EDUCATION MINISTRY ANNOUNCES CONTEST FOR SELECTING PRIVATE PARTNER FOR BUILDING CHISINAU ARENA

The Ministry of Education, Culture and Sciences announced an open contest for selecting a company for implementing the project of public-private partnership: "Projecting and building a polyvalent arena of national importance".

According to the ministry, the main goal of the partnership, designed for at least 10 years, is the projecting, technical equipping and giving into exploitation of the object, which got the name "Chisinau-Arena".

The contest will take place in one stage. For getting documents about the project, the company has to pay 5 thousand euros. An equivalent sum will be paid for participation in the contest. Besides, candidates have to present a banking guarantee worth 100 thousand euros. Documents are received until July 4.

As Infotag has already reported, the initiative on building of a multifunctional cultural and sport complex in Chisinau came from the ruling Democratic Party at the beginning of March. Speaker of the Parliament Andrian Candu presented a corresponding preliminary project.

He said that the cost of the object will account for 30-50 million euros, including state share worth 100 million lei (4.8 million euros), which have already been provided in the 2018 state budget. The arena will have 3.5-5 thousand seats, moveable platforms for various sport and cultural events, as well as a parking with a capacity of 1.2 thousand cars.

The project was approved by the government within a week after its presentation, while the Parliament voted for allocation of almost 70 ha of agricultural lands in the Chisinau suburban community of Stauceni, which have immediately been transferred for the building.

The opposition and the nongovernmental sector criticized the project for its obvious promotion for someone's personal interests and for lack of transparency. They fear that the arena will be built on 10 hectares, while the rest of the land will be used for building elite immoveable.