The capital city of Montenegro invited contractors to express interest in the main project within its plan to upgrade the sewer network. The procurement in Podgorica is for wastewater and sludge treatment plants and sewage sludge incineration unit.

Waterworks and sewage utility Vodovod i kanalizacija has issued a public call for prequalification for works cofinanced by the Government of Montenegro, Germany’s KfW Development Bank and the European Union–backed Western Balkan Investment Framework (WBIF). After the initial invitation was canceled, the City of Podgorica is again looking to list contractors for a wastewater treatment complex.

The deadline is August 7. The project is divided into three components: a wastewater treatment plant, a sewage sludge treatment unit and a facility to burn the processed sludge, with all ancillaries.

The system will serve 230,000 people

Vodovod i kanalizacija, the project executing agency, said the system serving a so-called people equivalent of 230,000 must be designed to last until 2045. The necessary daily capacity is 49,000 cubic meters and 13,800 kilograms in terms of BOD5 or five-day biological or biochemical oxygen demand.

The sewage sludge treatment plant in Podgorica will extract gas for combined heat and power production

Wastewater will undergo an activated sludge process with tertiary treatment for nitrogen and phosphorus removal as well as UV-disinfection, according to the document. The sewage sludge treatment plant with anaerobic digestion includes biogas recovery and reuse for combined heat and power production (CHP) and sludge dewatering with centrifuges.

The incineration unit is envisaged with a predryer, fluidized bed incinerator, flue gas cleaning by an electrostatic precipitator, bicarbonate dosing and fabric filter.

Works are scheduled to begin in February

The publication of the results was announced for September, followed immediately by a request for proposals.

The bids will need to be submitted by December and the publication of the award notice is expected in January. Information in the public call reveals implementation is scheduled to begin in February next year and to last until August 2023.

Sewage upgrade worth over EUR 50 million

The umbrella project includes the construction of a main collector, which began in May, and works on the secondary network.

The entire endeavor is valued at more than EUR 50 million. KfW approved a EUR 35 million loan and WBIF granted EUR 10.1 million. The city pledged to cover the remainder.