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The Government of the Republic of Serbia

In the service of citizens

Works on Horgos-Pozega highway will not start on April 1

Belgrade, 27 March 2008

Serbian Minister of Infrastructure Velimir Ilic said that the ministries of finance and of the economy and regional development agreed today at the session of the Serbian government that a concession for construction of Horgos-Pozega highway cannot start.

Velimir Ilic

He said at a press conference held after the session that the reason for that is that there is a danger that the risk of securing funds for construction of the highway might be passed on the budget and citizens of Serbia.

He said that there were no real reasons to delay this concession in the full construction season, and underlined that the greatest project in Serbia’s history which has been prepared for three years will not be realised because of over voting for political reasons.

Mladjan Dinkic

Minister of Economy and Regional Development Mladjan Dinkic said at the conference that the government’s decision to reject the proposal of the Ministry of Infrastructure to start the construction of the highway is not based on politics, but on pure economy.

He said that starting the construction of this highway would be a financial risk for citizens because there is a danger that the amount which the concessionaire Alpina-Por should have secured for the construction, might turn into a typical debt.

The concessionaire cannot start with the work and at the same time leave a debt of €1.35 billion to citizens, Dinkic said and recalled that the concession contract was signed a year ago, however the concessionaire not only failed to complete the financial construction, but the technical part of job as well, by which the formal-legal conditions for cancellation of the contract have been created.

He said that the Serbian government adopted decrees today according to which people who are professionally incapacitated or who got worthless shares in the privatisation process so far also have the right to free shares.

Dinkic said that it was noticed that in the distribution of free shares until now these two social groups were discriminated against, and the decrees will set this right.

He specified that the decrees will be enforced with their publication in the Official Gazette of the Republic of Serbia, and explained that those who got worthless shares as a result of privatisation will be allowed to give up these shares and claim the right to free shares in six public companies.

Conditions for claiming the right to free shares are that the worthless shares were not used in any way and at the time of applying for free shares, applicants must submit a declaration stating that they are giving up their right to the worthless shares, said the Minister.

According to Dinkic, persons who are professionally incapacitated may apply for free shares even if they are not registered voters, through guardians, and they must present an identity card and a court order proving that they are professionally incapacitated, as well as documents concerning guardianship.