The DPP board canceled the selection of the winner for the construction of the second section of metro line D

Prague - The board of the Prague Public Transport Authority (DPP) today cancelled the selection of the winner for the construction of the second section of the metro line D. The evaluation committee will thus reassess the originally winning bid from a consortium of companies led by Subterra. Daniel Šabík, head of the DPP press department, informed ČTK today. The selection of the winner was previously annulled by the Office for the Protection of Competition (ÚOHS) on a preliminary basis. The tender was contested due to alleged errors in the references of the winning consortium, PORR, VINCI, and Marti (PVM), which the transport company excluded from the tender. In verifying the contested references, DPP found itself in a situation where none of the entities mentioned in the references provided by the winner could unequivocally confirm parts of the references challenged by the complainant. Therefore, the board cancelled the selection.

The construction of line D began in 2022 in the section between the stations Pankrác and Olbrachtova. It is supposed to connect the section from Olbrachtova to Nové Dvory, which is the subject of the tender.

DPP management insists that the company acted in the tender in accordance with the Public Procurement Act, with due care and based on the information in the submitted bids, which it also verified beyond its legal obligations.

"In connection with the proceedings before the ÚOHS, we set out to further verify the references challenged by the complainant even though we had them confirmed during the evaluation of the bids. In the course of this verification, we reached a point where none of the entities that the winner cites in the references is able to unequivocally confirm such an unprecedentedly detailed aspect of the reference that the complainant is contesting," stated DPP CEO Petr Witowski.

Subterra views today's decision as a continuation of the tender and remains confident in the quality of its bid. "We fully stand behind the submitted bid, including all the references. We believe that the client will reach the same conclusion during its further evaluation as it did last year, and we are ready to provide full cooperation in that process," said Subterra spokesperson Vladislav Beneš.

The DPP supervisory board will discuss the construction of metro D at its next meeting. "This is the responsibility of the DPP board led by CEO Witowski. From my perspective, it is crucial for DPP as a public procurer to proceed precisely according to the law," communicated the mayor's deputy Zdeněk Hřib (Pirates) to ČTK.

The ÚOHS annulled the decision on the selection of the contractor and all subsequent actions of the DPP for the section of the metro between Olbrachtova and Nové Dvory, because, according to the authority, the documentation of the winning consortium lacked documents proving the experience of some members of the professional staff, for which points were awarded during evaluation. DPP disagreed with the decision and filed a complaint against it. The ÚOHS has not yet issued a subsequent decision. At that time, Subterra also disagreed with the authority's decision.

The proposal to annul the selection of the contractor was filed with the ÚOHS by PVM Metro DII JV, in which several companies are grouped. The Antimonopoly Office is also conducting another administrative procedure regarding the proposal against the exclusion of PVM Metro DII JV from the procurement process. In both administrative procedures, the ÚOHS issued a preliminary measure prohibiting the company from entering into a contract with the contractor until a final decision is made.

The thirty billion crown contract for the construction of the second part of line D was won in 2023 by a group of companies led by Subterra from the Metrostav group. Previously, DPP excluded a two billion cheaper bid submitted by PVM, claiming it did not meet the tender conditions.

The construction of the new metro line began in 2022. The construction of a one-kilometer section between Pankrác and Olbrachtova is underway. It is supposed to connect to the section from Olbrachtova to Nové Dvory. The last section to be built will be from Nové Dvory to the Depot Písnice. The original completion date was set for 2029, but due to disputes, it will likely be postponed.