The Prosecutor General issued indictments against nine medical equipment suppliers with the Economic Court on Sunday on charges of bid-rigging and price fixing on on public hospital tenders, according to a statement from the Egyptian Competition Authority (ECA). The ECA had conducted a year-long investigation back in 2016 and 2017, which found that seven companies, including Temco Technology, MD for Medical Supplies and Ghalioungui, had conspired to present the same bids in tenders to supply public hospitals with heart disease equipment over a two-year period between 2013 and 2015. This not only drove up prices of equipment, but also took advantage of loopholes in the Tenders and Auctions Act which allows the government to distribute orders equally among companies which present the same bids. Further investigations had found that Medical Technology, and Medi Tech had also allegedly joined in the scheme. The ECA had brought the case to the Prosecutor General back in March of last year.

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