The Data Centre procured from the State Securities Printer for CZK 386 million was only half-used

PRESS RELEASE on Audit No. 14/20 – May 4, 2015


The Supreme Audit Office (SAO) scrutinized costs of the data centre developed and operated by the State Securities Printer (STC) in the period 2010–2014. Auditors aimed at the Ministry of Interior, which coordinated the field of data centres, and focused on the role of the Ministry of Finance in the Data Centre project’s implementation. The development of the Data Centre cost CZK 386 million. When the SAO’s auditing operation was about to finish, the Data Centre’s capacity was only half-used.

Auditors concluded that the public contract for the Data Centre’s development was awarded to the very same company that had previously participated in the process of defining the required technological parameters of the Data Centre. The company created the project documentation to the technological solution of the Data Centre and then during the following selection procedure, its offer was the only one that met the requirements. The other tenderers were eliminated because their offers did not completely meet the conditions. But the other tenderers’ offers were usually cheaper by some CZK 50 million.

Based on the audit findings, the SAO recommends that the Act on Public Contracts is revised so that it secures equality of information availability to all tenderers and eliminates preferential attitudes towards companies that cooperate during tender preparations.

Auditors also revealed that the services provided by the Data Centre to the Ministry of Finance were insufficient. The Ministry of Finance ordered Service Desk operations under confidential terms and the additional tender documentation was prepared by a company, which consequently became a sub-contractor without tendering. The subject matter of the contract consisted of Service Desk provisions and later of service support. Another contract, aimed at the operation of the Integrated Informational system of the State Treasure, was awarded by the Ministry without a tender because it had also been declared confidential. The contract was awarded to the main supplier of the informational system. For both the public contracts, the Ministry of Finance paid CZK 1,100 million to the STC by September 2014 and the STC used CZK 760 million out of the amount to pay its subcontractors.

The Ministry of Finance hired 32 employees of the STC in order to obtain special services. Twelve of the hired employees previously used to work at the Ministry and then were transferred to the STC. From 2004 to September 2014, the special services cost CZK 254 million. Thus the Ministry avoided the Government decree concerning reductions of ministerial employees’ numbers. According to the Ministry, it would not be able to ensure its IT systems’ common operations without the externally ordered services, but these included ordinary activities, which the Ministry’s own stuff could have carried out.

The SAO revealed that the Ministry of Finance paid CZK 95,000 every month for each of the STC employees in spite of the fact that their actual wages (including the statutory deductions) were half the amount. The sum was even paid in case the employees were out of the office, either on holidays, on sickness-related leave, or on maternity leave. In such cases, the Ministry’s course of actions was uneconomical and the Ministry violated the budgetary regulations in the total amount of CZK 4.6 million.

Auditors also revealed that development and utilization of the data centres are not coordinated in appropriate ways. Up until now, there has not been any stipulation of rules for transition of public administration into the Data Centres that will be operated by the Czech Post and by the STC, or rather by the new state enterprise State Treasure Centre for shared services, which was established in the beginning of 2015.

Communication Department
Supreme Audit Office

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