Believe in the acquired – Newspaper Kommersant No. 209 (7410) dated 11/11/2022

The Ministry of Finance continues to bring procurement legislation in line with the sanctions relief made for state-owned companies. Thus, the department proposes to return from 2023 quotas for sub-sanctioned state JSCs for purchases from small and medium-sized businesses, but at the same time facilitate the implementation of these requirements by removing obligations for direct purchases, and consolidate reporting on compliance with the requirements in the closed part of the EIS. The achievement of quotas will also be facilitated by the ability of state-owned companies to grow their own suppliers from among SMEs – this program will start working tomorrow.

The Ministry of Finance published on regulation.gov.ru a draft government decree that takes into account changes in procurement rules in connection with anti-sanction measures of the government. The document, among other things, provides for the possibility of changing the essential terms of state contracts not only for the construction industry, but also for geological exploration. Its key norms are related to the conditions for the fulfillment by sub-sanctioned state JSCs of the requirements for the minimum share of purchases from small and medium-sized businesses (SMEs). On the one hand, such purchases are one of the key tools for state support of the sector through guaranteed demand, on the other hand, the risk of the spread of “sanctions infection” put this work on pause.

Prior to this, the White House gradually increased the requirements for the state JSC to support SMEs. If last year 1.8 thousand state JSCs had to fulfill quotas, then from 2022 – everything. The threshold for purchases from SMEs is at least 25% of all purchases – of which 20% must be provided by special auctions only from SMEs. With the imposition of sanctions, state JSCs that fell under them ceased to report in the Unified Information System in the field of procurement – and classified transactions are not taken into account in SME quotas, and data on them was lost. According to the calculations of the SME Corporation, more than 900 largest customers, who purchased goods and services from SMEs worth 1.8 trillion rubles, do not post information on purchases in the EIS due to sanctions. “This is a huge sales market for small and medium-sized businesses – almost half of the total volume of purchases from SMEs under 223-FZ. And it is extremely important for us, especially in the current conditions, to preserve it and support our small business. As a result, we managed to defend it,” notes Alexander Isaevich, General Director of the SME Corporation. Customers themselves are also interested in maintaining the quota, since non-compliance with it implies their transfer from the rules of 223-FZ (on procurement of state-owned companies) to the more stringent norms of 44-FZ (on public procurement).

The government has already taken steps to regain control of the sanctions sector from April 2023, albeit in the non-public part of the ENI (see Kommersant on November 10). The project of the Ministry of Finance returns from January 2023 the previous obligations of the state JSC for procurement from SMEs. State-owned companies have been promised relief – they only need to fulfill a general quota of 25%, the requirements for special auctions have been cancelled. According to the Ministry of Finance, this will give customers “a flexible opportunity to achieve a minimum volume of purchases, both through procurement, in which only SMEs participate, and by requiring suppliers to involve SMEs as subcontractors.”

A program to grow SME suppliers will also help state-owned companies meet the quota. Yesterday the government approved a resolution providing for the right of the state JSC to provide financial, legal, methodological and other support to small businesses in order to increase the number of qualified suppliers. The need for the program was previously explained by the fact that SME products often do not meet the requirements of customers (see Kommersant of January 19 and May 26). State JSCs will be able to develop and approve the program themselves, determine the range of goods and services they need, and also establish requirements to take into account industry specifics. Customers will be able to select participants on the MSP.RF digital platform or on their own service. After the selection, an individual map of the supplier’s development and provision of support measures is formed. State JSC will be able to conclude offset contracts with SMEs: the latter invest in production (own funds, including borrowed funds) in exchange for guarantees of demand for products. “Such contracts give businesses a clear planning horizon, creating a guaranteed sales market for it,” Alexander Isaevich believes.

As part of the pilot programs for growing suppliers on the SME.RF digital platform, 27 largest customers (more than 1.2 thousand product items) take part, including more than 100 product items identified for concluding offset contracts. A total of 127 applications were submitted from 59 SMEs from 26 regions. “Small businesses that take part in the program will have the opportunity for significant growth, as they will have a clear target and market. The customer is provided with the products of the domestic supplier in the required volume. The state, in turn, solves the problems of technological development of entire industries, import substitution, receives taxes and new jobs,” said Tatyana Ilyushnikova, deputy head of the Ministry of Economy.

Diana Galieva