Due to the announcement of a tender for the sale of the property of salt works Solana “Bajo Sekulić” from Ulcinj, the Network for Affirmation of NGO Sector (MANS), the Center for protection and research of birds of Montenegro (CZIP), Dr. Martin Schneider-Jacoby Association (MSJA) and Montenegrin Ecologists Society (CDE) filed a criminal complaint against the insolvency practitioner Žarko Ostojić, as well as against responsible persons of the Property Administration, the Real Estate Directorate and the Protector of Property and Legal Interest of Montenegro.
The mentioned organizations filed a complaint due to suspicion of abuse of office of the insolvency practitioner and representatives of the executive power, because the sale of the state-owned land used by Solana is once again announced, but over which it cannot claim ownership rights on any legal basis, as well as because civil servants did not timely and lawfully list assets included in the bankruptcy estate of the company. If 15 million square meters of state-owned land is sold, it will do incalculable damage to Montenegro.
Namely, on March 11, the insolvency practitioner of the company announced the sale of Solana’s complete assets, including 15 million square meters of the state-owned land which, based on the concession, the company had the right to use as long as it produced salt. The right to use the land ceased when Solana went bankrupt, according to the Law on Concessions. However, the owner of the land is still not entered into the land registry since the procedure for determining ownership is still ongoing, but it is undisputed that Solana had only “right to use”, as it is now noted in the land registry. It is therefore clear that the company from Ulcinj was never the owner of the land and that in the privatization procedure or in any other procedure it did not pay a market fee for the land, since the only basis for which they were entitled to it was exploitation of salt – which is no longer done.
On the other hand, several persons from the executive power failed to record the land used by Solana as the state property, thus violating the law and enabling the owners of the company, headed by Veselin Barović, to obtain enormous material gain to the detriment of the state. This is especially clear in view of the fact that in 2008, according to the spatial plan, the purpose of land changed from industrial to construction, which increased its value up to 300 times, while valuable artificial ecosystem was used as a ground for the famous valorisation done the Montenegrin way.
While the authorities were passive, Barović and others filed a complaint with the Commercial Court asking to be granted the ownership of the state land, or to pay compensation of as much as €200 million. However, this court process is interrupted until the procedure before the Privatization Council is ended, by which Solana asked its land ownership to be recognized, and which determines whether the market price for the company was paid during the privatization process.
All this indisputably indicates that the insolvency practitioner was certainly familiar with the fact that the issue of the land ownership was under dispute, but nevertheless decided to sell it. This is confirmed by the decision of his predecessor, who announced at the beginning of 2016 that he would not announce tenders for the sale of the property until the Privatization Council assessed whether the market price was paid for Solana in the privatization process, on which the registration of land ownership depends.
Namely, since 2013, the Commercial Court has been awaiting the opinion of the Privatization and Capital Projects Council, chaired by the Prime Minister Marković, in order to finalize the court proceedings to determine the ownership of the land of the former salt factory “Bajo Sekulić”. The opinion of the Privatization Council refers to the official interpretation i.e. the Government’s position on the controversial provisions of the privatization contract i.e. the transfer of the ownership right on the plant’s land.
“Bajo Sekulić” JSC Ulcinj declared programmed bankruptcy in 2005 due to debt of only €13 thousand, and since 2011, it has been in bankruptcy due to debt of almost six million, of which more than half is owed to employees for salaries and contributions. Meanwhile, it has been recognized as an invaluable area by numerous international and domestic organisations because it is a refuge for a large number of rare species of birds, but also of other plant and animal species, as evidenced by the ongoing process of proclamation of Solana as a protected area and nature park.
15th attempt to sell the company’s assets is another in a series of illegal decisions of the insolvency administration and state bodies that have been tolerating all this for years, while doing everything they can to enable the owners of Solana to gain multi-million benefits to the detriment of the state of Montenegro, but also to the detriment of future generations which, by such actions, will be prevented from enjoying an invaluable place that Solana undoubtedly represents.
Network for Affirmation of NGO Sector (MANS)
Center for protection and research of birds of Montenegro (CZIP)
Dr. Martin Schneider-Jacoby Association (MSJA)
Montenegrin Ecologists Society (CDE)
