This week, it will be revealed whether T-Systems can continue to operate BKK's ticket vending machines without a public procurement procedure, which it has been doing for eight years now, PestiSrácok.hu wrote. The newspaper notes that due to the pandemic, the giant company already won the right to operate for more than a year without a tender, but in vain there are companies that would give a cheaper offer; if the interests so desire, the German multinational will win without open public procurement.

Even during the reign of István Tarlós, in 2013, T-Systems, together with the manufacturer Scheidt & Bachmann, won the right to supply and operate the ticket machines in a Budapest tender for five years. At that time, they agreed to operate the machines for HUF 120,000 per month. After its expiration, the contract was extended until December 2020 as part of a public procurement procedure. At that time, the operating fee for each machine had already increased to HUF 215,000.

After the expiration of the agreement, BKK belatedly announced a new public procurement tender, which was withdrawn due to the pandemic, thus keeping the previous operator busy.

This again gave BKK the opportunity to extend its contract with the existing service provider, i.e. T-Systems and Scheidt & Bachmann, for another year. However, the previously withdrawn public procurement procedure was re-announced in May this year, for which applications could be submitted until July 9, but this deadline was finally extended to July 23.

However, according to an e-mail obtained by PestiSrácok.hu, this public procurement procedure was eventually withdrawn; this leaves one player in the ring, namely T-Systems, which has been employed up to now.

The German company, on the other hand, wants to continue operating the ticket machines, for this purpose they are reportedly putting pressure on the board of BKK to make a decision in this week's postal vote to withdraw the previous 13-month contract extension and decide to ask T-Systems for the current system its further development through an already live contract, without public procurement. By the way, the estimated price of this will cost BKK approximately eight hundred million forints.

If this is realized, then T-Systems, which has been cemented eight years ago, can win the tender without public procurement, while the capital did not even look around the market to see if there was a company that would make a cheaper offer.

According to the PestiSrácok.hu informant, the decision-makers know of several market players who would make a better offer, have ready-made software and could complete the task within the deadline.

However, BKK does not seem to be interested in this.

Source: sándár.hu