The restoration service advised journalists to calculate the cost of repairing the Varvarivskyi Bridge themselves

Varvarivskyi Bridge in Mykolaiv, archive photo from NikVesti

The Infrastructure Restoration and Development Service in the Mykolaiv region did not provide journalists with information on the costs of repairing the Varvarivskyi Bridge, the scope of work carried out, or the project’s funding for 2026. Instead, the agency suggested searching for this data on the E-data portal. The Institute of Mass Information considers this response to be unlawful.

The editorial team at NikVesti sent an information request to the Restoration Service, asking how much had been spent on the repair of the Varvarivskyi Bridge since 2024, what percentage of the work had already been completed, and what amount was planned to be allocated to the project in 2026.

In response to the first question, the Restoration Service noted that information on the use of budget funds can be found on the E-data Unified Web Portal for the Use of Public Funds.

«Information on the use of budget funds and funds from state and municipal enterprises can be found on the Unified Web Portal for the Use of Public Funds,» the agency stated.

Repair of the Varvarivskyi Bridge. Photo: Infrastructure Restoration and Development Service

Repairs to the Varvarivskyi Bridge. Photo: Infrastructure Restoration and Development Service

Regarding the stage of completion of the project, officials stated that repairs are proceeding in accordance with the work schedule, which is an annex to the contract. However, the response did not specify the exact percentage of work completed.

The Service also did not specify how much funding is earmarked for the bridge repairs in 2026.

«Expenditure levels are determined in accordance with the requirements of budgetary legislation and available financial resources,» reads the response to the request, signed by Deputy Head Ivan Chausenko.

Response from the Service for Infrastructure Restoration and Development in Mykolaiv Oblast

Commenting on this, Volodymyr Zelenchuk, a lawyer at the Institute of Mass Information, stated that the agency had effectively avoided answering the journalists’ enquiry.

«Clearly, the service does not wish to answer the journalists’ questions — this is evidenced both by the reference to the possibility of obtaining information from open sources and by the formal reply to the other two questions,» he said in a comment to NikVesti.

According to the lawyer, the law explicitly prohibits authorities from refusing to provide information on the grounds that it is already publicly available.

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«Part two of Article 22 of the Law of Ukraine «On Access to Public Information» stipulates that a response from an authority regarding the possibility of obtaining information from publicly available sources constitutes an unlawful refusal to provide information,» explained Volodymyr Zelenchuk.

He also noted that data on the progress of repair works and project funding must be available to the client.

«In both cases, the relevant information is available in the design and cost estimate documentation, as well as in the current contractual documentation for the project, which the authority, for whatever reason, does not wish to disclose properly,» added the lawyer.

According to him, such actions by the project manager can be appealed to the Verkhovna Rada Commissioner for Human Rights or in court.

How much has already been spent on the repair of the Varvarivskyi Bridge

Information on the bridge repairs is partially available via the public procurement system and the budget expenditure portal.

Repairs to the Varvarivskyi Bridge began in 2024. Since then, the Restoration Service has announced several procurements related to the work.

In 2024, a contract worth 57.2 million hryvnias was signed. According to data from the Spending portal, over 33.4 million hryvnias have been transferred to the contractor under this contract. However, during a joint briefing last year between Vitalii Kim, head of the Mykolaiv Regional Military Administration, and Oleksandr Antoshchuk, head of the Regional Infrastructure Restoration and Development Service, a figure 10 million hryvnias higher was mentioned — 44 million hryvnias.

Screenshot from the Prozorro e-procurement website

In 2025, the Restoration Service carried out two further procurements — worth 19.7 million and 54.4 million hryvnias. According to Spending, the contractor received 14.6 million and 35.2 million hryvnias respectively for these contracts.

Screenshot from the Prozorro e-procurement website

In 2026, another tender for 88.5 million hryvnias was published on the Prozorro platform. As of the time of writing, payments under this contract are not reflected in the Spending system.

Screenshot from the Prozorro e-procurement website

Thus, for these four contracts alone, the total cost of the works exceeds 219 million hryvnias. At the same time, the Restoration Service has not provided the editorial team with information on the actual total cost of the bridge repairs, the volume of work already completed, or the planned funding for the project in 2026.