The company "Sigillum CO" has notified the Ministry of Public Works (MJR) of the unilateral termination of the contract for the construction of a water supply system for the mountain resorts "Kolašin 1600" and "Kolašin 1450", due to delays in paying due claims, the inability to start and complete certain phases of work due to blockades by locals.
The Ministry told "Vijesti" that, in addition to these, the company also cited unresolved property and legal relations in part of the project as a reason for terminating the contract.
With this consortium, the state, after a public tender in November 2022, signed a contract in January of the following year worth 9.183.900 euros, for the design and construction of hydrotechnical infrastructure on the "design and build" principle for the water supply system for water supply and snowmaking of the ski slopes of the mountain centers "Kolašin 1600" and "Kolašin 1450", by capturing water from the Ljevaja River. The contract was signed with the Capital Projects Administration, from which the MJR took over the project.
As the Ministry of Justice says, they were not satisfied with the pace of work and the contractor's approach, and claim that "there were no technical or practical obstacles to carrying out work on a larger scale than what the contractor has done so far."
"Also, the contractor did not show interest in proposing technical alternatives that would contribute to a more efficient implementation of the project. Accordingly, the possibility of amicable termination of the contract was considered, which was the topic of one of the coordination meetings held at the initiative of the Ministry," the department explains.
The Ministry, they say, did not decide to take this step, believing that it was necessary to approach a reasonable solution to the problem through dialogue and due to the potential disruption of the dynamics, given the importance of this project for Kolašin. However, they claim that the other party did not show any will in this direction, and that the contract was terminated practically without notice, although communication towards identifying and solving the problem took place continuously.
"Data on the possible amount of compensation requested by the contractor will be available only after the completion of the procedure for determining mutual claims. So far, the contractor has been paid a total of 3,976 million euros, according to certified provisional monthly statements. Also, the client has paid for the works and the procurement of materials envisaged by the revised main project, the delivery of which was recorded through the same provisional statements," said the department headed by the minister. Majda Adzović.
They remind that the project is divided into six phases. For two phases, due to unresolved property and legal relations, the main design could not be revised, while for the remaining phases the technical documentation is complete and revised, which created the conditions for the execution of works in accordance with the applicable legal regulations.
The Ministry, they announce, "will continue to take intensive measures within its jurisdiction to ensure that the implementation of the project continues and is completed as soon as possible."
The residents of Mušovića Rijeka, a village through which the Ljevaja River flows, which is planned for snowmaking and water supply to mountain resorts, have been opposing the project for several years, which they have repeatedly stated is harmful to the public interest and the environment in many ways. For this reason, they have also filed a criminal complaint against Esmin Bećović, former director of the Capital Projects Administration, and other persons, “due to suspicion of corruption during the project, which could cause multi-million-dollar damage to the Montenegrin budget.
According to the complaint, the project, titled "Construction of a water supply system to provide the necessary quantities of drinking water, sanitary needs, fire protection, and snowmaking for ski slopes of the mountain centers 'Kolašin 1600' and 'Kolašin 1450' in the Municipality of Kolašin," was implemented in a non-transparent manner. Local residents claim that the data used in the project was inadequate and inaccurate, and that the public hearing organized by the local government was not conducted properly.
They are also troubled by the fact that the project involves piping the river uphill to Bjelasica, that it will take several years, and that there is still no technical documentation for the phase of the project that includes snowmaking infrastructure. They have repeatedly demanded that an “expert and objective assessment of the amount of water that exists in the immediate vicinity of the ski centers” be carried out.
Locals emphasize that, if the project is implemented, its expensive maintenance will fall on the citizens of Kolašin. High maintenance costs, electricity bills, and other items are expected to further burden the budget of the local population.
They also point out that the project was not adequately prepared and that the plans are based on inadequate data.
“Sigillum CO” is preparing a lawsuit for damages
The company "Sigillum CO" officially told "Vijesti" that they terminated the contract due to failure to fulfill the contractual obligations, both monetary (in the form of payment of mutually verified and agreed situations) and non-monetary (by enabling the Contractor to fulfill its contractual obligations, unhindered and in accordance with the law).
They specifically pointed out that in addition to economic reasons, in order to implement the project in question in full and as quickly as possible, they were also guided by the general interests of all citizens, but unfortunately, the client of the aforementioned, despite dozens of letters, initiatives and urgencies that we, as the contractor, sent to him, did not recognize the importance and seriousness of the project in question.
"Given that the termination of the contract occurred solely and exclusively as a result of the Client's failure to fulfill the obligations stipulated in the contract, or rather due to the Client's fault, the Contractor was entitled to initiate relevant procedures for the collection of both due monetary claims, through enforcement proceedings before the competent Public Enforcement Officer, and compensation for all forms of material damage. Both ordinary damage (all unplanned and unjustified expenses and costs incurred by the Contractor due to the Client's fault), and lost profits, which are reflected in the benefit that the Contractor would have realized if the Client, by fulfilling its obligations, had enabled it to perform the Contract in full," the company said.
They added that the client, even after a series of warnings, did not even settle the mutually verified and agreed situations, which are in the millions, which speaks volumes about the attitude of the State of Montenegro, that is, the competent authorities, towards this project, while the final damage will be determined in the regular civil proceedings that will follow, in the period ahead.
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