Montenegro To Soon Launch New Tender for Tobacco Retailer Duvankomerc – Agr Min

“In the coming days we will prepare a new tender for Duvankomerc,” Simovic, who heads the tender commission for Duvankomerc, told reporters after the regular government meeting on Thursday.

In September, the government said that two companies had filed bids to buy 100% of Duvankomerc - Croatian food group Agrokor offered 6.5 million euro ($8.4 million) for the company and Belgrade-based Futura Plus offered 2.1 million euro.

During the negotiations, however, Agrokor proposed some changes in the privatisation contract, denying to take over Duvankomerc's total outstanding debt of 12 million euro. The other bidder, Futura Plus, accepted to cover all current obligations but later quitted negotiations due to the global financial crisis, Simovic said.

He added that he expects Agrokor to be one of the interested bidders in the new tender for Duvankomerc.

Duvankomerc is the retail division of state-owned tobacco processing plant Duvanski Kombinat Podgorica (DKP). It owes 6.2 million euro to DKP, some 2.1 million euro to third parties, while outstanding fees and taxes owed to the government reach some 3.7 million euro, Simovic said.

($=0.7865 euro)