The Kremlin's property management department appears to have turned its nose up at calls to reduce its spending on transport for officials by announcing an auction to buy 170 BMWs for almost 332.4 million rubles ($10.3 million).
The order is posted on the for state purchases.
State Duma Deputy Alexei Zhuravlev in August drafted a bill to limit government spending to 1 million rubles per car, while opposition leader Alexei Navalny collected 100,000 signatures as part of a petition to cut down on the outlay.
The Kremlin is looking specifically for BMW 530 dA models that are assembled in Russia or Belarus. The Kremlin is eager to spend no more than 2 million rubles on each car.
The auction is "a scheduled purchasing as part of the annual outfitting of the car fleet," said Viktor Khrekov, spokesman for the property department.
The Kremlin uses about 2,000 vehicles, some of which need to be replaced each year, Khrekov said.
Bids will be accepted until Oct. 17 and the auction will be held on Oct. 21.
The winner has to deliver the cars by Dec. 10.
