Breakthrough After Months of Paralysis in Wrocław: 2 Billion PLN Waste Tender Launched Amid Fee Hikes

Following months of disputes, Wrocław’s municipal company Ekosystem has launched a massive four-year waste management tender worth an estimated 2 billion PLN, accompanied by upcoming resident fee hikes and an ongoing prosecutor investigation.

End of Paralysis and 2 Billion PLN at Stake

The tender for municipal waste collection in Wrocław has remained unresolved since March of last year, with the service provider chosen under a negotiated procedure without publication since July 2025. Following months of disputes between the municipality and companies vying for the contract, the National Appeals Chamber dismissed the proceedings in May that had prevented the announcement of new tenders.

Michał Młyńczak, CEO of the municipal company Ekosystem, announced during a Friday press conference that the company is launching the waste collection and management tender in Wrocław, which is divided into six separate proceedings corresponding to the city’s six sectors.

The contracts with the winners will be signed for four years with an estimated value of approximately 2 billion PLN, calculated based on current costs, inflation, wage growth, and other economic factors.

He added that the tender notice will be published on Monday, July 27.

Composting Plant, Biogas Plant, and Incinerator: Wrocław Plans a Revolution

Wrocław Vice Mayor Grzegorz Roman emphasized that the tender’s resolution is the beginning of reforming the city’s waste management system, noting that the municipality is considering creating its own competitive entities on the market.

He mentioned efforts to expand the composting plant as a potential first element of a new market competitor, ongoing work on a biogas plant project, and the fundamental issue of building a thermal waste treatment plant or heating plant on the city outskirts or outside the city if public consensus and funding are secured.

Residents Face Fee Increases Starting September 1

In early July, the Wrocław City Council passed a resolution introducing a waste disposal fee increase effective September 1, raising the rate for segregated waste to 55 PLN per person—an increase of nearly 14 PLN from the current 41.24 PLN—to financially balance the waste collection system.

National Prosecutor’s Office Investigation and CBA Actions

Since January 15, the Katowice-based Lesser Poland Regional Division of the Department for Organized Crime and Corruption of the National Prosecutor’s Office has been investigating suspected abuse of power by municipal officials and company employees regarding the waste tenders.

As part of this investigation, Central Anti-Corruption Bureau (CBA) officers secured documents at facilities including Ekosystem, the Wrocław City Hall, the Śląsk Wrocław handball club, and over a dozen other entities in Wrocław and Lower Silesia.