Skopje, 30 October 2021 (MIA) – Three new luxurious ski resorts are set to be built in North Macedonia, in line with global standards, on Jablanica, Bushova Mountain and Karadzhica, the acting director of the Agency for Foreign Investment and Export Promotion Dejan Pavlevski told a joint press conference on Saturday with Italian consultant Daniele Costantini. The project, Pavlevski stressed, aims to stimulate development of domestic tourism and economy. The new resorts will be open year-round. “Preliminary cost projections stand at EUR 700-800 million for construction of three new tourism villages and a total of 16 luxurious four and five-star hotels, restaurants and some 130 mountain houses with a total of over 5,000 beds,” Pavlevski said, noting that environmental protection is one of the top priorities of the project. He added that the project also entails construction of cable cars, ski lifts and over 180 km of Alpine pistes, as well as bike and adventure tracks. Pavlevski also expressed assurance that suitable investors will be found. He also said that the project could be completed within two years of its launch, but it all depends on investors. Moreover, Pavlevski underlined that the three locations have excellent natural predispositions and appropriate infrastructure. The project, he added, will promote North Macedonia as a top skiing destination with competitive prices. “Dominant eastern exposure, lakes, high altitude and snow over the course of 140 days in the year, as well as easy accessibility and proximity of two international airports are a great advantage and hard to find as a whole in most tourism spots,” said the acting director. He announced that the Agency will actively work on promoting these projects with the aim of its speedy realization. In the next few months, they’ll be presented at the Expo 2020 Dubai, as well as to potential investors. Italian consultant Daniele Costantini said that the ski resorts will be built using local trees, minimum electricity and recycled natural waste. He added that total investment for the Jablanica location stands at EUR 320 million for construction of 85 km-long ski trail, ski lifts, snow production reservoirs and ten hotels. The other two projects will cost EUR 235 million and EUR 270 million, respectively. “These locations were chosen due to their proximity to airports, which will attract tourists from China and the Near East,” he stressed.