Montenegro’s €270 million Plavi Horizonti hotel and residential resort near Tivat has received approval to proceed without a new environmental impact assessment, while local authorities continue to question whether the existing documentation fully reflects the project’s potential effects on the protected beach area, coastal landscape, marine environment and infrastructure capacity of the Bay of Kotor.
The Environmental Protection Agency of Montenegro decided in December 2025 that a new assessment was not required, concluding that the project had already been reviewed in 2020, that environmental approval had been issued, and that neither the project documentation nor the undeveloped site conditions had changed materially. The investor, Blue Investments d.o.o. Tivat, maintains that the development is proceeding under previously approved documentation and that the environmental protection measures defined in the original assessment remain valid.
Environmental approval remains disputed
The Municipality of Tivat has challenged the decision, arguing that the scale of the development, its location near Pržno beach, planned changes to existing vegetation and the combined pressure from other coastal projects require a new environmental review. The disagreement focuses on whether an assessment completed in 2020 remains sufficient in 2026, considering changes in surrounding development, regulatory requirements, ownership structure and environmental protection expectations for Boka Kotorska.
The project is planned in the hinterland of Pržno beach, also known as Plavi Horizonti, on the Luštica peninsula. The area is recognised for its sandy coastline, rocky shoreline, mature vegetation and connection with the wider natural and cultural landscape of the Bay of Kotor. Pržno beach is a protected natural site, while the wider development area forms part of the landscape context connected with the buffer zone of the UNESCO-listed Natural and Culturo-Historical Region of Kotor.
Five-star resort planned with hotel and residential units
The planned complex includes a five-star hotel and residential resort featuring hotel buildings, annexes, private villas, restaurants, a beach club, swimming pools, sports facilities and supporting infrastructure.
The current concept provides for:
- 246 hotel rooms
- Hotel buildings of up to four floors
- A central tower reaching seven floors
- Around 300 parking spaces
- Spa and wellness facilities
- Swimming pools
- Beach restaurant and bar
- Tennis club
- Sports grounds
- Children’s facilities
With an announced investment value of €270 million, the project represents one of the largest planned tourism and real-estate developments in the Tivat and Luštica area.
Infrastructure capacity and cumulative impact concerns
The municipality has raised concerns over whether existing documentation sufficiently evaluates the project’s impact on water supply, wastewater treatment, electricity infrastructure, traffic, parking capacity and waste management. The issue of cumulative impact assessment has become central to the discussion, as the surrounding area has experienced significant development since the original Plavi Horizonti plans were prepared.
Projects such as Porto Montenegro, Luštica Bay and other tourism and residential developments have increased construction activity, visitor capacity, traffic levels and seasonal demand for municipal services. Blue Investments said it was preparing detailed studies covering water supply, wastewater, electricity, waste management, traffic and parking, with additional infrastructure data expected after completion of specialist analyses.
Vegetation and marine environment under review
Vegetation management is another area of disagreement. Municipal documentation indicates that the current plans involve the removal of 132 additional trees and transplantation of another 107 trees compared with a vegetation-treatment study prepared in 2014. Blue Investments said that an assessment of existing vegetation quality had been completed before the landscape design process. The company stated that protected olive trees had been transferred to a temporary nursery and would later be returned to new locations within the complex.
Marine impacts are also being examined, including potential effects from construction runoff, wastewater discharge, beach operations, increased visitor numbers and accidental pollution risks. The Institute of Marine Biology in Kotor said it could not determine whether additional research was required because it had not received access to the 2020 environmental assessment or related marine ecosystem data.
Cultural heritage review raises coordination questions
The Administration for the Protection of Cultural Properties confirmed that it had not issued conservation conditions specifically for the project or approved technical documentation on that basis. The authority had previously commented on amendments to the Pržno I Urban Project in 2014, but those comments were prepared before newer legal provisions concerning the protection of the Kotor area and its UNESCO buffer zone came into effect.
Earlier conservation documents described Pržno as one of the most attractive bays and beaches on the Montenegrin coast and stressed the importance of preserving its natural characteristics and valuable vegetation. UNESCO has previously called for stronger assessment of cumulative development pressure in Boka Kotorska and improved institutional coordination. It has also highlighted concerns over situations where legally important decisions advance before all relevant opinions are completed. In this case, the cultural heritage authority received Tivat’s request for an opinion in December 2025 but responded on 17 July 2026, after the Environmental Protection Agency had already determined that a new assessment was unnecessary.
Ownership history adds due diligence requirements
The Plavi Horizonti project was originally associated with Qatari Diar, the Qatari state-backed developer. Qatari investors purchased approximately 270,000 square metres in Pržno Bay for €25 million in 2010. The former Plavi Horizonti hotel was demolished in 2011, with the new luxury resort initially expected to be completed by 2014. Implementation was later delayed for more than a decade, partly because of a property dispute involving a privately owned parcel within the development area.
In 2013, the investor signed a 30-year agreement with the state-owned coastal-zone manager Morsko dobro for the use of parts of the coastline and adjoining waters, with an annual payment of €50,000. The Montenegrin project company previously operated as Qatari Diar Hotel & Property Investment Montenegro d.o.o. and now operates as Blue Investments. The company said the legal entity remained unchanged and that only the name was changed.
Blue Investments is wholly owned by Cyprus-registered Blue Adriatic Ltd, previously known as Q. Hotel and Marina Ltd. The company said ownership changed at the level of the Cyprus-based parent company and that an international investor group linked to American businessman Richard Gadbois now supports the project. The company has not publicly disclosed all current shareholders of Blue Adriatic, their ownership percentages or ultimate beneficial owners.
Financing structure remains undisclosed
The financing model for the €270 million development has not been publicly detailed. A project of this scale would typically involve a combination of sponsor equity, construction financing, residential pre-sales and potentially operator-linked or mezzanine financing.
Banks and other financial partners are expected to assess not only formal permits but also whether environmental procedures are current, whether relevant institutions participated in the process and whether cumulative impacts have been addressed. A refreshed environmental review could create additional requirements, but it could also provide stronger documentation for lenders, hotel operators, contractors and residential buyers.
Public access commitment
Blue Investments has stated that public access to Pržno beach and the coastal strip will remain unrestricted in accordance with Montenegrin legislation, planning documents and maritime-domain rules. The company’s commitment will need to be reflected in the project’s physical design and operating model, including access routes, pedestrian movement, security arrangements and beach-club operations. The planned resort is expected to expand tourism capacity in Tivat and the Luštica peninsula, while its future development remains linked to environmental approvals, infrastructure planning, ownership transparency and regulatory coordination.
