The Ministry of Maritime Affairs reacted to the article "Millions of profits and new ships instead of collapse" published today in Vijesti.
We transmit the response in full:
"We are astonished by the media allegations made by the former management of Crnogorska plovidba regarding the company's operations. The business plan they refer to, which they previously submitted to the Ministry of Maritime Affairs, fully demonstrates the then management's insufficient knowledge of managing a state-owned company. For the sake of objective information to the public, we would like to clarify the complete insanity of the idea of the then management, which they considered to be a life-saving solution for Crnogorska plovidba. This solution is reflected in the fact that they proposed taking out a new loan for the purchase of new ships, and that they forgot, intentionally or not, that the loan taken out with Exim Bank for the purchase of the first two ships was not repaid by Crnogorska plovidba, but that the majority of it was paid by the state as a guarantor for the loan, on the basis of which Crnogorska plovidba owes around 37 million euros to the state of Montenegro.
If media reports, with a complete lack of attention to real arguments and possibilities, repeat as a mantra that Crnogorska plovidba could have taken out a loan from domestic/foreign banks to purchase new ships "without any further participation or guarantee from the state as the owner of the company", it is very openly shown that the goal is not to inform the public about the truth, but to continuously manipulate untruths and in that spirit create public opinion.
Anyone who knows the banking sector at all can say that such a move is not possible because the real market value of the ships is almost half the liabilities that Crnogorska plovidba has, which is very easy to verify. When we all accept the fact that Crnogorska plovidba is not creditworthy, then any further proposals for business plans based on that basis fall flat, which directly applies to the business plan mentioned in the media, which was prepared by the then board of directors. Therefore, to the extent that the business plan on which certain texts in the media are based is meaningless, the reaction to the allegations themselves is just as meaningless, but it is also necessary for the sake of objectively informing the public.
The above is confirmed by the fact that the commercial bank did not even grant Crnogorska plovidba an extension of the then existing overdraft loan in the amount of around 400.000 euros, which clearly indicates the general financial condition and complete creditworthiness of the company. Accordingly, the proposals of the former management were based on blanket assumptions, without any concrete basis and operational financing plan, which implies a valid confirmation from the bank that would emphasize the readiness to finance and confirm the feasibility of the proposed solution. So, if you are already submitting a business plan, the main thing that should be included is the feasibility of the proposed courses of action...
In relation to the writings of certain media and the headline “Their material was excellent and then they said nothing was wrong”, constant attempts at manipulation are once again confirmed. It is true that Mr. Lazarević, on behalf of the board of directors, submitted a business plan/analysis to the Ministry of Maritime Affairs in Podgorica, but not that it was initially “excellent” and then subsequently presented with the conclusion that “nothing is wrong”. Impressions of a document are not made at the moment you download it (especially if it has 30 pages), but after you have analyzed it in detail.
Finally, we note that even the aforementioned business plan is not a product of the self-initiative of the then board of directors, whose president was Jovo Lazarević, but something that is the result of the persistent insistence of the Ministry of Maritime Affairs to encourage the members of the board of directors to do their job and provide a sustainable solution for the continuation of the business of Crnogorska plovidba, which was not the case. By constantly resisting the need for an analysis of the situation by an independent body, an obvious message was sent that relying on the state treasury and maintaining the status quo with debts of nearly 40 million euros was the most acceptable solution. Also acceptable was the solution to illegally board the ships “Kotor” and “21. maj” with crew members from countries with which Montenegro does not have an agreement, which is a direct violation of the law. Also, the responsibility for the technical correctness of the ships and the attitude of the crew at key moments is borne by the then board of directors headed by Jovo Lazarević and the rest of the management, and the result of whose work is the three detentions of the ship "Kotor" in several months, which are associated with enormous accumulated costs in ports around the world in the total amount of about 2.4 million euros and ultimately, as the only solution, the Government's decision to sell the ships in order to control the damage and preserve at least part of the state property. We emphasize that the Ministry of Maritime Affairs has previously filed criminal charges against the responsible persons in the company, for which we expect a reaction from the competent institutions.
"Although we fully understand the maritime tradition of Boka Bay and the importance of maritime affairs, not only for Boka Bay but also for the state of Montenegro, we believe that resorting to manipulation in this case is not the right path. The Ministry of Maritime Affairs remains committed to the development and fundamental reform of maritime affairs in Montenegro, but on sound foundations, as time will show," the Ministry of Maritime Affairs wrote in its response.
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