The Government of Belarus has defined the procedure for organizing and conducting a competition for selection of investors for the conclusion of an investment contract between the investor and the Republic of Belarus. It is provided by the Council of Ministers dated July 19, 2016 No. 563 “On measures to implement Presidential Decree No. 10 dated August 6, 2009”.
According to the document, a competition is held by the Commission created in the Republican body of the state administration, another state organization subordinated to the Government, the Office of Presidential Affairs, the regional (Minsk City) executive committee, in the presence of two or more investors applying for investment contract execution, who contemplates to realize the project on the same plot of land included in the list of sites for implementation of investment projects.
The tender commission is created in a public body, the Executive Committee consisting of at least 7 people. Its task is to determine the winner. The commission carries out verification of compliance of investors with requirements applicable to tenderers, in the form of preliminary meetings of the competition committee; the commission decides on the admission (non-admission) of investors to participate in the contest and inform them of the decision; cooperates with state bodies, local executive committees in order to organize and conduct the competition; organizes and holds competitions in the form of tender committee meetings; evaluates tender proposals from the participants.
Contest participants or other persons authorized by them in the prescribed manner are present at the meeting of the competition committee, which is planned to consider their proposals. The commission adopts the following decisions: to allow or not to allow the investor (investors) to participate in the competition; remove the participant, and not to consider its proposal; declare the winner; recognize the competition invalid or no result.
Decisions of the competition committee are made by open vote by a simple majority of those present. In case of equality of votes, the decision that is chosen by the chairman of the commission is considered to be adopted.
Prior to the contest a preliminary meeting of the Commission is to be held, which verify compliance of investors with the specified requirements.
The date of the competition is the date of the committee meeting, which is scheduled to considerate proposals.
Announcement of the competition is carried out by the directing of the Tender Announcement by the Secretary of the competition committee not less than 10 working days before the date of the contest, but in the same day to all the participants or other persons authorized by them.
The main criteria for evaluation of proposals is investment project compliance with priority activity (sector of the economy) for the implementation of investments; stated cumulative investment; lead time of the investment project; the number of jobs created; financial and organizational capabilities of the participant; compliance of the investment project with regulations of the use and building of land in accordance with the town planning passport of the land on provision of which the participant pretends.
In case of disagreement with the decision of the competition committee the participant may apply to the court in the prescribed manner to appeal this decision within 20 working days from the date of its adoption.
Moreover, the decision determines the procedure for reimbursement, exemption from reimbursement, provision of installments (delay) compensation of the Republic of Belarus and its administrative-territorial units of the amounts of benefits and preferences, exemptions, provision of installments (delay) of payment of a penalty (fine), provided by the investment contract between the investor and the state.
The investor, with whom the investment contract is terminated for the reasons other than performance of the obligations under the investment agreement, can pretend to be exempt from penalties. Earlier this possibility has not been fixed in the legislation.
Besides, the investor may be exempted from the compensation of the benefits and preferences that were provided to him by Belarus and were used by him.
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