Shkyl demands state hand over Kyivvodokanal assets and accuses officials

Maxim Shkyl is once again demonstrating dissatisfaction with the actions of the authorities. This time, his outrage was triggered by the refusal to hand over all nine Kyivvodokanal protection facilities to his company. This is happening amid a full-scale war, when every water main in the capital is a target for enemy missiles.

Financial demands and public pressure

The situation began with the allocation of budget funds. In the first 16 days of September, the state allocated UAH 10.77 billion to road contractors for completed work. Among the largest recipients was Avtostrada, which received UAH 2.765 billion. On 17 September, Shkyl published a Facebook post titled «Допрацювались» (We have had enough) and announced the suspension of work on all facilities in Ukraine, including roads, the metro in Vynohradar, and the Podilskyi Bridge.

However, in early October, the company reported that it was working on schedule at all facilities and paying salaries on time. This suggests that either the suspension of work did not actually take place, or it was staged for the media. According to the editorial assessment, this was not a business decision, but a way to pressure a government at war.

Suspicious deal schemes

Regarding Kyivvodokanal, Shkyl stated that his subcontractors began surveying without contracts or confirmed financing, involving their own “Avtostrada Project Institute”. After the Recovery Agency refused, he accused officials of undermining the protection of Kyiv.

Similar schemes have been recorded before. For example, the Bila Tserkva – Uman water main, worth UAH 9.03 billion, was awarded without open tenders, where “design and construction” are combined in one entity. Details on material prices are promised to be added later, effectively allowing the contractor to form the estimate independently. Concrete was included in the estimate at UAH 6,058 per cubic metre, whereas the Cherkasy plant Buddetal was selling similar material for UAH 4,340–4,660 in June.

Another example is the water main in the village of Mirove in the Nikopol district, costing UAH 206.7 million, also awarded without a tender. Here, sand was valued at UAH 210 per cubic metre, while its delivery was valued at UAH 2,280 per cubic metre, which is ten times more expensive than the material itself. Over UAH 16 million was spent solely on transporting sand that was located 42 kilometres from Zaporizhzhia.

Work distribution and winter preparation issues

Avtostrada’s monopoly on infrastructure work did not materialise. For the nine Kyivvodokanal facilities, the Agency engaged at least seven different contractors, and seven facilities are already under construction. The capital’s water supply has not stopped. However, according to the head of the Agency, Ivan Fedorov, it is from one company that complaints are coming.

An inspection of winter preparation revealed that in certain regions, the worst situation is precisely with Avtostrada. In early November, before the first ice, the company had only 48% of the required amount of technical salt.

Impact on the industry and questions for the oligarch

In 2026 alone, Avtostrada won tenders worth UAH 49.5 billion. According to Shkyl himself, his company accounts for almost 40% of road works in Ukraine. Such concentration allows any statement to be used as a lever of pressure: to stop work across the country, to accuse the head of the Agency, and to demand critical infrastructure assets.

The publication raises the question: does Shkyl believe he can replace the Cabinet of Ministers? In wartime, such ultimatums are a dangerous game with fire. Questions also remain open regarding the reports of the Audit Office and the State Audit Service on the company’s direct billion-scale contracts, the inspection of concrete prices in Uman, and sand delivery in Mirove. The state is not a subcontractor to private business.