New plan: 610 km of highways and expressways in Montenegro for 11 billion euros by 2038

Building the remaining 610 kilometres of the highway and expressway network through Montenegro will cost around 11 billion euros — almost one and a half times the current gross domestic product of 8.2 billion euros — and all sections could be completed by 2037–2038, according to the Review of highway and expressway network projects, published alongside a call for American companies to take part in building sections of the Adriatic-Ionian highway, as Vijesti reports.

By the parliamentary and local elections scheduled for next June, three sections could be under construction: Mateševo–Andrijevica, where preparatory works began in June; Markovići–Budva, where approval for preparatory works was granted last week; and Smokovac–Tološi, where the contractor selection procedure is being finalised. The projection clashes with the optimism of Prime Minister Milojko Spajić from December 2023, who said Montenegro would complete two highways and four expressways by the end of 2030 — the new document pushes the deadline seven to eight years further out, while the estimate at the time was around 9 billion euros at then-prices.

Under the signed contracts, the next section due for completion is the Markovići–Lastva Grbaljska expressway leg (the Budva bypass), 8 kilometres, being built by the consortium of “Briv”, “Herc gradnja”, “Hering”, “IPSA Institut” and “Shadong”, with a June 2030 deadline and a cost of 197 million euros excluding VAT, 237 million with VAT. In 2031 Montenegro is due to receive the new Mateševo–Andrijevica highway section, for which a design-and-build contract was signed in February with the Chinese consortium led by Power Construction Corporation of China: 22 kilometres for 694 million euros, a five-year deadline — opening in February 2031 — with a 200-million-euro EBRD loan, 150 million euros in EU grants and the rest from Montenegro’s budget.

In 2028 the main design is expected to be completed — meaning construction tenders announced — for nine sections, including Andrijevica–Crnča (28 km, 585 million euros), Tološi–Virpazar (41 km, 850 million euros) and Virpazar–Zaljevo near Bar (23 km, 700 million euros), as well as three sections of the Adriatic-Ionian highway — Gradac–Čevo (19 km, 380 million euros), Čevo–Krivošije (16 km, 320 million euros) and Krivošije–Grahovo (10.5 km, 210 million euros) — in which American companies are interested under the interstate agreement, with six companies and consortia having expressed interest in the pre-tender. In 2029 the main design is planned, along with a possible start of works from Zaljevo in Bar to Sukobinë near Ulcinj on the border with Albania (23 km, 420 million euros), while the final sections — Žabljak–Pljevlja (38 km, 535 million euros) and Andrijevica–Kosovo border (27 km, 480 million euros), with works starting in 2032 — could be completed in 2037 or 2038.

So far Montenegro has one built highway section of 42 kilometres from Podgorica to Mateševo, in official use since July 13, 2022, which cost 900 million euros including base and additional works. For the Smokovac–Tološi section (10.5 km) the tender for the main design and construction under EBRD rules has been published; barring complaints, the contractor could be known within a month, with design and preparatory works next year and completion in 2031.