Tashkent, Uzbekistan (UzDaily.uz) — Signs of anti-competitive agreements and coordinated actions were identified in 200 tenders held in Karakalpakstan, the territorial department of the Competition Committee of the Republic of Karakalpakstan reported.
Inspections conducted from January to June 2026 covered 345 tenders with a total value of around 41 billion soums. As a result, 842 violations of competition legislation were identified in 317 public procurements worth 32.1 billion soums.
Specialists separately examined 200 tenders conducted through the electronic platform etender.uzex.uz in 2025.
The procurements covered laboratory testing services for the quality of construction materials used in road construction and related works, as well as the preparation of laboratory reports and test protocols. The combined initial value of these tenders exceeded 1.6 billion soums.
Following the analysis, a Special Commission identified signs of anti-competitive agreements and coordinated actions by the contracting authority and certain business entities.
According to the inspection, participants divided tenders among themselves based on territorial principles.
Certain companies regularly participated in the same procurements, after which one of the participants systematically emerged as the winner.
In addition, identical and synchronised approaches were used when preparing price offers. In some cases, laboratory test protocols had been prepared before the tenders were held and the relevant contracts were concluded.
The inspection also identified cases in which invoices confirming the full completion of contractual works were issued on the day the contracts were registered with the Treasury or the following day.
The Special Commission concluded that the contracting authority’s actions did not comply with Article 29 of the Law “On Competition,” which prohibits actions that restrict or may lead to restrictions on competition in tenders.
An order requiring the violations to be eliminated and similar cases to be prevented in the future was issued in response to the findings.
Administrative offence reports were drawn up against officials responsible for the violations of competition legislation. The documents were submitted to the judicial authorities in accordance with established procedures.
