Companies from the Agrofert holding have won contracts from firms run by the Agriculture Ministry in recent days, according to the NGO Hlídač Státu and its investigative project PastVina. The NGO stated that the procedure breaches the conflict of interest law, as PM Andrej Babis was the sole owner of Agrofert at the time the contracts were awarded.
Based on the conflict of interest law, companies controlled by the prime minister should not be participating in public contracts, PastVina pointed out.
Pavel Hermansky, a spokesman for Agrofert, told CTK that Agrofert’s companies are fulfilling their contractual and legal obligations, but that Agrofert does not comment on individual transactions.
According to the NGO’s research, the Central Institute for Supervising and Testing in Agriculture ordered diesel and fertiliser from Agrofert for around CZK 250,000.
Ministry of Agriculture spokesman Vojtech Bily told CTK that the authority would investigate the matter.
“According to data from the register of beneficial owners as of Tuesday, 16 December, Andrej Babis was still the sole owner of the Agrofert concern on that day,” wrote PastVina.
Yesterday, the Justice Ministry closed the register of beneficial owners of companies to the public in response to a court decision. From now on, this information will only be available if legitimate interest is proven in court.
Earlier this month, Babis, whose ANO were the clear winner in the October Czech parliamentary elections, announced that he would give up Agrofert, his giant chemical, agricultural and food holding, to meet legal obligations related to conflict of interest. In his words, he will have nothing more to do with the company, which will not return to him even after his political career ends.
The law requires Babis to resolve his conflict of interest within 30 days of his appointment as prime minister, i.e. by 8 January 2026.
iROZHLAS.cz reports that the 30-day deadline does not apply to those parts of the conflict of interest law that prohibit companies of government members from drawing public money or bidding for public contracts. These rules applied to Babis from the moment he became prime minister on 9 December, the server wrote.
The State Agricultural Intervention Fund and the Support and Guarantee Fund for Agriculture and Forestry stopped processing Agrofert’s applications for subsidies from the day Babis was appointed prime minister.
The PastVina project reported that on Monday, the Central Inspection and Testing Institute of Agriculture issued an order to Navos, a company from Agrofert holding, for the supply of diesel fuel worth CZK 119,080. Last week, the institute ordered fertilisers worth CZK 123,000 from Primagra. Another Agrofert holding company, Agri CS, is to provide tractor servicing to the Czech Forests company for almost CZK 54,000 not including VAT, according to a contract dated 9 December.
“The decision on the above-mentioned contracts is within the power of the respective company. However, the ministry will have the situation examined,” Bily said.
“Our companies are fulfilling their contractual and legal obligations,” said Hermansky yesterday evening. “We do not comment on individual transactions.”
According to Babis’s earlier statement, Agrofert’s shares are to be managed by an independent administrator through a trust structure and will be controlled by an independent protector. Both will be appointed by an independent person. Babis’s descendants will acquire Agrofert only after his death. Opposition politicians and some experts, however, question whether such a solution will actually sever Babis’s economic ties to Agrofert.
Babis’s conflict of interest during his first premiership (2017-2021) not only prevented Agrofert companies from receiving subsidies, but also from bidding for small-scale public contracts, according to a recent ruling by the Supreme Administrative Court (NSS).
