New Shelter in a Few Days: How Shelters are Procured on Prozorro

Basements, parking lots, and underground passages – a diverse range of spaces have been adapted to protect against Russian shelling. Modular shelters have already been installed in some localities. For example, consider concrete shelters near transport stops. These structures are quickly assembled from pre-made parts and can be either partially or completely buried underground or installed on the surface. We looked at how local authorities equip such shelters.

Who buys the most

Utilizing the ProBI Prozorro analytical module, we retrieved all procurements related to modular shelters and verified the data manually. Just note that the general statistics do not include shelters that are installed at the expense of business or as part of charitable assistance.

In general, by the end of the summer, the total value of contracts for such structures on Prozorro amounted to UAH 873 million, with 57% representing the share of competitively announced procurements. However, in 8 out of 10 such lots, only one participant emerged and was subsequently recognized as the winner. Therefore, there is almost no real competition in such procurements.

Most of them were procured in Dnipropetrovsk region – UAH 162 million, Donetsk region – UAH 152 million, Kherson – UAH 103 million, Poltava – UAH 71 million, and Kyiv – UAH 65 million. Mostly these were different reinforced concrete structures, but there were also shelters made of sea containers.

In the Dnipropetrovsk region, most expenses, totaling UAH 53 million, are allocated to Dnipro. Mobile shelters have been installed there since November 2022, the first one appeared near a public transport stop on Bohdana Khemlnytskoho Avenue. In total, the Department of Beautification and Infrastructure of the Dnipro City Council procured:

• 43 mobile shelters, each accommodating 20 people, UAH 647,000 each,
• 35 modular structures, each accommodating 43 people, UAH 671,000 each,
• modular shelter accommodating 79 people, UAH 1.5 million.

In the Donetsk region, the most substantial contracts for modular shelters, totaling UAH 32 million, were signed in Kramatorsk. They ordered 19 shelters, each accommodating 20 people, at a cost of UAH 912,000 per shelter. Additionally, they ordered 3 shelters, each designed for 100 people, priced at UAH 2.4 million each, and 6 shelters, each intended for 60 people, valued at UAH 1.5 million each. At the beginning of August, 16 protective structures, including a large shelter, were already operational in the city, with one installed at the railway station in Kramatorsk.

Large contracts in the region were also signed in Sloviansk for UAH 23.5 million, Kostiantynivka for UAH 14.3 million, and Kurakhove for UAH 10.8 million.

In the Kherson region, the majority of expenses, approximately UAH 86 million, are attributed to the regional center. These are also the largest orders from all cities so far. Starting from March 2023, Kherson procured a total of 164 mobile shelters, both on the ground and underground.

The arrangement of mobile shelters was also announced in Kyiv. After the tragic incident of people losing their lives during the shelling on the night of June 1, the city authorities announced their plans to procure 200-250 modular concrete shelters for the capital in the near future. It was planned to allocate UAH 300 million for this purpose. But it never went any further.

What is the problem?

In Kyiv, the pause in the project’s implementation was attributed to the lack of a clear definition for the concept of modular shelters in current legislation. According to Deputy Mayor Secretary of the Kyiv City Council Volodymyr Bondarenko, the problem of modular shelters rests on State Building Codes for civil protection shelters. “While we should celebrate the establishment of DSTU standards for rapidly deployable civil protection facilities, it is a fact that mobile shelters do not currently meet these requirements. An interesting situation arises: all those attractive structures that are now scattered in settlements along the front line are, in fact, not shelters,” says Volodymyr Bondarenko. He highlighted issues such as the responsibility of officials for installing these objects, their classification as civil protection structures, the utilization of budget funds, and the procedures for construction and installation.

Partially requirements for rapidly deployable protective structures for civil protection are defined in construction standards  DBN V. 2. 2-5-97 “Houses and Structures”. However, these standards are valid until the end of October 2023, then DBN V. 2. 2-5:2023 comes into force. They do not contain the definition of such structures. The DSTU standard mentioned by Bondarenko is  DSTU 9195:2022 “Rapidly deployable civil protection modular facilities. Basic provisions,” effective since March 2023. That state standard is optional.

Viktor Vitovetskyi, Director of the Department of Civil Protection Measures Organization, stated that the working group tasked with developing state construction standards for shelters was nearing completion. He also stressed that modular shelters are relevant in border and frontline areas, where shelling is frequent and very fast. In the rear and more remote areas, it is advisable to build shelters. Presumably, he was referring to the modular shelters installed in public places on the ground, rather than those buried underground. For instance, near educational institutions.

We turned to the State Emergency Service with questions, in particular regarding the requirements for modular shelters and whether they can be classified as rapidly deployable civil protection structures. However, as of the publication of this material, we have not received a response yet.

Who supplies such shelters

According to our calculations, the largest amount of contracts concluded for the supply of modular shelters was received by “Road and Energy Structures” Reinforced Concrete Plant LLC – UAH 169 million. This is about a fifth of all orders. The company supplied shelters in almost all regions where they were ordered.

The company was established in 2019, in Kyiv, their main activity is the production of concrete products for construction. The company has been participating in public procurement since 2021. The total amount of government contracts is UAH 282 million, of which UAH 216 million falls on 2023.

The second is Balivskyi Plant of Reinforce Concrete Structures LLC from Dnipro, which concluded contracts for almost UAH 86 million. The firm supplied modular shelters to Dnipropetrovsk (UAH 43 million), Donetsk (UAH 19 million), and Poltava (UAH 7 million) regions. Balivskyi Plant of Reinforce Concrete Structures LLC is registered in Dnipro in 2013. According to YouControl, the firm is owned by Viktor Shynkevych (61%) and Ihor Vakaliuk (39%).

Viktor Shynkevych was the deputy of Dnipropetrovsk Regional Council of 7th convocation. He owns a group of construction and real estate companies, including BudIndustriia LLC, Balivska Construction Company LLC, and Dniprozhylservice LLC.

The third is AKAM LLC, UAH 67 million. According to YouControl records, that company is a part of Alef trading and production company controlling various enterprises: manufacture of consumer goods and import of finished goods, development, agrarian business, manufacture of medicinal products, construction materials, and seamless pipes. The key persons of that corporation are Stanislav Vilenskyi, Deputy Chairman of the Board, and Vadym Yermolaiev, Chairman of the Board of Alef corporation.

The leader is Hobbit House LLC, UAH 56 million. The company operated mainly in the west, south and center of Ukraine. The firm was established in April 2022, registered in Kyiv with Ilona Levkovska as a registered owner and director. The company manufactures shelters looking like hobbit houses.

The fifth is Modern Concrete Solutions LLC which concluded UAH 51.2 million contracts. The company was founded in 2019, with Maksym Tkachenko as its registered owner.

Comparing the cost of shelters is challenging due to variations in manufacturers’ specifications and equipment, differing manufacturing and verification processes, and unique delivery terms associated with each procurement.

Do modular shelters work?

According to the technical characteristics, modular shelters mus protect from debris and blast waves. Although they will not resist a direct hit. Since there are no clear requirements for shelters, manufacturers make them at their discretion. Someone voluntarily tests the structures, someone relies only on planned technical qualities.

We have not yet found any feedback on how effective this method of protection is in Ukraine, and whether people really use it. It is unknown whether those figures are tracked or recorded. Especially in frontline settlements, which are shelled daily.

Like all other protection facilities, mobile shelters must be maintained so that they can be used. For example, in Ternopil, local authorities have already begun to face problems as people attempt to use shelters for drinking alcohol or as dressing rooms. A similar situation has also occurred at least in Nikopol and Dnipro.

Modular shelters can offer a practical solution in situations where there is no suitable space nearby for a shelter, or when it needs to be located very close to a crowded area. However, currently, their installation is disorganized and haphazard. There is a lack of clear regulations, standards, and recommendations regarding the types and optimal locations of shelters. In general, there is an open question regarding whether these structures qualify as shelters at all.

The publication was prepared with the support of USAID / UK aid project Transparency and Accountability in Public Administration and Services/ TAPAS