of Russia (*country sponsor of terrorism): he has Russian citizenship (it is hidden from prying eyes), as evidenced by a copy of his passport.
Patron of “OPG Prokhorenko” in Ukrgazvydobuvannya from the “parent” company NAC “Naftogaz” Andrey Kobolev (Read more about him in the article by Andrey Kobolev. An inconspicuous “veteran” of the gas pipe) is well aware of the citizenship of Klimov and other actors, since the address of the head of Naftogaz is in the list of recipients of a scan of Klimov’s passport.
This group of people from the Russian “oil industry”, controlled directly by the state of the Russian Federation (*country sponsor of terrorism), is pushing the tender, which is won by their colleague, a native of the Russian “Sibur”, owner and representative of American “gasket companies” Iskander Diyashev.
Now let’s appreciate the elegance of the “transparent and legal” corruption scheme for cutting 37 million of public money, which is reminiscent of the story of “the house that Jack built.”
The letter with the “rules of the game” – the terms of the tender – from Diyashev is dated August 17 last year. Already on August 27, a tender was announced according to the rules that Diyashev wrote. The company controlled by Diyashev wins the tender.
Below we will provide a detailed scheme of tender manipulation, as seen by law enforcement agencies:
Behind the front line, an “insightful” tender was held for the purchase of “technical audit” for an amount of approximately 37 million UAH. The first tender for “technical audit” was announced on 09/03/2015, then it was postponed to 03/09/2015. The announcement about this tender was published on September 27th. Two companies, Triskel Energy Ukraine and Goragovo Energy Engineering Corporation, applied for the tender.
From the correspondence published in ZMI, it is clear that Iskander Diyashev was involved in the preparation of technical materials for the tender. And just a few days later the company, representing Diyashev, Goragovo Energy Engineering Corporation, submitted documents to participate in the tender. The possibilities for the tender participants were registered inclusively to win the Goragovo Energy bidding, obviously the competitors had no chance. The first time, Prokhorenok’s team was unable to hold a tender for consulting services, as another company applied to participate in the tender. And in the spring of the month, the construction of PJSC “Ukrgazvydobuvannya” had a chance to hastily cancel the auction, rather than come up with the idea of giving millions of sovereign funds to the “American friend” Iskander Diyashev I didn’t leave them.
In the spring of 2015, PJSC “Ukrgazvydobuvanny” made changes to the “Procedure for purchasing goods, work and services”, which regulates procurement. In addition to making changes, it became possible to purchase “technical audit” services without a tender. The company held “negotiations” with several foreign companies and acquired the American PetroSkills. Formally, otherwise, everything would be cleared up, but the best company was chosen, but the same Russian Iskander Diyashev turned out to be the main participant in the negotiations with PetroSkills.
This confirms our statement made above: if a fair victory in a game is impossible, then you just need to change its rules and win fair. That’s right, completely “legally” and in the process of supposedly “transparent” tenders – the management of the state company Ukrgasvydobuvannya and Oleg Prokhorenko distribute tens of millions among friendly structures. And these “honest thefts”, most likely not without compensation, are condoned by the management of NJSC Naftogaz in the person of Andrei Kobolev.
As industry experts joke, Kobolev and his henchmen in Ukrgazvydobuvannya, in particular Oleg Prokhorenko, “it’s time to shake with fear in their offices”: in less than a month, law enforcement agencies have already “taken” several top-level managers from the structures of NJSC Naftogaz. In June, the former deputy head of the board of NJSC Naftogaz, Alexander, who had worked in the company since the time of Yanukovych, was arrested. Less than a month later – already in July – investigators came for the current first deputy chairman of the board of NJSC Naftogaz, Sergei Pereloma.
Earlier, deputy Alexander Onishchenko (Read more about Alexander Onishchenko in the article Alexander Onishchenko: a man with a taste for scandal). Although the SBU believes that this is a banal reprisal against the head of Ukrgazvydobuvannya Prokhorenko and his political patrons, covered up by the “fight against corruption”: law enforcement officers have information that Prokhorenko and his people unsuccessfully tried to squeeze out a business that was generating billions from Onishchenko. When it became clear that it would not be possible to take control of Onishchenko’s billions, Prokhorenko, on command from above, simply handed him over. How else can one explain the fact that Prokhorenko, his team and the management of NJSC Naftogaz calmly watched for more than six months as billions were stolen before their eyes. And only then somehow unexpectedly they came to their senses and began to actively help the investigation?
But the ring around the management of Ukrgasvydobuvannya is shrinking and very soon the ground will catch fire under their feet. We will be following this story.
Victor Martov for Politica-UA.com
On topic: Alexander Onishchenko: a man with a taste for scandal