Luka Bar has launched a second tender worth €363,000 including VAT to repair part of its passenger quay after the first procurement failed, seeking to restore infrastructure damaged during vessel operations.
The tender covers design and reconstruction of part of Quay V, including Berth 54, a roughly 113-metre section used by passenger vessels.
The bidding deadline is Oct. 12.
The selected contractor will have around one month to complete the design and four months for construction.
The quay suffered structural damage after operations involving the Adria Ferries vessel Mia.
Fifteen large concrete blocks shifted from the quay structure, while erosion also affected stone fill and part of the asphalt surface.
The damage requires more than cosmetic repairs because the quay structure needs to be stabilised before full use can resume.
The first procurement was cancelled after the only bidder, Briv Construction, was excluded.
Its offer was worth about €350,900, but the company did not satisfy requirements connected with outstanding fiscal and concession obligations.
The second tender therefore restarts a relatively small but operationally important port project.
Luka Bar is simultaneously considering how costs associated with the damage might be recovered through discussions involving partners and insurers.
No final compensation outcome has been announced.
The commercial significance of the repair lies in the port’s passenger infrastructure rather than the nominal contract value.
Bar has long sought to rebuild maritime passenger connections with Italy and other Adriatic destinations after years of reduced ferry activity.
Reliable berth infrastructure is essential if those services are to grow.
Passenger ships also support the tourism economy and create spending beyond port fees, including vehicles, accommodation, restaurants and onward transport.
The repair therefore comes as Montenegro invests more broadly in Bar’s transport connections.
Railway reconstruction between Bar and Podgorica is advancing with a roughly €175 million EU and IFI-backed package, while road infrastructure is also being upgraded.
Those investments could strengthen the port’s position for both freight and passenger traffic.
But port infrastructure itself must remain operational.
A damaged berth can limit flexibility during busy periods and create safety concerns that outweigh the relatively modest cost of repair.
The tender also illustrates the importance of contractor eligibility in public and state-company procurement.
The first process did not fail because the price exceeded the estimate.
It failed because the sole bidder did not meet fiscal and concession requirements.
That delayed works despite the existence of an apparently commercially viable offer.
The second process will test whether broader competition emerges.
At €363,000, the contract is accessible to a larger group of domestic construction companies than major motorway or railway projects.
But marine works still require specific technical experience.
The design-and-build structure also transfers responsibility for detailed engineering and reconstruction to a single contractor.
Luka Bar has set a relatively short construction period of four months once design is completed.
If procurement proceeds without further challenge, the repair could therefore be completed relatively quickly.
The unresolved issue is responsibility for the damage.
If the port succeeds in recovering part of the cost through insurers or other parties, the direct financial impact on Luka Bar would be reduced.
Until that is resolved, the company is proceeding with the repair regardless.
For a port trying to expand its regional role, that is the practical priority.
The contract is small compared with Montenegro’s larger infrastructure programmes.
But for passenger operations at Bar, restoring a damaged 113-metre berth is the difference between infrastructure being available on paper and being usable when ships arrive.
