Press release: The first round of negotiations for awarding the Bar- Boljare Motorway concession between the Government's negotiating team and the Croatian consortium Konstruktor was finished

The first round of negotiations for awarding the Bar- Boljare Motorway concession between the Government's negotiating team and the Croatian consortium Konstruktor was finished today in Podgorica.

In focus there were topics that refer to the technical questions of carrying out the concession contract, defining certain deadlines as well. Also, working team, that in the next few days will be dealing with clauses that are not yet specified, was formed today.

The general conclusion was that the negotiations were efficient and that only few questions left unexplained. In accordance with the tender rules, during the negotiations, there can not be put fundamental changes into the text of concession contract which was crystallized during the tender process.

The Government team is composed of Deputy Prime Minister and the Minister of Finance Mr. Igor Luksic, Minister of Maritime Affairs , Transportation and Telecommunication Mr. Andrija Lompar, Minister of Economic Development Branimir Gvozdenovic and members of tender commission, while Konstruktor is represented by director Željko Žderić and his associates. The whole process is followed by International Finance Corporation (IFC), the leading consultant of the Bar Boljare Motorway project, member of the World Bank Group.

Next round of negotiations will be held in Croatia, in the second half of May, and right after that, the signing of the concession contract for the Bar - Boljare Motorway is expected, as well as the beginning of the process of providing the financial funds which, by previously determined tender rules, can not last longer than six months.

The financial offer of Konstruktor, defined as net present value of annual payments from the Government Montenegro, after year 2009, is 603 millions EURO for share Smokovac Mateševo i 1,75 bilion EURO for whole Motorway from Bar to Boljare.