Why there is no competition

The news that only one company - the Chinese company "Shandong" - made an offer at the invitation of the City of Belgrade for partnership in the construction of four underground garages is poor. 

Not because it is about this particular company, but because every single situation in which an open tender for getting a job with a state is made by only one bidder indicates that the contracting authority did not do something right - that the conditions were set too sharply, potential candidates were not adequately informed, candidates are not convinced that the tender will be really open and honest due to previous experiences or because of knowledge about the usual way of doing business etc. 

In this regard, a bad signal to potential partners for public private - partnerships and public procurements is certainly the fact that there are several jobs that are among the largest contracted through direct contracts, and without competition.  

The basis for this was found in interstate agreements, which is why no domestic laws were applied at all, among them the Law on Public-Private Partnership and Concessions. 

In this way, we recall the agreed private partner for the project "Belgrade Waterfront", for the transformation of "JAT" into "Air Serbia", for the construction of a new block of thermal power plant in Kostolac, for some sections of the highway, and recently for the modernization of the railway line towards Budapest.  

Such type of a state business, promoted as a top national interest, is likely to affect the relationship of some other potential investors and business partners of the state, so they are reluctant to submit bids if they have no indications that they could be elected. 

Transparency - Serbia made proposals for improving the rules on public private partnership and concessions, in which we   proposed: expanding the scope of information to be published on the public procurement procedure preceding the conclusion of the public-private partnership contract; prohibition to be designated as secret contract provisions or parts of other documents in which the obligations of the public partner are prescribed or explained; the obligation to monitor the implementation of the PPP contract and to gather information from interested parties