Abu Dhabi Mar sole bidder for stake in Montenegrin shipyard

The Abu Dhabi Mar ship building company was the sole bidder for a 62 per cent stake in Montenegro's largest shipyard Bijela, the agency for economic restructuring said. In a statement posted on the agency's website, the government said that the deadline for bidding expired on December 23 and the offer from the Abu Dhabi company will open on December 26. In its tender offer, the Montenegrin government said that prospective buyers of the Bijela shipyard must be companies with at least five years of experience in shipbuilding, overhaul or naval transport, as well as building of yachts.
The first round of bidding for the shipyard was cancelled in June after the top ranked bidder pulled out.
The shipyard, which dates back to 1927, is located in the town of Bijela in the Adriatic bay of Boka Kotorska and covers 120,000 square metres. The shipyard operates two floating docks, a 1,120 metre wharf and 26 cranes. In 2007 the shipyard reported profit of 500,000 euros (Dh2,566,816), according to official data.
Montenegro has a coastline of 293 kilometres.