Smederevo agrees to settlement with Comico Oil - Refinery construction begins in spring

Councilors of the Smederevo City Assembly have accepted a U.S.-Dutch consortium Comico Oil offer for an out-of-court settlement regarding the land lease for a refinery construction in that city on the Danube, 60 km eastern of Belgrade, Tanjug has learned at the city hall.

The councilors consented to the city attorney signing the settlement with Comico Oil with a total of 54 votes in favor and seven against the decision.

Comico Oil has already expressed its willingness to accept the request of the Smederevo city administration and pay an about RSD 60 million default interest for all days of delay. According to Comico Oil Deputy Director Radomir Radivojevic, the company is ready to pay the additional interest amount, along with the RSD 652 million for the lease of the construction land. Comico Oil agreed to pay the money by January 31.

Radosavljevic said earlier that Comico Oil had requested from the City of Smederevo a written statement that would guarantee to the company it could take a lease on additional 3.6 hectares of land needed to build the refinery, at a price calculated by Serbia`s Tax Administration on the date of the lease-purchase agreement.

In July 2012, The Smederevo city administration filed a lawsuit against Comico Oil over its failure to meet a payment deadline on the lease for the land plot where the company plans to build an oil refinery.

- This decision is a victory of reason of both City of Smederevo and Comico Oil. Smederevo will obtain RSD 720 million for its budget, whereas Comico gets an opportunity to show its seriousness and start implementing the project. Construction works should start this spring - said Radomir Radivojevic.