FRENCH COMPANIES OPERATING IN RUSSIA ARE INTERESTED IN PARTICIPATING IN PUBLIC PROCUREMENT

The Franco-Russian Chamber of Commerce and Industry organized a workshop in Moscow on “Public Procurement in Russia. Opportunities for French business” for representatives of French companies operating in the Russian Federation.

Deputy Head of FAS Department for Public Procurement Control, Ekaterina Nabatova took part in the event. She outlined the specifics of participation in public procurement for foreign companies, the existing prohibitions and limitations for access of foreign goods to tenders and auctions, the practice of control over procurement procedures by the antimonopoly body and FAS proposals on improving the procurement law, particular, in the field of import substitution.

Currently there are three main forms to support domestic goods, works, and services:

1) Prohibition of foreign goods, which, in FAS opinion, should be applied in exceptional cases;

2) Restricting foreign products under the “fifth wheel” principle, which in fact means that foreign products should be banned incase of competition between at least two goods of Russian producers;

3) Price preferences for domestic products, which, in FAS view, should apply practically always.

According to Ekaterina Nabatova, these measures must be applied very carefully.

Customers and business face serious obstacles under No. 44-FZ Federal Law when applying import substitution since it is based on numerous regulatory acts that set different approaches and procedures for using it. A similar situation has formed with No. 223-FZ Federal Law.

“In this context, FAS finds it expedient to pass a single Governmental act establishing unified approach to import substitution in all spheres of the economy”, informed Ekaterina Nabatova.

Summing up, she emphasized FAS readiness to a dialogue on improving the procurement law since Russian government is interested in intensifying competition in procurement.