There is finally enough snow on the slopes of the state-run Kolašin 1600 Ski Center, so today will be the first skiing day of the season. As the executive director of the Ski Resort of Montenegro (SCG) told "Vijesti" Bojan Medenica, thanks to the rainfall in the previous days, a good surface was prepared on the trails.
There were about forty centimeters of snow at that ski center yesterday, and new precipitation, according to Medenica, will enable part of the ski infrastructure to be well prepared for the last day of the weekend.
"Finally, on Sunday we will have the first skiing day. The intensity of the precipitation will determine which part of the infrastructure we will be able to prepare, but we will definitely be ready for all skiing enthusiasts on Sunday. At the moment, there is more than 40 centimeters of snow on the slopes, which is still falling, while our machinery and employees are working hard to prepare the slopes. It is enough for just 15 centimeters to fall and we will have good conditions on the slopes," Medenica told "Vijesti" yesterday.
At the neighboring private Ski Center Kolašin 1450, skiing was possible on part of the infrastructure this season, thanks to artificial snow. The ski resort announced on social media yesterday that part of the infrastructure, namely the Jezerine ski lift and baby lift, was operational.
As they claim, "prepared slopes and ski infrastructure must receive approval from the competent inspection before being fully put into operation."
"We hope this will happen early in the week. In the meantime, we continue to pave the slopes, carefully preserve the snow and produce additional amounts during the night through the artificial snowmaking system," the private ski resort said.
The state ski resort has had barely 20 ski days over the past two winters due to a lack of snow and an unfulfilled artificial snowmaking project. As a result, much is expected of the rest of this winter at the Kolašin 1600 Ski Center, despite the fact that the peak season during the Christmas and New Year holidays has passed.
Despite the rainfall, the ski slopes following the K7 cable car are not in operation this winter either. The state's efforts to solve the problem of pillar no. 4 of the six-seater remained without results because no one responded to the first tender for the work. SCG has announced a new tender worth 145.200 euros for the urgent repair and stabilization of the soil near the pillar, which was damaged last year during works on private plots of the neighboring company "Ski resort Kolašin 1450", owned by Zoran Ćoć Bećirović.
A previous attempt to find a contractor for the job failed in mid-December after the first tender was cancelled because none of the interested companies submitted a valid offer. The tender ran from November 19 to December 5. A new one was announced on December 24 and will run until January 12, with the selected contractor having to complete the repair within a minimum of 15 days, or a maximum of a month.
The six-seater lift that connects the state and private ski resort, worth nine million euros, has not been operational for more than a year and a half since it was damaged. Bećirović's company, as previously announced, despite investing 400.000 euros, has not repaired the damage, so the government has decided to take over the job.
WITHOUT STATE AID
However, Serbia and Montenegro will not receive €150.000 in aid from the Government for the preparation of the season, as expected, because the Competition Protection Agency (AZK) recently determined that this would constitute non-harmonized state aid.
The agency made this decision at the request of the Ministry of Tourism, which in early November explained the need to provide money for the maintenance of multipurpose sports infrastructure in preparation for the 2025/2026 winter tourist season at the Kolašin 1600 ski resort. The assistance was supposed to be for the maintenance of multipurpose sports infrastructure, with the aim of quality preparation for the season and putting a safe ski resort into operation for the upcoming season.
A lot has been invested in Kolašin in preparing the non-boarding offer for this winter, so various activities will be organized throughout the rest of the season, aimed at attracting different categories of tourists.
At the moment, there is more than 40 centimeters of snow on the slopes, which is still falling, while our machinery and employees are working hard to prepare the slopes, Bojan Medenica, executive director of the Montenegrin Ski Resort, told "Vijesti" yesterday.
The Christmas Bazaar on the town square will be the central gathering place throughout the winter season. The Warriors' Square will host a musical and entertainment program every weekend until the end of January, as well as every day during the holidays.
January brings the fifth Winter Art Festival, a guitar festival, which will be held from January 12th to 18th. The audience will have the opportunity to enjoy performances by renowned guitarists. Srđan Bulatović i Darko Nikčević, as well as in the talent school concert. The festival will be officially closed on January 18th with a concert Damir Urbana.
During the winter tourist season, various hiking tours and snowshoe walks will be organized, as well as the traditional Bjelasica Winter Marathon and Sinjavina Winter Marathon... In cooperation with the Municipality, the Chamber of Commerce of Montenegro and the NTO, free bus transportation from the city center to the "Kolašin 1600" Ski Center will be organized twice a day.
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