📋 Tender Overview
Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovic participated in the signing ceremony of the Contract for the Vu?evica interchange project on the A1 motorway – interchange on the state road 8, which includes the construction of the Kozjak tunnel, in Split. He said that this project represents a "new lifeline" for Split and stressed the importance of business cooperation and trust of Croatian Roads and China Road and Bridge Corporation.
The contract was signed by Josip Škori?, CEO of Hrvatske ceste, and Yang Dong, Director of China Road and Bridge Corporation for Central and Eastern Europe, and the project is worth EUR 74.6 million (excluding VAT).
The offer of the Chinese company, which also built the Pelješac Bridge, was selected as the most economically advantageous in the public tender for the construction of the Vu?evica connecting road on the A1 motorway - interchange on the state road D8, whose total length is 6.85 kilometers, which includes the Kozjak tunnel, 2.5 kilometers long, and the road to the Adriatic highway about 4.3 kilometers long.
Work on the construction of the Kozjak tunnel should begin in a few months, and the deadline for construction is 36 months, it was pointed out at the signing.
The government was committed to infrastructure projects in Split-Dalmatia County
During the signing, Prime Minister Plenkovic stressed the government's commitment and support to infrastructure projects in Split-Dalmatia County.
"Today is a great day for the City of Split and Split-Dalmatia County because the project will create a second lifeline from the Vu?evica interchange, including the Kozjak tunnel, which will allow easier traffic and entry and exit from Split and the connection with the highway," Plenkovic said.
Ceo of Hrvatske ceste Josip Škori? pointed out that this is a technically very complex project.
"A 2,525-meter-long tunnel and three overpasses, one road passage and two viaducts will be built," Škori? said, adding that the Chinese company has proven itself in the construction of the Pelješac Bridge and gained confidence for the construction of the Kozjak tunnel.
Director of China Road and Bridge Corporation for Central and Eastern Europe Yang Dong expressed his satisfaction that the Croatian Government and Croatian Roads decided to give confidence to the Chinese company in the construction of the Kozjak Tunnel.
As on the Pelješac Bridge, here we will show our professionalism and responsibility, dong said.
Split-Dalmatia County Prefect Blaženko Boban stressed that the project is significant for the entire Split-Dalmatia County.
"We will also be preparing other important infrastructure transport activities. Today, with this act begins the construction of a large, mega project, and that is the construction of another entrance to Split," he said.
Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of the Sea, Transport and Infrastructure Oleg Butkovi? pointed out that this is a significant direction, a new entrance to the city of Split.
"All this will help in better functioning and safer traffic in the city of Split and Split-Dalmatia County," he said.
Prime Minister Plenkovic told reporters that the government and Croatian Roads will now focus on the construction of the road from Kastela to Omiš, given the traffic jams on the road in the summer months.
He also recalled a number of important road projects, including integration into the road network of the south of Croatia and the decision to build a full profile highway from Metkovi? to Dubrovnik, the construction of the second tube of the U?ka tunnel, in Slavonia the construction of the Vc corridor, where a five-kilometer-long section from Beli Manastir to the Hungarian border still needs to be built.
He also mentioned the construction of the highway to Sisak, which is very important for the revitalization of the Sisak-Moslavina County after the earthquake, as well as the project of construction of the Varaždin-Ivanec-Krapina expressway.
He also commented on the construction of expressways from Križevci to Koprivnica, from Farkaševac to Virovitica and from Požega to Stari Petrovo Selo, adding that Croatia will solve all its road infrastructure with a network of highways and expressways in the very near future.
The Prime Minister expressed his satisfaction that China Road and Bridge Corporation was chosen as the contractor for the construction of the Kozjak Tunnel, with which Croatia has a great experience in the construction of the Pelješac Bridge.
Responding to journalists' questions about Slovenia's move to establish temporary checkpoints near border crossings, Prime Minister Plenkovic said slovenia was implementing measures on its territory and that there was no threat to the Schengen area.
"It's not a schengen threat. First, it is in no way a reference to the relevant article of the Schengen Code where they could return control to the border in the event of a threat and a high intensity of irregular migration. This is the control of the internal, their territory, that's what Croatia is doing," he said.
He stressed that these were compensatory measures and that this "will in no way interfere with the smooth crossing of the border when it comes to the Schengen border between Croatia and Slovenia".
"The dialogue between Belgrade and Pristina has not failed, the dialogue will continue. The escalation is bad and we express regret, first because of the death of a Kosovo police officer, after that and because of a serious incident that took place and which leads to an increase, not a reduction in tensions," Plenkovic said when asked if the EU-sponsored dialogue between Belgrade and Pristina had failed.
