Pece Matevski, the former director of the Manastir thermal power plant, was sentenced to two years in prison by the Basic Court in Manastir for abuse of official position and authority during a public procurement procedure for the removal of overburden. In its first-instance ruling, the court found that the power plant suffered losses of approximately 2.9 million euros as a result of the tender procedure, which was worth more than 11 million euros.
The case concerns a 2022 tender for the removal of overburden at the Brod Gneotino mine. The contract was awarded to Rud Kop, a company based in Manastir, after the bid submitted by Granit, a company based in Skopje, was excluded from the procedure. According to the indictment, Granit met the technical requirements and had submitted the lowest price, but was unable to take part in the electronic auction because its bid was rejected.
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The court concluded that Matevski, together with three members of the expert committee, enabled Rud Kop to gain the amount represented by the difference between the prices offered. The ruling calculates the losses caused to the Manastir thermal power plant at 178,370,319 denars.
Each of the three expert committee members received a one-year suspended prison sentence. They will not serve their sentences unless they commit another crime within two years of the ruling becoming final. Three employees of the Public Procurement Bureau also received suspended sentences, while three members of the Public Procurement Commission were acquitted.
