The Pardubice Region will announce a new competition for the construction of psychiatry

Pardubice - The leadership of the Pardubice Region has approved the commencement of a new tender for the construction of a psychiatric pavilion at Pardubice Hospital. The regional council canceled the original tender announced by the Pardubice Region Hospital (NPK) last August. This decision was made among other reasons due to suspicions that there was an illegal agreement among the participants of the competition. The new competition is organized by the region as the owner of the hospitals; the criteria will be milder, stated Dominik Barták, spokesman for the regional council, in a press release.

"We have now lowered the requirements for previous references in the field of healthcare, as the construction of psychiatry is not as demanding in terms of central intake. I believe that this step will help us increase competition among potential suppliers," said Governor Martin Netolický (ČSSD). The region will also consider the proposed duration of construction, which has proven effective in other competitions.

The regional council and the NPK company have filed a criminal complaint against unknown perpetrators on suspicion of rigging in the public competition. The National Central Office against Organized Crime (NCOZ) is currently investigating the matter.

The competition was also canceled due to exceeding the original estimated price, which was 223.5 million crowns, while the lowest bid was 257.5 million crowns. The decision to cancel the tender was also approved by the Office for the Protection of Competition.

For the construction of the pavilion, the region has secured 220 million crowns from European funds. It will build a new facility for the department of psychiatry and clinical psychology, including connections to utilities on the premises. Builders will make adjustments to the roads, relocate utility networks, demolish part of the paved areas, and repair the fencing in the western part of the hospital complex.