Shkil received new billions for construction despite statement about halting works

On 17 September, businessman Maksym Shkil published a post stating: «Допрацювались» (We have overworked ourselves). According to him, the state abruptly ceased financing capital expenditures, which forced «Autostrada вимушена зупинити роботи на всіх об'єктах» (Autostrada is forced to stop works on all objects).

Chronology of events and management changes

As early as 16 March, Shkil submitted documents to the National Bank of Ukraine to purchase the nationalised PIN Bank, promising to invest $30 million. However, on 1 April, the bank was acquired by the Polish company ZEN.com.

On 28 April, Andriy Rubel was dismissed from the post of head of the State Registration Service (SRS) without explanation, and on 12 May, he was appointed head of the Kyiv Regional Police. Meanwhile, on 13 May, the company "Autostrada" warned for the first time about the risk of halting repair works due to outstanding debts.

New contracts and equipment procurement

In August, the company leased 100 new Mercedes-Benz Arocs dump trucks worth approximately 1 billion hryvnias. From 30 August to 5 September, "Autostrada" received about 15 contracts totalling 11.41 billion hryvnias. The largest among them was the project to build the Bila Tserkva – Uman water supply line worth 9.03 billion hryvnias, which was ordered without open tenders. The customer was the service of the neighbouring Dnipropetrovsk region.

Government reaction and Ministry of Finance explanation

On 18 September, the budget committee of the Verkhovna Rada explained the situation: the Ministry of Finance postponed approximately 39 billion hryvnias of capital expenditures to December due to a delay in the EU tranche. This decision affected not only "Autostrada". The next day, on 19 September, Shkil stated the debt amount to be approximately 15 billion hryvnias. Previously, in May, the figure of 6 billion was mentioned, and on 18 September – 12 billion for road works. The company did not publish a list of unpaid acts.

On 29 September, the Kyiv City State Administration (KMDA) stated that it had not received letters about halting works. Construction of the metro, Kharkiv Highway, and the overpass near the "Chernihivska" station continued. On 5 October, Shkil announced that the company was working on all objects. Some Kyiv publications interpreted his previous statement as pressure to obtain payment, however, this is only their assessment, not an established fact.

Financial indicators and tender results

According to YouControl data, the company's net profit for the half-year fell from 91.1 to 2.4 million hryvnias (by 97%), and revenue decreased from 5.1 to 1.9 billion hryvnias. Meanwhile, in 2026, "Autostrada" won tenders for 49.5 billion hryvnias. In October, another 7.5 billion was added, including 2.34 billion for a water supply line in Khust without open tenders. In Chernivtsi, the company won a tender for 1.77 billion hryvnias after partial support of its complaint by the Antimonopoly Committee of Ukraine (AMCU). According to Moldova 1, the temporary bridge to Moldova will be technological only, without passenger or cargo traffic.

What is proven and what is not

The statement about halting works, the KMDA's report on their continuation in Kyiv, the Ministry of Finance's postponement of 39 billion hryvnias of expenditures for all entities, and the receipt of new billions without open tenders have been confirmed. The debt amount of 15 billion hryvnias, the fact that Shkil's statement was a tool of pressure, and the connection between Andriy Rubel's dismissal and "Autostrada" cases have not been proven.

Below is a summary map of all contracts, connections, and questions to which Maksym Shkil, customers, and law enforcement agencies have not yet provided answers.