The Administration of Maritime Safety and Port Management (UPSUL) and the Port of Kotor signed an annex to the Priority Concession Agreement, which implies that the Port of Kotor takes over port pilotage services. The contract was signed by the Acting Director of UPSUL, Haris Husić, and the President of the Board of Directors of Port of Kotor, Ljiljana Popović Moškov, UPSUL announced.
Husić said that it was necessary to arrange this area as soon as possible, so that navigation safety would not be endangered, especially in anticipation of the summer tourist season.
“This is a big deal for the country. On the basis of this contract, the state will annually earn more than a million euros. The fixed concession fee, which until now was 250 thousand euros, now amounts to 900 thousand euros, plus a variable concession fee. This is a significant step forward, because the safety of navigation will increase, as well as the income of the state and the municipality of Kotor", said Husić.
In addition to pilotage, Annex 1 of the Agreement on the primary concession also resolves the issue of the anchorage in Dobrota, which will be moved to another location, according to the announcement. It is added that the annex also regulated the payment of concession fees for the period of the corona virus pandemic, when the regular operations of the concessionaire "Luka Kotor" AD were prevented due to bans.
"Also, due to the ban on the entry of ships, certain investment obligations had to be postponed compared to the original plan. The revised Chapter 8 of the Business Plan - the investment program for the concession period is an integral part of Annex 1.
The contract between UPSUL and the Port of Kotor was signed based on the conclusion of the Government, which gave consent for the Port of Kotor to take over the port pilotage based on the Agreement on Priority Concession," the statement concludes.
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