Two interior construction firms fined nearly $10m for bid-rigging

They colluded to rig tenders worth over $34m for works in office, retail, F&B spaces

- Anjali Raguraman

Two interior construction companies have been fined nearly $10 million in total, following a four-year-long investigation by the Competition and Consumer Commission of Singapore (CCCS).

The companies had colluded over five years to rig 12 tender bids worth more than $34 million.

CCCS said on Dec 20 that Flex Connect, previously known as Facility Link, was fined $4,885,263, while Tarkus Interiors was fined $5,113,918. This is the largest penalty the competition watchdog has issued for bid-rigging.

The rigged bids were for interior construction and finishing works in non-residential properties, including offices, retail spaces, and food and beverage outlets.

Tenders were called from August 2016 to August 2021, and valued between $187,000 and $7.7 million.

The tenders had a total value of around $34,110,000.

Premises affected by the bid-rigging include Ocean Financial Centre's Pure Fitness gym and Citibank's outlet at Changi Business Park.

They also include accounting firm Ernst & Young's office at 77 Robinson Road, restaurant chain Hans Im Gluck's outlets in Boat Quay and VivoCity, and computer software company Oracle's hub at Mapletree Business City.

The two companies are among a pool of 44 firms able to undertake high-value contracts, said CCCS.

Under the Building and Construction Authority's registration system, these firms are the only ones allowed to tender for government projects that have an unlimited tender value for interior decoration and finishing works.

No government projects were affected, said CCCS assistant director of legal and enforcement Ng Yee Ting at a media briefing on Dec 20.