Employees of the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) have exposed in Mykolaiv region an attempt to monopolize the provision of services on the repair of state-owned vessels, the SBU's press center reported on Thursday.

Law enforcement officers established that in 2017-2018, the management of a structural unit of a financial and industrial group twice rudely violated the requirements of the current antimonopoly legislation.

"While participating in bidding for the purchase of ship repair services for state enterprises of the water transport industry, businessmen deliberately violated the terms of the competitions," the report says.

SBU officers documented that the offenders, in order to win tenders for a total of UAH 8.5 million, agreed on the actions with other bidders and also concealed the fact of being held accountable for violating the legislation in the field of economic competition.

The press center said that bidding procedures had been canceled by government customers. Based on the decision of the Antimonopoly Committee of Ukraine, the structural unit of the financial and industrial group was limited in participation in government purchases until 2021.