Tourism and energy will be the two engines of the accelerated development of Montenegro on the way to the European Union, the growth of the gross national product, employment and the rise of citizens’ standards.
This was assessed by the executive director of Elektroprivreda Crne Gore, Nikola Rovčanin, stating that he expects Montenegro to become a major energy construction site in the coming years.
“Given the number of planned investments in the energy sector of our country in the coming years, it is to be expected that Montenegro will become a major energy construction site. All this entails the absorption of a large number of workers, high school and higher education personnel from the labor market, both in the construction phase and in the functioning phase. Personally, I think that these are stable and highly paid jobs compared to the Montenegrin average and that their number will exceed two thousand,” said Rovčanin.
That is why, he points out, it is of great importance that the education system of the country is aligned with the energy needs in the future.
“It is very important to adapt the educational system to the new reality in energy. It is primarily solar energy when it comes to high school education. That staff should be prepared and trained for those types of jobs. During the implementation of the Solari 3000 plus project, our company Solar gradnja also had to create a training center and train people to implement the project. Only when new wind and hydropower plants come, we will have to have a certain agreement between the education system and the economy. Especially important is the engineering staff, who should have conditions that allow them to stay in Montenegro, and not go abroad. “New production facilities require great expertise and knowledge of the people who will manage them,” he said.
He reminded that the ecological reconstruction of the Pljevlja Thermal Power Plant is worth 70 million euros, the heating project of Pljevlja is worth more than 10 million euros, the construction of the small hydropower plant “Otilovići” is more than 5 million, the wind farm “Gvozd” is 82 million euros, Solari 5000+ 70 MW is 70 million euros
“Not to mention the gas power plants in Pljevlja, Podgorica and Bar, the construction of the LNG terminal in Bar, HPP ‘Kruševo’ for which we have already signed a contract for the preparation of the study, the floating solar power plant on Lake Slano near Nikšić which is in the phase of selecting a consultant under EBRD, solar power plant ‘Briska gora’, ‘Velje brdo’ along with solar power plants on dams, but also numerous other projects”, said Rovčanin.
Unfortunately, he points out, Montenegro was in a big gap due to the fact that no energy facility was built for 40 years.
“It had a devastating effect not only on the economy, the economy, but also on the labor market, so thousands of personnel who were educated in the field of energy, mechanical engineering, and I mean high school and higher education personnel, worked in other jobs that were not even relatives or went abroad. The time before us is the time of a great energy revolution. With numerous legislative interventions, the support of the executive power, the accessibility of financing, numerous projects and ideas in the field of energy, and the very favorable hydro, solar and wind potential of our country, it is expected that all these investments will become a reality. Some of them in the short term, and some in the medium and long term,” said Rovčanin.
Certain political leaders, he points out, see employment in the energy sector as a problem, not as a solution and improvement.
“I agree that the problem in situations that have existed for four decades is that employment was employed, but no investment was realized. It is natural that new investments follow employment and that is the best and most positive thing not only for energy companies, but also for the state. When it comes to EPCG, it is the absolute record holder for the lowest percentage of salary participation in total annual costs of only 4.4 percent, and you will rarely find such an example in both the private and public sectors,” Rovčanin said for local media.
