The contract was signed by the director of the utility company “Vodovod i kanalizacija” Andrej Marochini on behalf of the project promotor and Ahmet Ulaj, president of the company Gener 2  from Albania, as the contractor.

The contract worth HRK 205,728,710.42 (without VAT) relates to the Lot of works “Component B – Construction of transport collectors and optimisation of the existing drainage system “Rijeka Istok “, and it includes works in the eastern part of Rijeka, within which 12 ,2 km of sewage pipelines, 5.1 km of water supply pipelines, 9 pumping stations, 5 retention basins, 10 storm-water overflows and one grease and oil separator will be constructed. The deadline for the completion of the works is 36 months, or 1080 days.

The signing of the contract was attended by the mayor of Rijeka Marko Filipović, State Secretary of the Ministry of Economy and Sustainable Development Mario Šiljeg, deputy general director of Hrvatske vode, (national entity for water management) Valentin Dujmović, Ambassador of Albania to Croatia Riza Poda, Honorary Consul of Albania in Rijeka Bashkim Enesi, president of the Rijeka City Council Ana Trošelj and the head of the Utility Services Department of the City of Rijeka, Maja Malnar.

The most complex works within the EU project

The agreement signed today includes the Lots of works relating to the construction of transport collectors and optimisation of the existing drainage system “Rijeka Istok”

Mayor Filipović emphasised that a challenging preparation had preceded the contract signed that day and that the execution of the works from this lot would be very demanding, since most of the works would take place in the city centre. “This EU project is very important and an essential investment for Rijeka and all its citizens, because it preserves clean water and improves water supply and drainage. The project includes the construction of a number of structures, which will require great patience from citizens when these works are carried out, especially those that will take place on roads. I believe that the selected contractor from Albania, with whom we are entering into a business relationship for the first time, will carry out the works in the best possible way,” said mayor Filipović.

The director of the utility company ViK Marochini pointed put that with the signing of the contract that day, all contracts within the EU project relating to Rijeka – in the territory of Rijeka worth HRK 1 billion and 263 million had been signed. So far, contracts have been signed for four lots of works in the territory of Rijeka, Viškovo and Kastav, as well as the construction of a wastewater treatment plant, and it only remains to publish a tender for the contractors of two lots of works related to Čavle and Jelenje.

“As regards the lot of works for which the contract is being signed today, in the context of the locations where the works will be performed, the regulation of traffic, the requirements and the diversity of infrastructure that will be performed, it is the most complex lot of works of all seven lots of works, but this is investment in high-value infrastructure that will serve the residents of Rijeka for decades. Such a situation requires maximum cooperation between the contractor and all other participants in order to finish everything within the envisaged deadlines,” said the director of ViK Marochini, pointing out that this is the only lot of works that, in addition to excavation, also includes drilling.

The president of Gener 2 company Ulaj emphasised that the company Gener 2 had a reputation and expressed his promise that with his experience and with the help of all stakeholders in Rijeka, he would carry out the works within the deadlines and in a high-quality manner.

On behalf of Hrvatske vode, deputy general director Dujmović pointed out that the preparation of the project had not been easy, but the utility company Vodovod i Kanalizacija had put a lot of efforts into this work. “We expect the contractor to do the work in a fast and high-quality manner,” said Dujmović.

The State Secretary Šiljeg congratulated the utility company Vik and the mayor for speeding up activities on the implementation of the EU project. “With the implementation of the project in Rijeka, about 94% of the population will be connected to the modern public water supply and drainage system, ranking Rijeka in the second position, right after Istria, which is an exceptionally good result,” said Secretary Šiljeg.

Scope of works on the construction of transport collectors and optimisation of the existing drainage system Rijeka Istok

Agreement signed for the most demanding Lot of works

The Lot of works for which the contract has been signed with the contractor today includes the construction of transport collectors and the optimisation of the existing drainage system. The scope of works on the construction of transport collectors envisages the construction of 2.4 km of transport collectors, 3 underground sewage pumping stations with associated 0.8 km of pressure pipelines, which will carry sanitary waste water from the eastern parts of the agglomeration to the waste water treatment plant in the zone of Delta. In addition to the construction of the drainage system, the reconstruction of 2.1 km of public water supply will be carried out.

EU funds to increase the quality of drainage and water supply

The project “Improvement in water and utility infrastructure in the territory of the Rijeka agglomeration” includes the construction and optimisation of the public drainage system along with the construction of a new wastewater treatment plant.

It is carried out with the aim of increasing connection to the public wastewater drainage system, optimising and improving the functioning of the existing public drainage system, and increasing the quality of water supply in the area of the works.

The project represents one of the largest investments in utility infrastructure in the Republic of Croatia, and the project promotor is the utility company Vodovod i kanalizacija.

Scope pf works – Component B

The total value of the project amounts to HRK 1.76 billion (without VAT), and it is co-financed by the European Union in the amount of HRK 1.25 billion (without VAT), which accounts for 71.33% of the costs. The funds of the European Union are provided under the Operational Program “Competitiveness and Cohesion” for the period 2014-2020.

The project envisages the construction of a wastewater treatment plant of a second stage of purification in Rijeka in the location Delta, the construction and reconstruction of about 217 kilometres of sewerage and 125 pumping stations, with simultaneous execution of works on approximately 100 kilometres of public water supply in two cities – Rijeka and Kastav and three municipalities – Viškovo, Čavle and Jelenje that form the territory of the Rijeka Agglomeration

Upon completion of the project “Improvement in water and utility infrastructure in the territory of the Rijeka agglomeration”, a larger number of households connected to the public wastewater drainage system will be enabled, optimisation and improved functioning of the existing public drainage system, as well as an increase in the quality of water supply. The current connection of the population of the Rijeka agglomeration to public sewerage will increase from 75% to around 92% by the end of the project. In addition to the extension and additional construction, the optimisation of the existing mixed public drainage system is also envisaged in order to prevent negative impacts on the sea and relieve the existing drainage system. Simultaneously with the works on the public drainage system, parts of the public water supply system will be replaced in areas where it is impossible to carry out works on the public sewage system without damaging the water supply pipelines. This will reduce losses in the water supply system by about 8% and increase the efficiency of the water supply system.”

Additional information about the project is available on the website of the project EUPAR – European project Rijeka Aglomeration.