Corporacion America Airports (CAAP), a Luxembourg–American company, has requested from the Montenegrin Concessions Commission a suspension of its decision on the airport concession tender until the Administrative Court resolves the dispute. The company filed an administrative lawsuit against the Commission’s earlier ruling.
According to sources close to CAAP, the request seeks to halt the execution of the September 1 decision that returned the ranking list to the Tender Commission for re-evaluation.
The Concessions Commission recently partially upheld CAAP’s complaint regarding the ranking of bids for the concession of Podgorica and Tivat airports. The initial list, published on July 17, placed South Korea’s Incheon International Airport Corporation (IIAC) first with 96.18 points, while CAAP ranked second with 65.15 points. CAAP challenged the process, arguing that the evaluation was inconsistent and lacked transparency.
The Commission found that the reasoning behind the ranking did not provide sufficiently clear explanations of the scoring, leading to a return of the list for further review. This decision effectively meant that a third round of technical evaluation would be required, despite the fact that financial bids had already been opened.
CAAP argues that such a step contradicts tender rules, which stipulate that financial offers should not be opened if a bidder fails to reach the minimum of 80 points in technical evaluation. In the first round, IIAC scored below that threshold, while CAAP exceeded it. A second round of voting, however, raised IIAC’s score above the minimum, allowing it to proceed. CAAP insists that this change of criteria mid-process was unlawful and undermined legal certainty.
The company also claims that there was undue influence from the Montenegrin government and its advisor, the International Finance Corporation (IFC), which allegedly pressured the Tender Commission to alter scoring. According to CAAP, confidential information leaked to the media further affected the fairness of the evaluation.
CAAP maintains that enforcing the Commission’s decision before court review would cause irreparable damage not only to the company but also to Montenegro and other bidders. If concessions are awarded while the lawsuit is pending, CAAP argues, it would lose the chance to invest and operate the airports, while any later annulment would also harm the winning bidder and the state’s reputation.
The company contends that suspending the decision serves the public interest by ensuring legality, transparency, and equal treatment of bidders. They emphasize that postponement would not harm the state, as concession revenues would only be delayed until the court rules on the case.
