The state-owned company "ToMontenegro" plans to apply for PSO (Public Service Obligation) routes, or airlines of public interest, through which the state will provide transportation to strategically important locations.
This was confirmed by the Chairman of the Board of Directors of the domestic airline, Tihomir Dragaš, at the Real Estate Development Conference (RE:D). Dragaš was a speaker on the panel Air Traffic Development Plans to Major Destinations in Montenegro.
PSO is an arrangement in which the state offers subsidies to airlines through public procurement, so that the airline that wins the tender is obliged to operate air transport on precisely specified routes for a certain period of time, for a certain fee.
These routes were proposed by the Democratic People's Party deputies through amendments to the Air Transport Law, and the Parliament has yet to vote on them.
Dragaš also said that they hope to make a profit this year and are trying to ensure a quality and reliable connection to all important destinations. He pointed out that air accessibility is crucial for Montenegro because it does not have a highway network, and that he regrets that the tender for the Airport concession (ACG) has dragged on for six years, but that he certainly believes that the state can manage two domestic airports on its own.
"Unfortunately, the current number of aircraft we have is two, we are in the process of introducing a third. Last year we transported 500.000 passengers, we will try to transport as many as possible. We do not want to open destinations that will not be profitable. We have good cooperation with ACG, we enter into incentive schemes based on the number of passengers transported, and without these benefits there is no state-owned airline," he emphasized, adding that they are currently working on introducing mobile check-in for passengers.
Dragaš said that for the success of the aviation sector, practices from the surrounding area can be copied.
Tirana ready for support
Tirana Airport Operations Director Piervitorio Farabi stressed that Tirana is close and that greater cooperation on services and training can be initiated with ACG, which could benefit both Albania and Montenegro. He stated that the airports are not competitive because they have different goals and visions, and that their goal was to open Albania to the rest of Europe and the world.
He also explained that Albania started the concession much earlier, that last year they had 10,7 million passengers, of which 120.000 were Montenegrins. He added that the concessionaire "Kastrati Group" was supposed to invest 100 million in infrastructure by 2040, according to the agreement, but that they had already done so within three years of the concession, and that they plan to invest that much more.
ACG Commercial Director Predrag Hajduković stated that ACG made a profit of 11 million and revenues of 50 million euros last year, but also that they are the only ones in the region to offer this type of subsidy. He announced that they expect to transport three million passengers this year.
"It is true that the public is focused on concessions. Every concession is a public-private partnership, and thus the barriers of public procurement and bureaucracy would be eliminated. These are some of the advantages, rapid activation of capital and the construction of new capacities. We would expect infrastructure improvements from concessions. Among the disadvantages, there is the possibility of a conflict of interest - that is, that a private individual wants profit and not service to the public interest," Hajduković emphasized.
CEO of "NCH Capital" Andreas Santis added that accessibility is the basis for increasing interest and investment and that Tirana is a true example of this policy. He stated that they had the vision and will to implement it, as well as political stability, but that Montenegro lacks it. He emphasized that ACG is making a profit of 11 million but that money is not being invested in the airport, so Montenegro requires a change and implementation of some strategy...
He emphasized that there is no need to reinvent the wheel, but to adapt to the needs and goals of Montenegro, and that he visits the country every year, but that the problems are still the same.
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