Мedvedja- Although it belongs to the group of the least developed municipalities in the country, residents of Medvedja like to boast about Medvedja’s vast natural wealth. Vast oak and beech forests, a huge mineral wealth and numerous sources of mineral water await investors. Given that over 60% of the area that belongs to the municipality of Medvedja is under forests, the wood industry is quite developed, while a pellet-manufacturing plant will soon begin operating. 

"Our wood industry is at a high level od development. We have several companies that manufacture wood products, whereas a lot of those products are exported. We embarked on a pellet plant project two years ago. The machines were purchased with the money donated by the municipality and the Government of Slovenia. We are now at the stage of registration and it will be a limited liability company where the municipality will have 100% ownership, while we expect that a strategic partner will later recapitalize our company, "said Dejan Simic, the head of the Office for Local Economic Development of the municipality of Medvedja.  

The plant will be located in the former "Termovent" factory, where 30 workers will be employed.  

The municipality of Medvedja is well-known for its mineral resources. The lead and zinc mine "Lece" was privatized in April 2008, when the “Farmakom MB" company from Sabac purchased it for almost10 million EUR. Following the preparations, the production in the mine was re-launched in 2010.  A research carried out by a Canadian company, which is registered in Serbia as "Danube minerals ", shows that there are rich deposits of gold and copper in the area. The company stated it had found 800, 000 tons of copper and 78 tons of gold in the village of Tulare.  

"Research is still being done, but we expect that a mine will be opened on the site," said Mr. Simic.  

As for the third wealth of the municipality – mineral water, Sijarinska Spa, which is situated on the banks of the Banjska River, has 18 sources of mineral water, which are beneficial for the treatment of various diseases. Of particular interest is a geyser of hot water, which is unique in Europe, the water column of which is eight meters high. A complex of small pools was built in its vicinity, while an Olympic pool and courts for basketball, football and volleyball are nearby.

"We are planning investments in the spa.  The construction of the "Water Polo Hotel", which would serve for preparation of sportspersons and all interested tourists who want to visit the spa is also planned. So far, the preliminary design and feasibility study for the construction have been done. Also, the land for the hotel was provided and the location permit was obtained, so that we could quickly move to the implementation, "said Mr. Simic.

The municipality is seeking an investor that would invest 7 million EUR in the construction of the said tourist facility. The municipality of Medvedja presented its  investment potential at the "Investexpo" Fair in Novi Sad. 

Source: www.екapija.com