18 May 2019 - On May 18, Prime Minister of Montenegro Duško Marković officially launched and put into operation three large investment projects of the company 13. Jul Plantaže. The opening ceremony was attended by the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development of Montenegro Milutin Simović, Executive Director of the company Verica Maraš, the company’s board of directors headed by President Veselin Vukotić, management and employees of 13. Jul Plantaže, as well as numerous other state officials.
The launched projects include three strategically important steps for the company: Biomass boiler, Cold Storage with the purpose of reception, storage and manipulation of fresh fruit, as well as New vineyard plantations on a total area of 55 hectares (ha). The total value of investments in modern plants and plantations representing the highest world standards is 4.100.000 EUR.
By implementing these projects, the company 13. Jul Plantaže will significantly strengthen its capacities in primary production and optimize work processes in primary processing. These steps will affect the security, stability and strengthening of the leadership position as the basis for increasing the flexibility of the business and the response to the increasingly dynamic requirements of the domestic and foreign markets.
To ensure future efficient operations, around 19 million EUR has been invested in the processing facilities and equipment of company 13. Jul Plantaže for the last ten years. As a socially responsible company, to achieve sustainable development, in recent years, Plantaže has been firmly implementing systematic measures in the field of environmental protection, improving energy efficiency and using renewable energy sources. In this regard, within the Plantaže production facilities, Biomass boiler was installed. This boiler uses vineyard prunes created by winter vineyards cuttings as its raw material. In this way, Plantaže eliminated the use of fossil fuels and reduced the emissions of harmful CO2 by 740 tons annually. This investment can be considered and classified into ecological projects that have a Zero Waste Rate because all of the ash, which is produced by combustion of biofuels, is used for fertilizing vineyards and new plants. The power of the new Biomass Boiler is 2 MW, which is sufficient to supply all consumers of heat energy necessary for the smooth operation of processing capacities.
This is just one of a number of projects in the field of energy efficiency and sustainable development that will be implemented in the future, respecting the environmental protection postulates, and its total value is 600.000 EUR without VAT. In the last 10 years, Plantaže has invested about 13 million EUR in raising its plantations of vineyards and orchards by 700 ha. The new vineyard plantations, which the Prime Minister visited today, are located at Šipčanik area. The plantations cover a total area of 55 ha and have not been utilized until now.
Dušan Kankaraš, one of the directors at Plantaže, informed the representatives of the Government of Montenegro about the investment project, pointing out that this is the most modern vineyard plant with complete support infrastructure, which in this case implied the construction of a new exploration and exploitation well with a capacity of 90 litres of water per second, as well as the installation of a drip irrigation system on the entire surface. The total value of the project is 1.500.000 EUR.
Dedicated development planning, permanent investments, setting up and achieving ambitious goals will be the way Plantations will continue in the upcoming period. The business policy of the company 13.jul Plantaže is focused on long-term stable growth and development, achieving good business results and further strengthening of the leading position their products have on the Montenegrin market and the markets of the region.
Data acquired from 13. Jul Plantaže Official Website.
