Introduction. The new approach to determining the cost of road works and services is adapted to international standards of costs formation in the road sector, and the changes provided by the pricing system will be implemented by all participants of the road sector.
Problem Statement. The necessary conditions for new construction, reconstruction, repair and maintenance of public roads financed from the budget are to ensure that their cost is determined in accordance with the principles of market pricing and using free prices, timely and correct settlements, as well as meeting all deadlines and high-quality road works and services. That is why the pricing model, taking into account its peculiarities, needed to be improved and brought in line with modern European norms and standards. At the same time, the approach to determining the cost of future investment projects for new construction, reconstruction, repair and maintenance of public roads should be based on uniform rules and methods that are formed taking into account state, territorial, public and private interests.
Purpose. Changes in the pricing system in the road sector will allow to: ensure a transparent and competitive environment in the market of road works and services, resulting in lower costs for new construction, reconstruction, overhaul and current repairs, and operational maintenance of roads; accelerate the implementation of new projects, as well as increase their number, which will significantly contribute to the development of road infrastructure in Ukraine, positively affect the economy, improve the standard of living of citizens, and attract investment.
Materials and methods. The beginning of the reform of the current pricing system in Ukraine was the adoption of the Law of Ukraine dated 16.11.2021 No. 1881-IX «On Amendments to Certain Laws of Ukraine on the Transfer of Powers to Regulate Pricing in the Field of Public Road Construction» [1], which entered into force on 10.12.2021. The above Law stipulates that the development and approval of methods and rules for determining the cost of new construction, reconstruction, repair and maintenance of public roads is carried out by the central executive body that ensures the formation and implementation of state policy in the field of road economy. The Law of Ukraine «On Investment Activity» [2] and the Law of Ukraine «On Prices and Pricing» [3] were also amended accordingly.
An important stage in the pricing reform was the approval of the Order of the Ministry of Infrastructure of Ukraine No. 273 dated 02.05.2022 «On Approval of the Rules for Determining the Cost of Construction, Reconstruction, Repair and Maintenance of Public Roads» (hereinafter – the «Rules»), which are mandatory for determining the cost of road works and services financed from the budget, funds of state and municipal enterprises, institutions and organizations, as well as loans provided under state guarantees. The defined conceptual principles, general rules and concepts in the Rules formed the basis for the development and approval of the Methodology for determining the cost of road works and services.
Results. Effective implementation of the priority areas of improvement of the pricing system in the road sector allowed to change the approaches to determining the cost of road works and services. The new pricing system is well-structured, which will ensure transparency and a competitive environment in the road works and services market, as it is based on clearly defined criteria and standards. Thus, the advantages of the new pricing system in the road sector are the use of innovations that can ensure effective calculations in determining the cost of road works and services at new facilities. As a result, budgetary savings will be achieved.
Conclusions. The introduction of a new pricing system in the road industry is quite relevant today, as the innovations provided for by the Methodology determine a new order of relations between the Customer and the Contractor, where the scope, quality, timing of road works and services, and compliance with the project documentation come to the fore. The key innovations in pricing approaches are: a firm contract price based on aggregate indicators of the cost of works; the possibility of using price databases with the establishment of requirements for them and an improved mechanism for determining prices for material resources when preparing investment estimate documentation; a transparent and clear mechanism for forming a reserve of funds to cover additional costs associated with inflationary processes and funds to cover the risks of all participants in road works and services.
