The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) did not give its consent to the Strategic Environmental Assessment Report of the State Site Study (DSL) Proposal, Sector 66, Modules 2, 3 and 6, which involves the construction of a tourist complex on Velika Plaza in Ulcinj.
"Vijesti" has learned that the document was returned to the Ministry of Urbanism, Spatial Planning and State Property (MDUP) to refine the detected shortcomings, for which Slaven Radunović's department was given a deadline of 150 days.
The proposal for a state study was prepared for the area that includes part of sector 66 within the scope of the Special Purpose Spatial Plan for the Coastal Area of Montenegro, the marine zone, and covers approximately 1.069 hectares.
It is also stated that these are the cadastral municipalities of Gornji and Donji Štoj, and that the area of modules 2 and 3 is 285,55, while module 6 covers 787,83 hectares.
"The main goal to be achieved is to provide planning prerequisites for the development of high-class tourism, through a comprehensive and rational assessment of the significance of the location and determining the optimal scope of construction," states the DSL Proposal, which was prepared in September 2023 and was subject to public debate in October of the same year.
The DSL proposal from March this year does not differ significantly from the 2023 document, which is available on the website of the Government of Montenegro.
The Parliament of Montenegro adopted the Law on Ratifying the Agreement between the Governments of Montenegro and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) on Cooperation in Tourism and Real Estate Development two days ago. 46 MPs voted in favor of the Law, ten voted against it, while four abstained. MPs also gave the green light to the Law on Ratifying the Agreement on Economic Cooperation - 50 voted in favor, while ten MPs voted against it.
The session on the two agreements with the UAE, which were signed at the end of March, lasted more than 12 hours.
The Agreement on Cooperation in the Field of Tourism and Real Estate Development also stipulates that Montenegro will "develop the public infrastructure necessary for the implementation of projects", which, according to the DSL Proposal, would be a minimum investment of 355 million from the state treasury.
Prime Minister Milojko Spajić signed economic and tourism cooperation and real estate development agreements with the UAE in Dubai on March 28. He previously presented to the leaders of Ulcinj and local parties the intention of Arab billionaire Mohamed Alabar to allegedly invest 35 billion euros in the construction of a tourist complex in that municipality and to lease the entire Ulcinj Velika Plaža for 99 years, which he sent to the parliamentary procedure in the form of a bill. Some in the public and the non-governmental sector claim that the agreements are contrary to state interests in several areas and that they jeopardize Montenegro's path towards the European Union (EU).
"On 12 March 3, the Ministry of Spatial Planning, Urbanism and State Property sent a letter to the Environmental Protection Agency requesting approval of the Strategic Environmental Impact Assessment Report for DSL Part Sector 2025, Modules II, III and VI - Velika plaža in the municipality of Ulcinj. On 66 April 8, the Environmental Protection Agency submitted to this Ministry an opinion on the Strategic Environmental Impact Assessment Report for DSL Part Sector 4, Modules II, III and VI - Velika plaža. The submitted opinion gave a deadline of 2025 days to correct the report in accordance with the submitted comments, objections and suggestions," the Ministry replied to "Vijesti".
When an investor "guess" the government's plans
Top government officials initially said that Arab billionaire Mohamed Alabar would invest a whopping 35 billion euros in the Ulcinj project. However, he told CIN-CG, that might “reflect the broader economic impact of the project.” Alabar said his investment would be around 2,5 billion euros.
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This figure is precisely specified in the DSL Proposal for part of sector 66 in Ulcinj, where, according to the document, a tourist and hotel complex with hotels, villas, a campsite, sports and recreational fields, beach restaurants and park areas are planned.
"From an economic perspective, the investment can be repaid in 7 years," the document states.
The DSL Proposal specifies that 1,785 billion euros are needed to build a hotel complex and villas, which would cover almost one million square meters.
Equipping hotels, tourist villas, sports centers... would cost 269,5 million euros.
6.000 euros, on average, would cost a square meter of planned luxury villas in Ulcinj
Almost 355 million, according to the DSL Proposal, would cost infrastructure equipment - roads, hydrotechnical installations, power grid, telecommunications..., and the largest part of the money (300 million euros) would go to landscaping and restoration and conservation of vegetation.
There are no planned investments in environmental studies, preparatory works, demolition and clean-up, or removal of hazardous materials, but there are plans for 42,7 million euros for project and technical documentation and 53,4 million for supervision.
"The expected costs for the planned works that need to be implemented by purpose and content units are presented. All construction costs are estimated, and may vary. The estimate does not include interest on credit funds for financing the construction. The aim of the aforementioned estimates is to obtain reference initial values on the basis of which a project financing model will be developed," the document states.
They are not apartments, but villas for sale.
The construction of the hotel would cost, according to the DSL Proposal, 1,21 billion euros. It is planned to build luxury villas, with a gross construction area (GCA) of 290.445 square meters, for which the estimated cost is around 510 million euros.
The developers of the DSL Proposal also calculated that the villas could be sold at a price of 6.000 euros per square meter.
"The proposed solution for the construction of villas also foresees the possibility of their sale. The price of luxury villas would be, on average, around 6.000 euros per square meter, while the expected revenue from real estate sales tax (at a rate of three percent and the sale of all built villas) could amount to around 56.110.951,8 euros," the DSL Proposal states.
The economic part of the DSL Proposal also states that "in considering the acceptability of this analysis, the social aspect of the investment and the general social benefits of the municipality of Ulcinj should be taken into account, through the creation of new jobs, incentives and opportunities to activate the local population in developing a whole range of supporting service activities, which is one of the main motives for accepting the planned project". "The implementation of the project requires the employment of around 1.200 permanent workers and around 1.670 seasonal workers. The majority of construction materials, as well as goods and services for the hotel will be purchased from domestic sources. In addition, the social contribution of the investment can be expressed through benefits for the state, primarily through taxes and fees. The project fully supports the Tourism Development Strategy and its vision of creating high-quality destinations that will be active throughout the year", the document states.
Potential Arab investor Mohamed Alabar told TV Vijesti that apartments and hotels should not occupy more than 20 percent of the total space.
"If you ask me what I would do on Velika Plaza, I would tell you that it would be a continuation of the beautiful architecture you have. There would be a lot of greenery, apartment buildings no higher than three to four floors, the beaches would remain accessible to all citizens but would be clean. The local community would also be involved, so that people who sell chicken in Ulcinj would sell more chicken in restaurants. People who sell shampoo would sell more shampoo in hotels," explained Alabar.
Currently protected area
The Great Beach was first protected in 1968 and the protection covers 600 hectares - the area from the contact of the beach with the sea to the main road in Donji and Gornji Štoj, and to the west the protected area extends along the banks of the Bojana River.
"A decision of the Republic Institute for Nature Protection from 1968 prohibits any actions that may cause a change in the shape or appearance of a protected object or violate its integrity," the Environmental Protection Agency recently responded to "Vijesti".
During 2022, a Study was conducted to review the boundary, status, category and protection regime of the protected area of the natural monument "Velika plaža kod Ulcinj". The study showed, according to the Agency, that "Velika plaža in Ulcinj has significant natural value on the basis of which it should continue to enjoy protection as a natural monument under the Law on Nature Protection".
"The total area of the proposed protected area in this Study is 709,12 hectares. The proposed area of Zone II of protection is 76,08 hectares, and Zone III is 633,04. A protective belt has also been proposed, with an area of 733,27 hectares. Further legally prescribed procedure, the adoption of a Decision on the status of the review of Velika Plaza near Ulcinj, based on the Review Study, has not been continued, or rather, completed," they specified.
The Agency responded to "Vijesti" that, according to the IUCN categorization of protected area management, Velika Plaza is classified as Category III, which means that settlements and accompanying infrastructure can be developed to the extent that they do not cause disruption to the basic values of the area...
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