In response to the furor over the selection of the BMW 528i as the new car for government ministers, the Ministry of Finance disclosed today that the importer, Delek Automotive Systems Ltd. (TASE: DLEA) is offering a 48% discount on the list price: NIS 207,000 per car, instead of NIS 398,000. The Ministry of Finance added, "The tender for the procurement of limousines for ministers took into account the principles of equality, free competition, and economic efficiency, which are the basis of Tenders Law and regulations. The criteria examined in a tender of this kind, also took into account aspects of public appearances, which were weighed and included proportionately and in a balanced way against the principles of the law and regulations, on the basis of lessons learned from the previous tender."
The Ministry of Finance says that the tender included a two-step process that combined quality criteria, such as air pollution, fuel consumption, safety, and regular maintenance, and weighted financial criteria based on the discounted price of the car.
The cars in the tender were the Cadillac CTS Premium, with a 3-liter engine; the Chrysler LTD 300C, with a 3.6-liter engine; the BMW 528i, with a 2-liter engine; the Peugeot 508 GT diesel, with a 2.2-liter engine; and the both the diesel and gasoline models of the Citroen C5 Exclusive, with a 1.6-liter engine.
Car industry sources believe that this price is well below the cost of the cars, including taxes.
The second-place finisher in the tender, the Citroen C5 was offered at NIS 178,000 with a 13% discount.
Despite news of the large discount being given to the government on the new BMWs, a source close to Minister of Finance Yuval Steinitz told "Globes" that the minister is still considering cancelling the tender. The source said, "A 50% discount on cars does not look good. Would it be right if a minister was invited to an exclusive restaurant and offered a 50% discount in order to promote the restaurant?"
Published by Globes [online], Israel business news - www.globes-online.com - on July 12, 2012
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