Air Montenegro has emerged as the sole bidder in Montenegro’s tender for the operation of five subsidised Public Service Obligation (PSO) routes from Podgorica, submitting offers for each of the destinations included in the call. However, the carrier has not yet formally been awarded the contracts, with the Ministry of Transport currently evaluating the submitted bids. The tender, which closed on August 31, sought operators for services from Podgorica to Brussels, Paris Charles de Gaulle, Frankfurt, Zagreb and Bari. The five contracts have a combined estimated value of 4.79 million euros excluding VAT. Brussels carries the highest estimated contract value at 1.49 million euros, followed by Paris at 1.05 million, Frankfurt at 912.660 euros, Bari at 680.742 euros and Zagreb at 661.790 euros. Each route was tendered separately, meaning airlines were able to submit offers for one or more destinations. Despite indications of interest from more than one party prior to the tender’s closure, Air Montenegro was ultimately the only carrier to submit bids. The national airline confirmed it had applied for all five routes. The Ministry of Transport has said the procurement procedure remains in the evaluation stage and that further details will be announced following the adoption of a formal decision and the signing of contracts with the selected operator. The absence of competing bids does not automatically result in Air Montenegro being awarded the routes, as its offers must still comply with all tender requirements and be deemed acceptable. Under the tender conditions, each of the five routes must be maintained throughout the year with at least three weekly frequencies using aircraft with a minimum capacity of 110 seats. The selection criteria place a 90% weighting on the proposed cost per return flight and 10% on the seating capacity offered. The successful operator will also be required to provide a performance guarantee equivalent to 10% of the contract value. A penalty of 2.000 euros per cancelled flight can be imposed unless the cancellation has received prior approval from the Ministry’s designated working group. Air Montenegro CEO Vukadin Stojanović has rejected suggestions that participation in the scheme amounts to direct financial support for the state-owned carrier. “PSO is not aid to Air Montenegro, but payment for a specifically defined public-interest service to the carrier that wins an open procedure”, Mr Stojanović said. He noted that the purpose of the scheme is to secure stable year-round connectivity on routes which may be commercially viable during the peak summer months or at lower frequencies, but not necessarily at the minimum three weekly rotations required throughout the year. EX-YU Aviation News
Sep 12, 2026 · byEX-YU Aviation News
