Published: December 6, 2010
Loan will redevelop popular resort on Adriatic Sea coast.
The European Bank of Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) has made its first investment in Montenegro’s tourism sector.
The bank has agreed to loan €37mn to developer Adriatic Properties to transform Sveti Stefan into a high-end resort.
The funds will finance the re-development of the Sveti Stefan peninsula village and adjacent area along the Montenegrin Adriatic Sea coast, between the towns of Budva and Petrovac.
The project includes the renovation of the Sveti Stefan hotel and Milocer Villa, as well as the reconstruction of the existing Queen’s Beach Hotel. Adriatic Properties will also build apartments, restaurants and spas.
Sylva Gansser-Potts, the EBRD’s property and tourism director, says the investment will help Montenegro build on its cultural and natural heritage. “It will set higher quality standards for the tourism industry in the southern and eastern Mediterranean region.”
Montenegro is one of the few countries that achieved growth in the tourism sector during the economic downturn. “Sveti Stefan and the tourism of Montenegro in general, have one more reason to feel confident for the continuance of growth and development in the future,” adds Victor Restis of Restis Group, Adriatic Properties’ owner, when discussing the loan.