Expert for analysis of cost estimates and prices for material resources for SARDI | EU4Reconstruction (Stream 2)

General Background

EU4Reconstruction. The European Union (EU), together with Denmark, Germany, France and Lithuania, launched EU4Reconstruction, a €37 million Team Europe Initiative (TEI) that unites the strength, experience and solidarity of the EU to support Ukraine’s ongoing recovery and reconstruction.

The initiative aims to strengthen governance, improve public investment management, and enhance coordination across levels of government, with a strong emphasis on EU values. The TEl is divided in two parallel streams; one stream is composed of GIZ (Lead Organisation) and Expertise France (Partner Organisation) and the other gathers the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Denmark (Lead Organisation) and Central Project Management Agency (Partner Organisation).

EU4Reconstruction will reinforce the leadership of the Ministry for Communities and Territories Development, strengthen the State Agency for Reconstruction and Development of Infrastructure (SARDI or Agency), empower local governments to manage reconstruction professionally and sustainably, and support civil society and independent media to play an active role in oversight, ensuring public trust and reducing corruption risks.

The Programme will strengthen the policy dialogue around reconstruction and recovery and will focus in particular on the governance of public investment management, public infrastructure management at national, regional and local levels and how to link this with necessary capacity development to make the system work. Part of this process will ensure that the stakeholders in the programme and their policy and regulatory setup are prepared for EU accession. This will, in particular, ensure resources are allocated effectively, transparently, accountably and with broad inclusion in infrastructure planning and execution, reflecting the subsidiarity principle.

Denmark together with Lithuania implements Stream 2 of the EU4Reconstruction programme aimed at strengthening the capacity of the SARDI and its subordinated entities to act as contracting authority and Project Implementation Unit for major reconstruction projects.

SARDI and its ecosystem. SARDI was established by the Resolution of the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine, dated 13 January 2023. It was created through the renaming of the State Road Agency of Ukraine and the merger with the State Agency for Infrastructure Projects.

SARDI is structured around a central authority in Kyiv and a broad network of regional and subordinate entities, including 24 Regional Offices for Restoration and Infrastructure Development (the SARDI ecosystem).

SARDI is responsible for the prioritisation, planning, and implementation of road infrastructure projects, as well as implementation of other reconstruction projects delegated by the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine. 

SARDI regional offices (RORs) manage procurement processes for high-value and technically complex infrastructure projects, including road construction, capital repairs, and civil infrastructure reconstruction.

One of the most sensitive and high-risk areas within procurement concerns pricing and cost estimation throughout the project lifecycle – from preparation of design and estimate documentation and determination of expected value to the formation of contract prices following tender procedures. Procurement categories implemented by SARDI are governed by various national regulations and pricing methodologies, which require careful analysis and verification to ensure transparency, compliance, and alignment with market conditions (including Cabinet of Ministers Resolution No. 1512 and sector-specific cost estimation methodologies in the construction and road infrastructure sectors).

Given the scale, strategic importance, and public visibility of the reconstruction projects implemented by SARDI, additional independent expert support is required to strengthen confidence in the transparency and reliability of procurement-related cost estimation processes. In this context, particular attention is required at the pre-procurement and tender preparation stages, especially regarding the quality, transparency, and substantiation of cost estimate documentation.

Therefore, SARDI, with the support of EU4Reconstruction, seeks for the expert for analysis of cost estimates and prices for material resources to support procurement processes implemented within the SARDI ecosystem. The Expert will be embedded within the Agency, report to the SARDI Deputy Head responsible for procurement, and work closely with the Public Procurement Department of SARDI.

Objective

The objective of this assignment is to provide independent expert support to SARDI with monitoring and assessment of the compliance and reliability of cost estimate documentation and pricing approaches for reconstruction and infrastructure projects implemented by RORs, in order to increase transparency, accountability, and efficient use of public funds.

Scope of work

The Expert will be engaged on a request basis to provide independent analysis, verification, and advisory support in relation to specific cost estimate documentation, pricing approaches, and procurement-related issues identified by SARDI:

1. Conduct independent review and assessment of cost estimate documentation prepared at different stages of the project cycle, including expected value calculations, design and estimate documentation, tender documentation, contract prices; 
2. Analyze the compliance of cost estimates and pricing approaches with applicable Ukrainian legislation, regulations, methodologies, and sector-specific pricing requirements, including relevant resolutions, procedures, and cost estimation standards applicable to construction and road infrastructure projects; 
3. Perform market price monitoring and comparative analysis of prices for material resources, construction materials, equipment, and related cost components used in procurement and contract implementation; 
4. Identify inconsistencies, potential overpricing, pricing manipulations, or other integrity and financial risks within cost estimate and contract documentation; 
5. Support SARDI in strengthening transparency and accountability of procurement-related pricing processes through objective analytical oversight and evidence-based recommendations; 
6. Participate in meetings, consultations, and technical discussions with relevant SARDI departments, RORs and, where required, provide expert input regarding pricing and cost estimation matters related to procurement procedures and contract implementation; 
7. Prepare concise analytical reports, findings, and recommendations based on the reviews and assessments conducted during the assignment and present them to SARDI;
8. Provide capacity-building and knowledge-sharing support to SARDI and ROR representatives on pricing analysis, market price monitoring, identification of cost estimation risks, and good practices related to verification of cost estimate documentation and contract prices;
9. Maintain and systematically update the list of reviewed cost estimates and other documentation indicating the recommendationsprovided and achieved results.
10. Other tasks as agreed upon with the Agency and the EU4Reconstruction related to this assignment.

Deliverables

It is expected that the Consultant will demonstrate tangible progress through the implementation of agreed activities, as detailed below:

1. Analytical notes and expert assessments on reviewed cost estimate documentation, expected value calculations, tender pricing, contract prices – approx. 36 cases (depends on actual number of projects initiated by SARDI and RORs); 
2. Market price monitoring reports and comparative price analysis for material resources, construction materials, equipment, and other cost components relevant to selected projects; 
3. Written recommendations on identified integrity, financial, and procurement-related risks, including potential overpricing, inconsistencies in estimates, deviations from technical specifications, unjustified price adjustments, and proposed corrective measures; 
4. Briefing notes and analytical summaries for SARDI management and the Public Procurement Department regarding identified issues, risk areas, and recommended follow-up actions; 
5. Monthly timesheets (progress reports), summarising actual days worked and expenses incurred, as well as progress made and results achieved over the period (in English).
6. Completion Report consolidating key results and lessons learned.
7. Other deliverables as agreed upon with the Agency and the EU4Reconstruction.

Written deliverables should be in Ukrainian, unless otherwise specifically indicated herein or agreed with the EU4Reconstruction. Deliverables should be translated into English upon request of the Agency/EU4Reconstruction.

Qualification

The contract will be awarded to the expert meeting the following criteria: 

General qualifications: 

1. A minimum of a Master’s or Specialist’s degree in construction, engineering, economics, law, or a similar field is required;
2. At least 3 years of proven professional experience in the analysis of construction cost estimates, bills of quantities, contracts, including verification of prices against market rates preferably in the public sector or donor-funded projects;
3. Availability of a valid qualification certificate of a design engineer in terms of estimate documentation;
4. Additional education or training in public procurement or price monitoring will be an asset.

Adequacy for the assignment:

1. Practical knowledge of Ukrainian construction norms and standards (DBN), cost estimation procedures, design documentation requirements, and national legislation regulating pricing in construction and infrastructure procurement;
2. Experience in conducting independent technical reviews, price verification within procurement or construction projects will be an asset;
3. Excellent analytical skills and ability to prepare high-quality analytical reports and practical recommendations;
4. Excellent written and oral communication skills.

Experience with the region and languages:

1. Practical experience working in Ukraine;
2. Fluency in Ukrainian (written and spoken). The English language will be an asset.

Budget, timeframe, and location

The maximum budget available for this assignment is EUR 18,000 (inclusive of all applicable expenses and taxes). 

Payments to the Consultant shall be done on a monthly basis against Consultant’s timesheet and invoice for the respective period. Payments shall be based on the actual days worked, the agreed daily fee rate, and the expenses occurred by the Consultant during the period (if any). Payments will require verification of completion of deliverables and approval of the Consultant’s timesheets and expense outlay by the Project Manager for Supporting Procurement Function Transformation at SARDI. Reimbursable costs will only be accepted if they are in compliance with the guidelines in the contract.

The intended commencement date is the date of signature of the contract with the Consultant and the period of implementation of the contract will be 6 months, with a start in August 2026. The assignment includes up to 126 working days per full term of the Contract.

The expert is expected to work in Kyiv and come to the premises of the Agency upon short notice.

Reporting and management

The performance of the Consultant will be judged upon reaching the purpose of this contract as well as obtaining its results, as indicated in the section “Objective” and “Deliverables” herein respectively. Moreover, the performance of the Consultant will be judged upon the successful implementation of all the specific activities indicated in Section “Scope of work” of this document.

By signing the contract, the Consultant agrees to hold in trust and confidence any information or documents (“confidential information”) disclosed to the Consultant or discovered by the Consultant or prepared by the Consultant in the course of or as a result of the implementation of the contract, and agrees that it shall be used only for the contract implementation and shall not be disclosed to any third party. The Consultant also agrees not to retain copies of any written information or prototypes in its archive and for its use.

Consultant will report to the EU4Reconstruction Project Manager responsible for transformation of public procurement function at SARDI, who will review/approve deliverables indicated above. The expert for analysis of cost estimates and prices for material resources will be embedded within the Agency, refer to SARDI Deputy Head responsible for procurement and will work closely with the Public procurement department of SARDI.

How to apply

The deadline for submitting the proposal is 24 July 2026, 18:00 Kyiv time.

All interested candidates should submit the following documents in English:

●      Completed Annex 1

●      Financial offer (Annex 2) in EUR, including daily fee and other related expenses (taxes, if applicable), with calculation of maximum 126 working days.

If these documents are not submitted in line with the requirements above, the bid will not be considered.

The proposal shall include the aforementioned information and should be submitted within the above deadline to [email protected], cc to[email protected] indicating the subject line: “Expert for analysis of cost estimates and prices for material resources for SARDI_ SURNAME NAME”.

Bidding language: English.

Any clarification questions regarding the terms of reference should be addressed to [email protected] cc to [email protected], not later than 20 July 2026, 18-00 Kyiv time.

Evaluation criteria

Bids will be evaluated under the criteria provided below:

Details in ToR.