In August of this year and April of next year, the municipality of Ulcinj should begin repaying loans for projects that have not moved forward from the beginning, although the contracts for their realization were concluded more than three and five years ago.
Two loans of a total of 25 million euros were taken with the support of the Government, the first from the German Development Bank (KFW) for the project of water supply and wastewater disposal, and the second of five million was approved by the European Investment Bank (EIB) for the project of construction of fecal and atmospheric sewage networks.
Both loans were guaranteed by the Government.
The Municipality of Ulcinj, which is managed by Ljoro Nerkić, did not respond to the "News" as to whether the Municipality, bearing in mind the situation regarding the coronavirus pandemic and two blocked accounts in the last 365 days, will have the money to pay off the installments, which from next year will be on an annual basis two million euros.
It will be a unique case, probably unprecedented in the world, that the repayment of the loan begins after the grace period of even five years, and practically not even a euro of the total approved 25 million has been spent," said former SDP councilor Skender Elezagić.
They did not answer when the implementation of the projects will start, what has been done so far, how they comment on the fact that the grace period of three or five years has expired, and that the projects for which the money was received have not moved forward from the beginning and who is responsible for that.
The municipality of Ulcinj should pay the first installment of 107 euros for the project to build a fecal and atmospheric sewage network for the settlements of Kodre, Bijela Gora, Totoši and Donja Bratica in August this year, because the three-year grace period from the EIB has expired.
MORT explained to "Vijesitma" that the project was suspended until further notice on March 16 due to the coronavirus pandemic.
The five-year grace period for the second loan from KfW for the water supply and waste water removal project, for which the tender procedure is still ongoing, expires in April next year, when the first installment in the amount of 900 thousand euros is due to the Municipality.
"It will be a unique case, probably unprecedented in the world, that the repayment of the loan begins after the end of the grace period of as much as five years, and practically not even a euro of the total approved 25 million has been spent," said the former SDP councilor for "Vijesti". and Skender Elezagić, who is famous as a financial expert.
He assessed that this information in the most graphic way shows the astonishing incompetence of all groups that ran the local government from 2016 until today.
MORT explained that the five-million loan agreement was concluded in early October 2017 between the Ministries of Tourism and Finance, the Municipality and the Podgorica company "Project-Consulting".
The municipality concluded a contract for the execution of works with the company "SPIGA" in September of last year in the amount of 3,36 million, and in the same month last year it signed a contract for the supervision of the execution of works with the company "C & S Di Giuseppe Ingegneri Associati Srl" for the amount of 186.610 euros.
MORT said that in accordance with the contracts, advances in the amount of 10 percent of the contracted price were paid to the contractor and the supervisory authority.
For the second loan, the Ministry of Finance, on behalf of the Government, signed a contract in the amount of 36 million.
In December 2013, an agreement was signed with the Ulcinj authorities for a loan of 20 million euros out of the total amount of 36 million borrowed from KfW, and then in December 2015, an agreement on forwarding the money was signed.
MORT explains that those 20 million will be spent specifically and that the Government has already approved 10 percent in the form of a grant of two million euros.
"The tender for the selection of a contractor for the construction and reconstruction of 90 kilometers of water and sewerage network with the construction and reconstruction of 30 water infrastructure facilities is underway," they said in MORT.
Elezagić: There is no money from KfW in the municipal budget
Elezagić claims that the Municipality is obliged to pay a fixed interest rate of 1,8 percent per year on the amount of withdrawn money.
"In addition, the Municipality is obliged to pay an interest of 0,25 percent on unused money. Bearing in mind that it amounts to 20 out of 50.000 million and that this obligation started on April 30, 2016, it is easy to calculate that, on that basis alone, damage of 250.000 euros has been inflicted on the Municipality of Ulcinj so far," claims Elezagić.
He points out that the matter is much more mysterious when it comes to the loan at KfW.
"The question arises when the money was withdrawn, where is it, in which account, how much of that amount was used...? One thing is certain - the amount of 20 million loans from KfW Bank was not shown in any municipal budget from 2016 until today".
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