Yesterday, Minister of Transport Maja Vukićević and the executive director of “Monteput,” Milan Ljiljanic, signed a grant agreement with the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) on behalf of the Government. This agreement provides additional support for the construction of the highway section from Mateševo to Andrijevica.

The grant of 300 thousand euros is earmarked to finance a consultant who will assist the Project Implementation Unit within “Monteput” until the project’s completion, as confirmed by the Ministry of Transport.

Following a public call for proposals in line with EBRD’s rules, “Monteput” evaluated submissions and chose the top bid from the PPG consortium, represented by Roughton International Ltd. – Roughton ECA.

The consultancy services will include guidance on public procurement processes, ensuring adherence to EBRD’s procurement policies, and supervising compliance with contractual obligations, particularly regarding contractors and supervisors, according to the Ministry.

Additionally, the consultant’s engagement is aimed at transferring knowledge and skills to the Project Implementation Unit, showcasing international standards and best practices in project planning and management.

“This initiative is part of our efforts to finalize all necessary procedures and to sign the Loan Agreement with the EBRD promptly, along with selecting supervision and contractors. This will facilitate the project’s commencement in the second half of the year,” the statement concludes.

Bidding for the second section of the highway was announced on February 28 on the EBRD’s website, originally intended to close on April 29. However, following requests from bidders, the submission deadline was extended until May 14. The cost for this section is projected to be between 550 and 600 million euros, with the European Commission contributing 100 million euros in non-repayable assistance and the EBRD providing a soft loan of 200 million euros. Therefore, the government must consider the requests from its European partners.

As reported by “Vijesti,” ten bids were received from companies from China, Turkey, the Netherlands, and India for the tender related to the main design and execution works on the second segment of the Mateševo-Andrijevica highway.

Three inter-state bids were among the submissions: a Dutch-Turkish bid led by “Ballast Nedam Infra BV,” a Turkish-Azerbaijani bid from “Cengiz” and “Azvirt,” and a Chinese-Turkish bid from “Xingtai Road and Bridge Construction Group” and “Makimsan Asfalt Taahhut naat San.”

China submitted the highest number of bids from a single country, totaling five, including offers from “Sichuan Road and Bridge Corporation,” “China Communications Construction Company Limited,” the joint venture “PowerChina,” “Stecol,” and “PCCD,” along with the joint venture “Shandong Foreign Economic & Technical Cooperation Co” and “Shadong Luqiao Group.”

Other individual bids included a joint proposal from Turkish firms “Makyol” and “Dogus,” as well as from the Indian firm “Afcons Infrastructure Limited.”

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