Montenegro’s Ministry of Transport has called the management of state airport operator Airports of Montenegro (ACG) to a meeting on Friday to review preparations for a master plan for Podgorica and Tivat airports. The company is expected to present the proposed scope, analyses, priorities, estimated cost and procurement route, according to the ministry.
The meeting will take place at the ministry’s offices, where ACG executive management will present its view of the project brief and the current status of its preparation. Transport Minister Radoš Zečević and his associates will attend.
The ministry wants ACG to explain the plan’s objectives, scope and planning horizon, as well as its relationship with existing planning documents. The company is also expected to outline the baseline data and methodology for traffic forecasts at both airports, including peak-hour demand and the aircraft fleet the facilities would need to serve.
ACG is to identify the studies it expects to request from the master plan’s authors. These are to assess capacity at terminals, aircraft aprons and manoeuvring areas, as well as access roads and parking. The proposed work would use ICAO standards and IATA service-level recommendations for capacity analysis.
The requested scope also includes development phases, investment estimates, financial analyses and environmental protection. The plan is intended to help address existing technical and technological constraints at Podgorica and Tivat airports and support their development in line with future air-traffic needs in Montenegro.
Another issue for the meeting is how the master plan would assess projects ACG considers urgent and a priority for completion before the forthcoming summer IATA season. The projects identified include an extension to the western side of the terminal building at Podgorica Airport, a technical platform and the possible use of part of the military infrastructure.
The ministry has asked for clarification on the planned development coverage for Tivat Airport, which it wants addressed on an equal footing with Podgorica. ACG is also expected to present the estimated cost of preparing the plan, the timetable and how the ministry and other competent bodies would be involved in the process.
Options being considered for selecting the plan’s author include an international tender or direct selection through an existing government-to-government agreement that Montenegro has signed with another state. The ministry said the decision would be made “transparently, with full respect for domestic legislation and obligations assumed in the European integration process”.
The master plan is expected to establish how much investment would be needed to bring both airports to the required level. The ministry said the public would be informed in a timely manner about further steps; the meeting is to clarify the proposed procurement route, cost and schedule.
Aviation sector coordination
The master plan meeting follows a separate initiative to improve coordination across Montenegro’s aviation sector. On 20 October, the Ministry of Transport wrote to the heads of four companies and institutions, proposing a regular collegium to improve communication, resolve current issues more efficiently and help accelerate priority activities.
The proposed participants are ACG, national airline Air Montenegro, the Civil Aviation Agency and Serbia and Montenegro Air Traffic Services (SMATSA). The letter was addressed to ACG chief executive Roko Tolić, Air Montenegro chief executive Vuk Stojanović, Civil Aviation Agency director Ivan Šćekić and SMATSA deputy director Rajko Uskoković.
The organisations’ responsibilities and activities are interlinked, making a “permanent and operational communication mechanism” necessary, the ministry said. The collegium is intended to support timely information exchange, align positions, identify potential problems and allow joint discussion of matters relevant to the development of air transport in Montenegro.
The proposed forum would coordinate and align activities of common interest without changing participants’ legal responsibilities, management or regulatory functions, or independence in decision-making. Its work would respect each participant’s statutory powers, accountability, organisational autonomy and specific legal status.
The ministry proposed that meetings take place at its offices at least twice a month, with directors expected to participate directly to exchange information, align positions and agree on specific activities. It will send participants an invitation for each meeting, setting out proposed topics and a time.
Separately, the ministry has engaged Saša Vlaisavljević to prepare an “Analysis with a review of the state of air-transport infrastructure”. Vlaisavljević is a former director of Jat Airways, the former Serbian national airline, and former director of the state-owned Nikola Tesla Airport in Belgrade.
The ministry described him as a “recognized aviation expert” and said his engagement was not narrowly tied to or conditional on preparation of the airport master plan. His work covers strategic analysis of infrastructure initiatives and systemic solutions relevant to the long-term development of the transport sector. The ministry said his “management experience and expert knowledge will be of exceptional importance” for long-term development policies and improvements to Montenegro’s aviation system.
