The Biotechnology Laboratory – Biolab Tehnopolis was officially opened in IEC Tehnopolis today. This new infrastructure segment of IEC Tehnopolis is intended for all those who are in the support system of IPC Tehnopolis, young researchers, academic and business community in the field of agro-industry and agriculture and will significantly contribute to the development and implementation of new technologies, scientific research results and ultimately competitiveness of the sectors of agriculture and agro-industry, by encouraging the use of innovative technologies, processes and services, in accordance with the Smart Specialization Strategy of Montenegro 2019 – 2024 and the existing strategic framework in Montenegro.
At the beginning of the ceremony, the Executive Director of IPC Tehnopolis, Mr. Ratko Bataković gave a speech and emphasized that the opening of the Biotechnology Laboratory will complete a set of new support measures, which is called – smart and green growth. As he stated, in the last few months we have witnessed the importance of our production and that of the total number of ideas that require support for development, more than 50% of them have connection with agriculture or its complementary branch of economy, so our obligate is that into the set of support measures we give to the holders of business ideas, we provide the largest possible, high-quality, meaningful and timely – fast support.
He looked back to the opening of Tehnopolis and period since then, in which the employee number was constantly growing, obtained and realized a large number of projects, made national and international partner networks. The opening of the first of three laboratories Tehnopolis will significantly accelerate the development of numerous segments of local and national economy, agriculture, tourism, metal and wood industry.
“I will take this opportunity to call young people to contact us, take the responsibility and use everything that can be found under this roof, to ask themselves what they want and understand that everything depends on them, their will and desire. So all of us have to be fearless in every sense and stay in defense of achieved results and conquest new ones, which belong to us, because we live at the most beautiful place and have to make it the most pleasant to the work, life and development“, Mr. Batakovic said.
After the introductory speech by Mr. Batakovic, the President of the Municipality of Niksic, Mr. Veselin Grbovic, spoke to the audience and expressed satisfaction with another new opportunity provided to Niksic by opening this laboratory. “This is another proof that the partnership of state and local institutions gives great results in all areas and that Tehnopolis has become a respectable place for the development of new ideas and projects,” said Grbovic, adding that the local government is proud of the achieved results, so rejoices in the further development of Tehnopolis and thus in Niksic.
Ms. Silvie Maur, a representative of the World Bank, MIDAS 2 project leader, spoke to the audience via a video link, asserting that she was sorry that they were not able to attend the opening, but that she was pleased that despite the difficulties, caused by the COVID 19 pandemic in recent months, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, the MIDAS 2 project management team and all stakeholders in the project have not stopped their dedicated work on improving the capacity of the agricultural sector. “The construction of a laboratory in Tehnopolis, with equipment for food and soil analysis, enables Montenegro to make a step forward when it comes to offering knowledge and services to farmers that they need to ensure the quality of production and products. This is what Montenegrin producers need to improve the competitiveness of their products, meet quality standards, to access the European Union market, which is one of the goals of MIDAS 2. I look forward to the opportunity to visit the premises and see laboratories in operation shortly” said Mrs. Mauri.
At the end of the introductory speeches, the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Mr. Milutin Simovic, spoke to the audience and at the beginning of the speech praised the work and success of Tehnopolis, its employees and tenants who develop their ideas in Tehnopolis.
As he said, investing in modern laboratory capacities, such as the one in Tehnopolis, will also contribute to the strengthening of our scientific infrastructure, the infrastructure necessary for the scientific development, the infrastructure necessary for innovations needed in agriculture.
“Only by applying science and technology in agriculture we can achieve rapid and strong development breakthroughs in the long term. Our farmers and hosts need concrete actions, they need applied knowledge, they need good expert advice, not a theory that has no foundation and applied function “, said Mr. Simovic
Innovations in the field of agriculture should be a guarantor in the sustainability of projects and the state will support them through the recently established Innovation Support Fund.
“This development of Montenegrin agriculture can be achieved if we consider more radical reform programs and if we change the way of thinking“, the Deputy Prime Minister added. Montenegro will focus its future efforts on the development of agriculture on the application of science and technology, which will enable penetrative development, Simovic said.
“In the end, I will say that we have a lot of work and many challenges ahead in many areas, but I am sure that together we will find the best answers as before and celebrate new successes with dedicated and responsible work, both here in Niksic and a whole Montenegro“, he concluded.
After the speeches, Mr. Simovic and Mr. Grbovic cut the ribbon and officially opened the Biotechnology Laboratory. After it, a tour of the Bio Laboratory was organized, as well as the presentation of the analysis.
The laboratory is equipped with the support of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development and through the Second Project of Institutional Development and Strengthening of Agriculture in Montenegro – MIDAS 2. The total area of this laboratory worth, about 130.000 euros, is 75,14 m2 and is fully compliant with EU standards.
The biotechnology laboratory is equipped with a portable XRF instrument, RT-qPCR instrument, and associated laboratory equipment to be able to perform agrochemical analyses of soil, molecular diagnostics in food products. The q16 R-T PCR device, through the principle based on polymerase chain reaction method, enables extraction and amplification of DNA / RNA material of microorganisms from the sample, which is detected with high precision in real-time. On the other side, the detection and quantification of the elemental composition of the soil, primarily nutrients, and contaminants, is enabled by Bruker’s XRF instrument.
In the following period, the procurement of additional elements is expected, which will complete the current offer and possibilities of the laboratory.
Besides promoting the Biotechnology Laboratory, this was also an opportunity to further promote the support that IEC Tehnopolis provides to promote smart and green growth. Attendees had the opportunity to learn more about the FILA Laboratory for Fertilization and Innovation in agro-food, which was opened in December 2019, and which allows: improving the competitiveness of small and medium enterprises, strengthening cross-border cooperation and nets between research and enterprise, open innovative environment, knowledge transfer and cooperation between participants of the innovative ecosystem, educational activities to adopt innovations and modern technologies, applicable in the agricultural sector, as well as access to research results for companies, thus stimulating the creation of innovative solutions within the agro-industry at the international level, as well as further investment in innovation, supporting the start-up community. We remind that the FILA laboratory is equipped with modern devices, such as a drone, 3D printer, microcontrollers, and computers.
