MONTENEGRO


political and economic future, not to mention how robust its property, title and planning laws were. The trouble is in any emerging market, for every gilded


Porto Montenegro there is an abomination of a development scarring the landscape. One positive by- product of the global credit crunch was that such sites were halted before they could ruin Montenegro’s natural beauty still further. The main money behind Porto Montenegro is Canadian


billionaire Peter Munk, chairman of Barrick Gold, the world’s largest gold mining company and yes he has a big yacht at the marina. “Yachts are getting bigger and bigger and people are


complaining they cannot find proper berths. That’s no problem in Tivat. It used to cater for warships,” said Munk. Add Russian oligarch Oleg Deripaska and a couple of


Rothschilds and that is quite an investor panel. “Wealth comes from big yachts which provide the


employment, the foreign currency and the purchasing power. We are not taking a dollar out. We are putting in an infrastructure; we are educating, attracting other investors. We are investing hundreds of millions of dollars and Montenegrins can work for us directly at an income level unknown under communism,” said Munk. Landlubbers need not apply. “Porto Montenegro will


establish a long-term sustainable industry that will transform Tivat into a global centre for nautical tourism,” said Oliver Corlette, managing director of Porto Montenegro. Lord Byron was more poetic about the Montenegro


coastline back in the 19th century. “The most beautiful encounter between land and sea.” Montenegro is east of Italy’s South East coast and bordered by Serbia, Albania, Croatia and Bosnia &


Herzegovina. The Porto Montenegro village is being designed and laid


out in Montenegrin vernacular, with tree-lined streets and market squares, as well as hidden piazzas and waterfront promenades. The bespoke apartments with have marble and stone-


tiled floors and custom-built kitchens. There are striking mountain and bay views from rooftop gardens and plunge pools. Prices range from 150,000 euro studio apartments to million plus luxury residences. Sustainability is at the core of the construction process,


effectively turning a polluting commercial yard into a living, breathing marina and residential community, using recycled materials and with seabed and land remediation. “The presence of Porto Montenegro as been beneficial


to our whole town, from investments in local infrastructure related projects, to a wide range of community-based scholarships and workshops,” said Dragan Kankaras, mayor of Tivat. ‘Yacht-friendly’ laws have been introduced by the


government to promote nautical tourism. Property transfer tax is three per cent and there is no capital gains tax on sale. The scale of 82-year-old businessman and philanthropist


Munk’s ambition to create not only his real estate legacy, but a benchmark for global luxury, sustainable development, is breathtaking. His eyes first opened to the stunning possibilities when flying over the hidden naval base by helicopter. “I’d never seen anything as beautiful in my life,” said


Munk, before setting about turning base metal into gold. www.portomontenegro.com


Homes Overseas .21


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