The second segment of the Skopje–Blace highway will cross a total of 304 privately owned properties, in addition to plots owned by the state. According to the Public Enterprise “State Roads,” 45 plots have yet to be expropriated. Property and legal matters are being handled by the Bureau for Legal Expertise, while some cases have also been referred to the courts.
Deputy Transport Minister Kaltrina Zekolli said the expropriation process was proceeding according to plan and that the aim was to complete work on this section of the highway by summer 2030.
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Compensation amounts vary according to land category. For category 3 and 4 agricultural land, the rate is 960 denars per square meter; for category 1 and 2 agricultural land, compensation is 1,200 denars per square meter; and construction land without a building permit is valued at 3,000 denars per square meter.
“As you know, for the Skopje–Blace project, on August 26, the Ministry of Transport issued the construction permit. The remaining responsibility lies with the Public Enterprise ‘State Roads,’ which is the investor. Work has started on site! The contractor and the supervisor had a 60-day period to obtain authorization to begin construction. This gave the workers who will carry out the project time to prepare, and the supervisor time to set up equipment at the work site and arrange offices from which to oversee the work, and so on,” Zekolli said.
The highway will have two travel lanes in each direction, each 3.5 meters wide, as well as an emergency lane 2.5 meters wide on each side. Its total width will be 27.5 meters.
The project includes the construction of five tunnels on both sides, eight bridges, 11 underpasses, four galleries and nine retaining walls along the sides. In total, it involves around 40 structures. The road is scheduled to be completed within four years.
Construction of the 10.5-kilometer segment has been awarded to the company “Granit,” which has signed a contract with the state. The project costs 222 million euros and also includes road maintenance for five years after its inauguration, which is expected to take place in summer 2030.
Funding for the second segment comes from a 167.6-million-euro loan from the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, a 30.82-million-euro grant from the European Union’s Western Balkans framework, and 23.58 million euros from the budget of the Public Enterprise “State Roads.”
“I am very optimistic and believe it will be completed, as we have said, even sooner. I think that when there is political will, seriousness and awareness of the importance of this project, it can be done. On the other hand, the total budget is secured, and we have good coordination with the contractor and the appointed supervisor. The Ministry of Transport also conducts ongoing oversight of the Public Enterprise ‘State Roads.’ I do not see anything that would hinder the progress of the work,” Zekolli said.
The project design alone cost 3.1 million euros, funded through grants for the design companies “Omega” JSC and “Hill International.”
Meanwhile, the first two-kilometer segment of the Skopje–Blace highway faced numerous delays during construction and remained a dead-end road for several years.
