RIGA - Economy Minister Krisjanis Karins has ordered Latvenergo, the state-owned power utility, to carry out an independent internal audit of the company's procurement process, the minister's press office reported.
"Reports about allegedly biased procurement tenders by Latvenergo that groundlessly restrict the number of bidders, as well as reports about the possible waste of money, raise a whole line of questions regarding honest and efficient operations of the company, which could be answered by an independent internal audit," Karins was quoted as saying.
The minister wants the company's internal audit to carry out analyses of procurement regarding the key groups of goods and services, including construction and reconstruction as well as purchase of equipment, machinery and materials.
The state procurement bureau reported recently that among Latvia's public utilities providers Latvenergo last year led in terms of the value of procurement contracts with 258.5 million lats, or 59 percent of the total value of contracts, which was 438.2 million lats.
Latvenergo is wholly owned by the state.
