Owner of company which sued Bosnia for €57 million says he won't back down

Forbes Slovenia contacted Viaduct Portoroz co-owner Boris Goljevscek, who detailed how his company initially secured the project despite lacking key references, their partnerships, and the next steps. He emphasised that Viaduct will not stop its efforts to recover the owed funds and is preparing additional measures beyond selling Bosnia’s assets.

Goljevscek stated that Viaduct, via their subsidiary, had offered a negotiated termination of the concession agreement, which Republika Srpska’s government rejected.

“HES Vrbas filed a compensation claim against the Republika Srpska government in October 2015. After the government rejected it, Viaduct, as the majority owner of HES Vrbas, initiated arbitration proceedings against Bosnia and Herzegovina in 2016 at ICSID in Washington, based on an investment protection agreement signed between Slovenia and Bosnia in 2002,” Goljevscek told Forbes Slovenia. Viaduct subsequently terminated its contract.

The ICSID ruling in April 2022 went against Bosnia and Herzegovina.

Viaduct’s business and debt collection efforts

Viaduct, an engineering and construction firm, is listed in Slovenia’s AJPES database under engineering and technical consulting. Goljevscek owns 85% of the company, while Vladimir Zevnik holds the remaining 15%.

Established in 1992, the company has generated little revenue since 2010, except for €2,400 in 2021. The last recorded significant earnings were in 2004 when the concession agreement was signed, totalling €1.8 million, followed by over €900,000 in the subsequent two years.

Before securing the hydroelectric project on the Vrbas River, Viaduct specialised in low-rise construction, including residential projects. Goljevscek explained that after entering the Vrbas project, the company shifted its focus entirely, transferring its previous activities to other firms that were later sold or shut down.

Goljevscek stated that Viaduct is considering further measures to collect the debt, including freezing BHANSA assets, seizing three Central Bank buildings, and blocking the bank’s accounts in Luxembourg.

“There is no other way to recover the debt. We will not stop. We will get the money one way or another. Some may see it as harsh, but ultimately, it is the people who will suffer, not the politicians,” Goljevscek told Forbes Slovenia.

While he declined to specify future moves, he confirmed that Bosnia’s assets—both domestic and abroad—would be targeted.

When asked how Viaduct would use the recovered funds, Goljevscek said a portion would go toward repaying litigation financing from the American fund Vannin Capital, covering legal fees in Republika Srpska, England, and the US, and repaying loans from EnBW Energie and other creditors listed in ICSID proceedings.