You're reading: Russian Energy Ministry proposal could make around 25 percent of Transneft procurements non-public

A draft government order prepared by the Russian Energy Ministry on a number of non-public procurements by Transneft could close up to 25 percent of the tenders of the oil pipeline company, an explanatory note from the Energy Ministry said, a copy of which has been seen by Interfax.

“It is expected that that around 25 percent of the total number of procurements carried out by JSC Transneft and its organizations could be affected by the Russian government act on approving the list,” the document says.

Companies could get access to participation in such tenders only after they sign an agreement on non-disclosure of business information.

According to the Energy Ministry, public disclosure of information about tenders risks the security of Transneft systems. This includes information about designs, technical parameters of oil pipelines, including links to areas indicating the profile of the pipeline’s path, depth, well locations, water crossings, information on the capacity of the pipeline, performance characteristics of tank farms, loading points, ports, circuits, and information about Transneft communications systems, summarizing the state of the equipment, protection of Transneft facilities, system security information about the characteristics of measurement systems and quantity and quality of oil, oil products and other reasons.

However, the Energy Ministry notes that the closing off of information will not bring a decrease in competition for tenders. “The share of procurements, the details of which will not be posted in the single information system, will not reflect on the state of competition in relevant market sectors, because the procurement will be carried out only among entities that have prequalified,” it said.

“The main reasons are such: equality, fairness, the absence of discrimination and restrictions in competition in relation to procurement participants, the designated and economically effective spending of funds and implementation of measures directed at cutting the client’s costs, the absence of restrictions on admission to procurements by way of establishing immeasurable requirements for participants in procurements, will be followed,” the statement said.

In particular, the company will have to keep a share of procurements from small and medium businesses.

The Energy Ministry prepared the government draft order, giving Transneft the right to not place information about holding a number of tenders on government tenders on official sites. It is expected that this document could come into effect in the fall.