17 May 2019 - An exhibition of drawings by Uroš Tošković, a homage to one of the most prominent Montenegrin artists, will be symbolically opened at the Gayo Gallery in Porto Montenegro on Tuesday, May 21 at 8 pm.

Uroš Tošković was a Montenegrin and Yugoslav painter and draftsman. Tošković is considered one of the world's best painters of the 20th century according to many art critics from Europe and beyond.

Uroš Tošković was born in a low-income family in the village of Pelev Brijeg, and in the Bratonožići region of Montenegro, which was then part of the Kingdom of Yugoslavia. After moving to Cetinje, Tošković enrolled in the Art School, which was later transferred to Herceg Novi, where he graduated in 1952, in the class led by Petar Lubarda and Milo Milunović. Then he moved to Belgrade, where he graduated from the Academy of Fine Arts in 1956, in the class mentored by Marko Čelebonović. During the studies in Belgrade, Tošković partnered with Dado Đurić, Olja Ivanjicki and others, forming the alternative artist group Mediala in 1953.

In 1956, he moved to Paris, after receiving a French government scholarship for the École des Beaux-Arts, where he graduated under the mentorship of Maurice Brianchon. He lived and worked in Paris until 1976, leading an ascetic and bohemian lifestyle, occasionally living like a vagabond. In 1976, he moved from Paris to Belgrade, and since 1996 he has resided in the Montenegrin coastal town of Bar. He gained recognition in his homeland, and in 1987 he received the 13th July Award, the highest civil award issued by the Government of Montenegro. Tošković died on 3 March 2019 at the age of 86.

As journalist Jelena Kontić reports, his drawings won over the Paris art critics and painters, who mostly had the opinion that Uroš Tošković was the best graphic artist in the world. For 20 years, he lived in Paris, where he met the greatest artists at the time, such as Picasso, Dali, Sartre, and Ionesco. It is an anecdote that Picasso wanted to buy one of his drawings, but Tošković replied: "I am too expensive for you".

Art historian and art critic Anastazija Miranović described Uroš Tošković as the "incomprehensible, unadapted, frightening creator, and this is shown in his work. Uroš does not copy anyone with his drawings, paintings, sculptures, installations. His words, opinions, behaviors are his own. He is the way he is, and that is his freedom, creative and human freedom. This freedom is his choice as much as his destiny."

15 May 2019 - The long list of manifestations organized under the auspices of the Tivat Municipality is now richer with yet another event - the Tivat Souvenir Fair, which will be held on Sunday, May 19, 2019, on the promenade Pine in Tivat. The event will begin at 10 am and will last until 6 pm.

Numerous exhibitors will present their souvenirs and handicrafts within this event, organized by NGO "Harlekin" and also under the auspices of the Tourism Organization of Tivat.

The Tivat Souvenir Fair gives visitors the opportunity to meet the leading suppliers of souvenirs and recreational products and support their hard work and effort by purchasing the exhibited handicrafts.

Manufacturers, wholesalers, and importers of gifts, recreational products, and souvenirs all look forward to the event, hoping for the positive feedback by the visitors and customers of this year’s Souvenir Fair edition.

The Tivat Souvenir Fair brings the manufacturers into direct contact with interested visitors and potential buyers of their products. Visitors attend to see the latest market developments, follow up on the latest news, and to potentially place orders and achieve a successful and long-term relationship with the exhibitors.

The organizers have also prepared an entertainment program within the fair. Jelena Zvicer, who was named the best performer in the category "acoustic guitar and voice" within the first Montenegrin Electric Guitar Competition, will play the guitar and charm the fair visitors with her voice. Zvicer will perform at 11 am.

The entrance to the fair is free.

08 May 2019 - Air Serbia is the only airline that has fulfilled the conditions of the international tender for the establishment of 12 lines of public importance from Niš, among which is the line Niš - Tivat.

Although it was logical for Montenegro Airlines to apply for a subsidized line, this did not happen.

According to the report by the Flynaissus portal, some experts have predicted that some low-cost airlines will withdraw from the Montenegrin market due to the threat of healthy competition that these subsidies will bring.

On the international tender announced by the Ministry of Construction, Transport, and Infrastructure of Serbia, for the selection of airlines for 12 lines of public interest, the offer was submitted only by Air Serbia, it was announced from that ministry.

The ministry also stated that there were no objections to the tender conditions, and the signing of the contract with representatives of Air Serbia will be organized in the following days.

As stated in the announcement, the tender was conducted with the respect of all European regulations. Interest was shown by several companies, but until the end of the procedure, only one correct bid arrived.

Routes of public interest, to be organized by the "Konstantin Veliki" Airport in Niš, were determined on the basis of the analyses and interests shown by the southern Serbian districts. The Government of Serbia and the Ministry of Construction, Transport, and Infrastructure, by introducing airlines of public interest, want to help the development of the undeveloped areas of Serbia, and, under favourable conditions, provide the citizens with the most efficient mode of transport to the most developed areas of the EU, explains the report by this ministry.

The routes were selected according to the study of the Office for Local Economic Development and Projects of Serbia and should operate from July 1, 2019, to June 30, 2023.

The national carrier of Serbia will receive 15 million euros from the state budget in order to introduce flights to Nuremberg, Frankfurt, Rome, Hanover, Ljubljana, Salzburg, Bologna, Budapest, Gothenburg, Friedrichshafen, Karlsruhe, and Tivat.

06 May 2019 - Montenegro Airlines launched seasonal flights between Tivat and Hanover over the past weekend, with the capital of Lower Saxony becoming the carrier's fifth destination in Germany alongside Frankfurt, Munich, Dusseldorf and Leipzig. Flights to this destination will operate twice a week, on Thursdays and Sundays, until October 24.

As reported on the official website of Montenegro Airlines, the German market is one of the largest emitting markets with over 60 million tourists annually, and for Montenegro, this market is extremely significant when it comes to tourism. In the last several years, Montenegro Airlines has been working intensively and continuously on the development of the airline to Germany, so it can be said without hesitation that the national air carrier ensures the arrival German tourists to Montenegro.

In addition to those above, it is of importance to highlight that Montenegro Airlines transported a total of 54,161 passengers from and to Germany in 2018 and arranged 665 flights to/from Frankfurt, Düsseldorf, Leipzig and Munich, which is 73.46 per cent more than 2017. Also, in 2018, Montenegro Airlines carried out 238 more flights (to and from Germany) compared to 2017, which is an increase of 55.74%.

Launching the new flight which connects Montenegro and Germany from May 5 to October 24 speaks to the fact that Montenegro Airlines is well aware of the importance of establishing a good airline connections to the German market, which will certainly influence the growth of the total number of passengers transported, and the increase in the number of tourists arriving from this European country.

In 2019, national carrier Montenegro Airlines will connect Montenegro with over 30 destinations in 15 different countries of Europe.

April 24, 2019 - NGO Maškarada accused the Mayor of Tivat Dr. Siniša Kusovac (DPS) for intentionally mining the project of the International Summer Carnival in Tivat.

This tourist-entertainment event premiered last year with significant financial support from the local administration and the Tourist Organization of Tivat, and the city and local tourism leaders were then very proud of the carnival and were very satisfied with the quality of this event and the number of guests it gathered. The municipality is now, however, drastically "finishing the financial tap" for the carnival, which is perceived as a political pressure by the local DPS-SD-HGI government in the Maškarada as a summer carnival manager Goran Božović, who a few months ago due to the conflict with Kusovac, publicly left the DPS and moved to the Montenegrin party.

23 April 2019 - According to the conclusions from the first session of the Honorary Committee of the Games of the Small States of Europe 2019, chaired by the Committee Chairman Prime Minister Duško Marković, the Government of Montenegro, Podgorica Capital City, the Old Royal Capital Cetinje and the municipalities of Budva, Bar and Tivat, as well as the competent state authorities, are undertaking all necessary activities in order to organize the 13th Games of the Small States of Europe 2019, which will be held in Montenegro from 27 May to 1 June. These actions are being conducted to provide all necessary conditions for the organization of the games at the highest level, and to use them to promote Montenegro as a stable country and prestigious investment and tourist destination.

Mayors and presidents of municipalities in which the games will be held informed the Committee about the infrastructure preparation to hold the games, recognizing the importance of the competition that will gather more than 1,000 athletes, and numerous accompanying staff. They expressed their full readiness to financially contribute to the event by allocating budget funds, in addition to 605.000 EUR which the Government allocated for the event so far.

The Honorary Committee invited public companies and other sponsors to support the competition within the bounds of their possibilities, thus contributing to further affirmation of the country.

"The Games of the Small States of Europe do not only have significance in the aspect of sports. Taking into consideration that the participants of the games include small but successful countries of the European Union and since there are renowned sports organisations behind these countries, this is a real opportunity for Montenegro to present itself once again to the world in a high-quality manner and to confirm its economic, political and sporting commitments," PM Marković stressed.

The Games of the Small States of Europe, which have been held since 1985, currently bring together nine countries: Andorra, Montenegro, Iceland, Cyprus, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, Malta, Monaco, and San Marino. The competitions are organised in athletics, bocce, volleyball, beach volleyball, basketball, swimming, judo, shooting, tennis and table tennis.

22 April 2019 - On April 22, Prime Minister of Montenegro Duško Marković met with the leaders of the Orascom Development Holding to discuss tourism potentials in Montenegro and the contribution of the Luštica Bay project to the achieved results in this area.

Prime Minister and the representatives of Orascom Development, led by Chief Executive Officer Khaled Bichara, concluded that Montenegro’s tourism is in its stride and that every day the country has more and more tourists. “Investors and projects such as the Luštica Bay make a significant contribution to the good results we have achieved”, Marković emphasised at the meeting in Podgorica.

According to the Prime Minister, there is great expansion in the area of tourism. ”We had an excellent winter season and we can say that the summer season has started earlier than usual. According to the newest data, there are 29% more guests currently staying in Montenegro compared to the same period last year," Marković pointed out.

He expressed satisfaction with the resort development and the dynamics of the construction works, noting that the Luštica Bay and other major resorts on the coast give a new quality to Montenegro's tourist offer. CEO Bichara thanked Prime Minister Marković for the continuous Government's support, emphasising that without this support the project could not have thrived.

"We could not have achieved anything without the support of the Government. Still, it is also important to point out that tourism cannot be successful without investors such as the Orascom Development, so cooperation is essential,” Mr. Bichara stated on this occasion.

The meeting discussed issues important for the acceleration of the construction works at the Luštica Bay seaside resort, owned by the Orascom Development.

Orascom Development Holding (ODH) is a leading developer of fully integrated destinations, including hotels, residential units and leisure facilities such as golf courses, marinas and supporting infrastructure. ODH offers a diverse portfolio of worldwide destinations covering Egypt, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Oman, Morocco, Montenegro, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom. The group operates a total of 33 hotels with 7,177 rooms and controls approximately 101.0 million sqm of land.

Luštica Development AD was founded in 2008 as a joint venture between Orascom Development Ltd. (90%) and the Government of Montenegro (10%). The project site is an inspiring, wonderfully secluded area along the Luštica peninsula, where rolling hills cascade down to an idyllic coastline. Its 690-hectares will be sensitively developed into a fully-integrated, new town in Montenegro with state-of-the-art infrastructure. It will mark the most significant investment in Montenegro yet (1.1 billion Euros) and after completion will host a few thousand residents, more than 1000 apartments, more than 500 villas and townhouses, seven hotels, two marinas, a signature 18-hole golf course and a range of public facilities including a school and medical facility.

April 21, 2019 - Infrastructure is a key issue to the expansion of Montenegro's luxury tourism drive. An interview about Tivat Airport with aviation expert Thomas Jaeger, CEO of ch-aviation, a Swiss company leading the way in global airline intelligence since 1998.

1. Tivat Airport is crucial to the development of luxury tourism in Croatia, with Lustica Bay, Porto Montenegro and Portonovi about 2.5 billion euro in investments alone. What is happening with the running of the airport? There are rumours of Turkish company TAV taking over?

I have heard about the TAV rumours, but do not have any more information about it, but it is a move that would make sense and be in line with TAV's strategy in the region. They already run Zagreb airport in a joint venture, for example, as well as concessions in Georgia, Macedonia and Tunisia, so this would be a logical extension.

2. Tivat has grown exponentially in recent years, as tourism has increased. What plans are to upgrade the airport to meet the needs of the destination? What are the biggest challenges?

It is an interesting time for Tivat, but infrastructure continues to be an issue. This summer will see 10 new routes, which is great, but mostly 1-2 times a week, unlike Dubrovnik. The Russian growth will continue, and there will be new connections from Azerbaijan with the opening of Portonovi in Herceg Novi. 

The arrival of Lufthansa is significant in that is it the first international hub carrier to come to Tivat. This will directly lead to more Western tourists. But the main challenge for Tivat continues to be its seasonality and seasonal employment needs from April to October, with little in the other months.

If you look at the capacity of Tivat, there is plenty of room to accommodate more flights. Looking at a regular Sunday in August, for example, there are about 25-30 flights a day, with 4-5 aircraft on the ground at any one time a rarity. 

By spreading its schedule more throughout the week rather than a concentration on weekends, Tivat can handle 50-60% more traffic than at present, a model that has worked on some Greek islands. More than that, and an alternative new airport is probably the solution. 

Currently, flights are concentrated during daylight hours, and I would need to check on the reasons for that (Editor's note – Montenegro Airports has also agreed to an interview, and this is a question TMN will be asking). But night flights only work with certain markets of origin. 

This is not a problem for Russian markets, but there are Western European airport curfews to consider. Night flights also invariably mean lower average fares, which is a factor to be taken into consideration. 

3. What in your opinion is the maximum capacity of Tivat?

As I said above, there is still plenty of capacity, which is not utilised in Tivat, and there are lots of holes in the schedule. Take a look at some of the Greek islands, which have managed to successfully increase capacity by moving to weekday arrivals. 

4. Will FlyDubai return? There are rumours they may not.

The current situation is that the flights are scheduled up to three times weekly, but they are not really selling tickets on all flights. I suspect the aircraft availability due to the Boeing 737 Max crisis is a factor, if you look at the schedule, the first flight is scheduled for June 3. However, if you try and book, the first availability is June 21. I suspect they will continue flights where sales are good, but they will cut frequencies due to lack of aircraft availability. 

5. As the luxury resorts get built, the Tivat region will become increasingly attractive for 12-month tourism, but year-round flights will be essential for this to work. How do you envisage major airlines entering year-round relationships with Tivat?

Each airline has its own strategy. Lufthansa has been very active in the last couple of years, and they are trying to move capacity to leisure markets on weekends when business demand is lower. If Tivat works for Lufthansa, expect Austrian, Brussels Airlines or Swiss to follow suit. But Tivat is also a classic Eurowings destination. 

Air France-KLM usually look at routes where they fly several times a week, but KLM is now servicing more offbeat destinations such as Sardinia, so they could also be an option. Air France also has a codeshare agreement with Montenegro Airlines, so would not need to come in themselves. BA are engaged in the region, but not anywhere close to as much as Lufthansa – they are more growing leisure capacity to more established markets. Lufthansa is the key airline in this, even more so with its regional partnership with Croatia Airlines. 

It would be hard to see a Western European airline servicing Tivat all year. Connections to Moscow are much stronger, and the lack of year-round flights to Dubrovnik is a key indicator. And one to watch, in terms of trends. 

6. Dubrovnik Airport has been a major gateway to the Montenegrin coast for tourists. How much has the rise of Tivat affected that, and how do you see the future? 

It would be great to have data on how many tourists for Montenegro are using Dubrovnik as a gateway, but such statistics would only possible if they were systematically collected, which they are not at present. Dubrovnik obviously has a much higher capacity, and therefore much better connectivity, so it will continue to be an important gateway to Montenegro. 

If you look at a random week in August, you will see 70,000 seats scheduled in Dubrovnik versus 25,000 in Tivat. The Russian market is a major factor in the Tivat numbers, much less so in Dubrovnik. So, while Tivat will continue to grow, the capacity and connectivity will be focused on Dubrovnik. If you want to check the possibility of year-round connections to Tivat, follow what is happening in Dubrovnik, and the same will come in time. 

7. Do you expect short-haul budget airline routes in the region to increase, given the poor state of road connections?

Well, we have Air Serbia in Tivat all year at the moment. Both Adria Airways and Croatia Airlines have potential, but they have their own problems. But in theory, yes, and there is certainly a case for using the hubs of Ljubljana or Zagreb, although those hubs are small. But one issue is the timing of the flights, which would probably necessitate night flights to Tivat. I am not sure that the infrastructure is geared for that (EDITOR NOTE – Montenegro Airports has agreed to an interview with TMN, and this is an issue we will be exploring). The other sensible option is Wizz Air from Belgrade, but traffic rights could be an issue, as they would be flying from one non-EU country to another. 

8. How will Tivat Airport look in 10 years in terms of capacity and seasonality in your opinion?  

Tourism will continue to boom, and Tivat has no serious airport competition, so it will continue to grow at about the rate of 10% as at present. That growth will continue until capacity is full. 

As with the Croatian coast, I expect a few weeks of growth to be added to either side of the tourist season. Dubrovnik is a great benchmark to follow for trends. In a perfect world, there would be 3-5 flights a week from Western European capitals in December. 

9. Your thoughts on the current situation at Montenegro Airlines?

Montenegro Airlines suffers from the same problems as other regional airlines. It has a small and limited fleet and has to deal with the issue of seasonality. They have to be there in winter, but in summer, everyone is competing with them. Seasonality is a major problem. 

They also have small aircraft. Aircraft which are too small in summer, and too big in winter. As such, they can't send them to other locations. Other airlines lease their aircraft to Asia and Canada, where there is more winter demand, but this doesn't apply to the regional jets Montenegro Airlines operates. 

They are doing the right things in terms of maximising maintenance in winter and being flexible in terms of human resources, but the market is small and there is limited potential to make Podgorica a hub. 

Tourism obviously helps in summer, but in the long term, I do not see it working, and in terms of its cost structure, it is a very difficult business case. Its finances improved last year, but they still rely on the government one way or the other. But such reliance now comes under greater scrutiny with EU rules applying to a member candidate country, so the government will not be able to continue bailing it out.

Thomas Jaeger is CEO of ch-aviation.For over 20 years ch-aviation has been providing decision-makers around the globe with relevant and up to date airline intelligence and insightful news on the industry.

Founded in 1998 in Chur in Switzerland, ch-aviation has become an influential airline intelligence provider and one of the very few Swiss aviation success stories. Today ch-aviation welcomes more than 1.8 million users each year and is proud to count hundreds of companies in the airline industry as its customers. Yet, we are still small enough to care about the details that have always made the difference between good and outstanding data.

You can learn more about ch-aviation from the official website.

04 April 2019 - Prime Minister Duško Marković and representatives of the renowned Dutch shipbuilding company Damen Kommer Damen and Porto Montenegro Mohammed Al-Shaibaniagreed said at a meeting in Bijela that the project of the transition of the former shipyard into the service of luxury yachts is successfully developing in accordance with plans, that it represents a new aspect of Montenegro's development, and that it is expected that the new industry will employ up to 450 workers when it is in full operation. 

Representatives of Damen, which employs 10,000 people in 35 shipyards on five continents, build 160 vessels every year and generates an annual turnover of two billion euros, presented a plan for the transition of the former shipyard. The plan is to rebuild 14 yachts in the first season 2020/2021, while in the fifth and sixth year they expect to reach full capacity - 100 yachts a year with an average employment of more than 400 people. 

"That means we need a lot of employees. We want to find out as quickly as possible whether people from Montenegro are looking forward to work. We want to provide training for interested people in our shipyards in Northern Europe and to organise a training programme in Bijela," representatives of the Damen Group told Prime Minister Marković.

Prime Minister Duško Marković stressed that, after visiting the site, he is thrilled with what he saw, having in mind that it is one of the projects that changes the Montenegrin economy. 

"I have been waiting for this moment for a long time, and today I feel fine. There were challenges, but we overcame them together. This project is important for the whole of Montenegro because it changes the whole philosophy of our development. With this project, we first solve the issue of the environment and open up a new clean industry. At the same time, we connect our tourism industry and industry. That is why this is a new era in the economic development of Montenegro. This needs to be understood by every state administration official. Any limitations will be overcome. Here I see a perspective for young people and that is why I am pleased that Damen is here. We need your experience and your know-how more than money. You will enjoy the full support of the Government," Prime Minister Duško Marković underlined at the meeting. 

In the context of the importance of development based on clean technologies, the Prime Minister recalled that the Government allocated EUR 50 million for remediation of five locations: the former shipyard in Bijela, solid waste dumps and red sludge pools in the former Aluminum Plant, the abandoned mine shafts of Šuplja stijena and the coal ash and slug from Maljevac dump. 

After the meeting, leaders of the Damen Group and Porto Montenegro, who on 30 November 2018, signed with the Government the concession agreement for the Shipyard in Bijela, with the aim of transforming the former shipyard into a service of luxury yachts, shared the optimism. 

Chairman of the Damen Shipyards Group Kommer Damen expressed his special gratitude to the Prime Minister for engaging in this project. 

"I am very grateful that with the assistance of the Government of Montenegro, and especially the Prime Minister, we have made progress in cleaning the Shipyard and that we are likely to start operations in March 2020," Kommer Damen said following the meeting.

Executive Director and Member of the Board of Directors of Porto Montenegro David Margason said that he is thrilled by the fact that, after a long preparation, the remediation and the beginning of the shipyard transition are finally underway. 

"I am very pleased that our investment in tourism in the last ten years has finally brought new investments into this business," said David Margason. 

The Prime Minister also spoke with Executive Director of the Investment Corporation of Dubai and Chairman of the Board of Directors of Porto Montenegro Mohammed Al-Shaibani. 

The meeting discussed the plans for further development of Porto Montenegro as one of the most important tourist resources of our country, as well as plans for expanding the tourist offer. 

03 April 2019 - The Government of Serbia has recently adopted the Decision on Introducing Scheduled Air Services declared to be of public interest, including the service Niš - Tivat – Niš, at the initiative of the southern and eastern Serbian district. The primary goal of this Decision is more efficient traffic connection with European cities, which is expected to result in faster economic development of the region.

The best bidder to carry out scheduled air services will be required to base an aircraft in Niš with the capacity to seat at least 125 passengers. The jet cannot be older than twenty years, and the operating carrier must also have another aircraft stationed in Serbia for back-up purposes. Under the tender conditions, a group of carriers may submit a joint bid. The deadline for the submission of bids has been set for May 6 at midday, so the carrier which will service the Niš – Tivat – Niš route will be announced after the bidding process.

As announced by the Ministry of Traffic, Construction, and Infrastructure of Serbia, the decision to introduce scheduled air services of public interest is in line with the Serbian regulations, harmonized with the regulations of the European Union.

As stated, the need for launching air services of public interest arises from the fact that there is no developed high-speed rail or road infrastructure as an alternative to linking this region to EU and the neighbouring countries with an average travel period of fewer than three hours.

The town of Niš is the administrative and regional centre of Southeast Serbia and the traffic hub which, in addition to being the intersection of the road and railroad Corridor 10, also has an international airport that accepted more than 350,000 passengers last year.

Air Service Niš – Tivat – Niš will be operated three times per week between May and October 2019.