A 40,000-square-metre farming area is planned southeast of Seline. Government documents describe an intended concession award for 20 years. The frequently quoted multimillion-euro sum is neither a purchase price for the sea nor an annual fee.
Four hectares in the municipality of Starigrad
On 14 October, the Croatian government adopted the notice of an intention to award a concession for shellfish farming. The transport ministry confirms the step in its statement of the same day. The area lies southeast of Seline, off Provalija in the municipality of Starigrad, Zadar County. This is not Stari Grad on Hvar.
The meeting document specifies 40,000 square metres, or four hectares, and annual production of no more than 100 tonnes. It is based on a location permit dated 8 October 2025. Because the area lies more than 300 metres offshore, the explanatory memorandum classifies it as a project of national importance; responsibility for the concession therefore rests with the government.
The multimillion-euro figure is the estimated concession value
The document gives an estimated concession value of 3,944,216.23 euros. This must not be equated with an annual payment to the state or a purchase price. The plan is for commercial use over 20 years from the signing of the concession agreement, not the sale of the sea area.
The fee is described separately. Starting rates are 0.10 euros per square metre annually plus 0.40 percent of revenue generated in the concession area. For 40,000 square metres, the initial minimum fixed component amounts to 4,000 euros a year, plus the variable component. The proposal provides for subsequent stepped increases; the actual bid may exceed the starting rates.
A procedure whose outcome remains open
The published meeting document is an intention to award, not an announcement of a winner. It provides for a bidding period of 30 days from publication in Croatia’s electronic procurement bulletin. Without the publication date there, no reliable specific deadline can be calculated.
The fixed fee, variable fee and investment are to carry weights of 30, 30 and 40 percent respectively in the assessment. VELE MARE is named because the company obtained the location permit and the selected bidder is to reimburse its stated costs. Being named does not prove that VELE MARE is already receiving the concession. The document explicitly also allows all bids to be rejected.
What visitors cannot yet infer
This proposal does not confirm an opening date, a final operator or the actual facility installed on site. Nor does it mean that a beach has now been closed across the board or a new visitor attraction opened. The precise area is defined by coordinates in the procurement documents; this article’s illustration is not a substitute for a site plan.
The procedure is nevertheless of interest to people using the Velebit Channel or following coastal development: it shows how a particular sea area is being earmarked for long-term commercial use. The next reliable step would be the published tender and, later, the award decision—not simply repeating a large euro figure.
Evidence
Sources & date
Sources support the facts. Planning notes and recommendations are Golden Beach editorial assessments.
- 214th session of the Croatian government, agenda item 7Vlada Republike Hrvatske · 14 October 2026Official classification as a draft notice of an intention to award
- Draft notice of an intention to award a concession – Seline / ProvalijaMinistry of the Sea, Transport and Infrastructure / Vlada RH · Meeting document of 14 October 2026Area, location permit, maximum output, term, fees, value, selection procedure and deadline still pending; draft, not an award
- Croatian government – notice of intention to award a concession for shellfish farming adoptedMinistry of the Sea, Transport and Infrastructure · 14 October 2026Confirmation of the new decision of 14 October; intention to award, still no award or start of operations
