Energoatom halved the price of caustic soda: what the new tender showed
12 February 21:51
The state-owned company JSC “NAEK “Energoatom” has signed a new contract for the supply of sodium hydroxide (caustic soda) at a price significantly lower than previous purchases. The contract, worth UAH 7.49 million, was signed on February 5 following a tender in the Prozorro system, according to "Komersant Ukrainian".
What exactly was purchased
In the first half of 2026, the company is to receive 156 tons of purified caustic soda produced by BorsodChem Zrt. (Hungary) with a mass fraction of the main substance of at least 45%.
The contract price is
- 48,000 UAH per ton,
- or $1,113 per tonne in terms of 100% of the main substance.
Payment is due within 45 days of delivery, which will be carried out by rail or road transport.
Comparison with previous years
The new terms mean a sharp drop in cost compared to previous purchases by Energoatom. According to data from open tenders, caustic soda was purchased at a significantly higher price in 2024–2025:
- September 2025 — $1, 628/t,
- June 2025 — $1, 607/t,
- January 2025 — $1, 676/t,
- August 2024 — $1,718/t (with 180 days of deferred payment),
- March 2024 — $1, 815/t,
- September 2023 — $1,949/t.
Thus, the current price is almost one and a half times lower than the average figures for previous years in dollar terms.
Who won the tender
The winner was Zirex Company LLC, registered in 2018 in Kyiv. The owner and manager of the company is Stanislav Bedriy from Kalush (Ivano-Frankivsk region).
The product supplier is BorsodChem Zrt., part of the Chinese chemical holding company Wanhua Chemical Group. The company remains present on the Russian market, although, according to public data, it is reducing its activities there.
Zirex Company’s competitors in the tender were:
- PJSC Makrohim,
- Capital-Rost LLC,
- Nadiya 2000 LLC .
The tender took place amid increased attention to Energoatom’s procurement. Earlier, NABU reported the exposure of a large-scale scheme for obtaining illegal benefits by company officials and persons associated with them. The investigation is ongoing, and all the persons mentioned are considered innocent until proven guilty by a court.
Energoatom itself did not link the current tender to these investigations, but the new prices may indicate a change in procurement approaches or a change in market conditions.
