Builders are burdened by controllers – Newspaper Kommersant No. 181 (7382) of 09/30/2022

Construction companies fear that the introduction of mandatory extended treasury support (ECS) in the implementation of large government construction contracts may currently lead to a disruption in the commissioning of significant facilities. From January 2023, the RCC mechanism should become mandatory for all projects worth more than 1 billion rubles. Through the Russian Union of Industrialists and Entrepreneurs (RSPP), market participants turned to Mikhail Mishustin with a request to maintain the current order, when a government decision is required for each case of CSWs.

At the disposal of Kommersant was a letter from the President of the Russian Union of Industrialists and Entrepreneurs Alexander Shokhin dated September 23 to Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin with a request to maintain the use of the RKS in the implementation of not all government contracts, but only in the construction of facilities established by separate acts of the government of the Russian Federation. The government office confirmed the receipt of the letter to Kommersant.

As part of the RCC, the state contract contractor and all its contractors must give the Federal Treasury access to their accounting and management accounting systems to verify the compliance of costs, explains Alexandra Galaktionova, an independent expert in the field of infrastructure and PPP. According to her, the purpose of such a mechanism is to increase the transparency of settlements and reduce the risks of corruption.

The launch of the RKS was supposed to start at the beginning of 2022 with the implementation of state construction contracts worth more than 1 billion rubles, but in April the authorities postponed this until January 2023, and now it is required only by decision of the government. The National Association of Infrastructure Companies (NAIK) clarified that so far there is no practice of applying the RKS norms and not a single state contract has been implemented under such a scheme.

The RSPP believes that during the crisis and due to the imposed sanctions, the RCC needs to be tested at a number of facilities, since now the actual costs may differ from those planned due to changes in design solutions. In the construction industry, and without this, excessive control, which leads to additional costs, and the widespread maintenance of the RCS can significantly complicate the implementation of infrastructure projects, Alexandra Galaktionova agrees. In addition, contractors may incur additional costs for software and an increase in the number of employees due to changes in the reporting system, increase the risk of fines, and there may be delays in salary payments due to the need for an economic justification for payments to employees, the RSPP fears.

The work of construction companies implementing projects under government contracts may be paralyzed, which will inevitably lead to a disruption in the implementation of plans for the construction of significant facilities, the NAIK agrees. However, this year, as part of anti-crisis measures, contractors were able to achieve more loyal working conditions in the field of state orders: the allowable amount of advances under government contracts increased from 30% to 90%, recalls Vladimir Koshelev, First Deputy Chairman of the State Duma Committee on Construction and Housing and Communal Services.

NAIK supports the initiative of the RSPP and claims that they sent a similar proposal to the Ministry of Finance, where Kommersant confirmed receipt of the letter. The ministry added that, on behalf of the Russian government, the issue of extending until the end of 2024 the provisions on the implementation of the RCC is already being worked out only when certain government decisions are made.

At the same time, RKS is one of the most effective mechanisms for protecting a state customer from financial risks in construction, says Khusein Pliyev, CEO of Smart Engineers. In addition, he recalls, the RCC discourages unscrupulous contractors from participating in the project, who evade paying taxes and use the services of gray suppliers and subcontractors.

According to Alexandra Galaktionova, in January-June 2022, 774 government construction contracts worth more than 500 million rubles were signed. for a total amount of 1.05 trillion rubles. This is 72% more year-on-year in quantity and 57% more in value. But due to the beginning of partial mobilization at the end of this year, a decrease in the number and volume of contracts is expected, and by the end of 2022, the growth dynamics will be 15-20%, the expert predicts.

Daria Andrianova