The proposal for Airports will arrive in the Government in the coming days

Ministry of Transport headed by the Minister Filip Radulović officially confirmed to "Vijesti" that in the coming days, in accordance with the Law on Concessions, along with the necessary documentation, it will submit a proposal for granting a concession to the Airports of Montenegro to the Government for consideration.

The executive branch should leave the final decision regarding the fate of this important economic resource to the Parliament of Montenegro after the State Property Administration estimated that the fixed assets of the ACG are worth close to 265 million euros, and it is not yet known what the ruling majority will decide. According to the Law on State Property, the legislative branch decides on the fate of state property worth more than 150 million euros.

"The State Property Administration responded to the letter from the Ministry of Transport and valued the assets of ACG at 264.364.795,00 euros, which is almost twice as much as the previous estimate from 2018. The estimate was requested in order to continue the concession procedure initiated in 2018," the Ministry of Transport said.

Yesterday, "Vijesti" tried to get answers from the ruling majority MPs from PES and NSD in parliament on how they would vote, but they did not want to talk to a journalist from the editorial office, while Amer Smailovic from the Bosniak Party briefly said that they did not yet have a ready answer to that question.

The ruling Democrats emphasized that they cannot make a decision on the concession of ACG until they see the complete documents, procedures, conditions and the impact of this decision on the citizens and Montenegro. A SNP MP told "Vijesti" similarly Bogdan Božović, that they have not yet seen the proposal and will analyze it later and make a decision.

The concession process has officially been ongoing since 2019, and the first-ranked company in the race to lease ACG is the South Korean company "Incheon International Airport Corporation" with 96,18 points, while the second-ranked company is the Luxembourg-American "Corporación América Airports" (CAAP) with 65,15 points.

The opposition parties Social Democrats, Civic Movement URA and the until recently ruling Democratic People's Party (DNP) told "Vijesti" that they would be against leasing ACG, while the DPS did not comment either, citing the absence of their MPs who deal with these issues.

The Civic Movement URA believes that the Government has compromised the current tender process - and that it should be terminated.

"First of all, because the entire process is irreversibly tainted and meaningless, and then because it all started in 2018 when 100 million euros were requested for a one-time concession, and that amount has now been significantly reduced in 2026 due to inflation. It is best for Montenegro that the airport in Podgorica remains state-owned, with professional management, and that a concession be agreed with a private investor for the airport in Tivat," said their parliamentary group.

They also pointed out that the money for the concession of the Tivat airport could be used to build a new terminal, modernize and expand the current capacities of the Podgorica airport, and that this is the best solution for both. GP URA emphasized that it is time to start building new smaller airports in Montenegro.

They added that airports are an important resource in every country, and especially in Montenegro, because the state has a monopoly in that sector, so resources should be used carefully.

Member of the Social Democratic Party Boris Mugoša told "Vijesti" that he had previously requested an additional assessment of the value of ACG, because it depended on who would make the decision on the potential concession, and that this was ultimately done. He recalled that part of the parliamentary majority planned to amend the Law on State Property in 2024 so that the Government would decide on the disposal of state property worth up to 300 instead of 150 million euros.

"And then we talked about the essence of that idea, and that was confirmed over time. And finally, it will be very useful for citizens to hear the positions of all parties on concessions in parliament. It is important for them to see whether those who were once fierce opponents of the concession while in opposition are now supporters of the concession because they are in power. ACG needs to improve its infrastructure, or business performance, the current tender procedure has been discredited for many reasons because it has been going on for over six years and is accompanied by many controversies, which is why it should be suspended, or a concessionaire should not be selected, the existing concession act has economic and legal shortcomings, we are against giving both airports under concession for 30 years...", he stated.

Mugoša emphasized that other models of valorization of ACG should be analyzed and considered, through EU funds, recapitalization by foreign investors, foreign management, or giving one airport under concession.