Newsroom

ŠŤASTNÉ POTOKY, SLOVAKIA (September 21, 2025)—YourPort, a portfolio company of Sunk Capital, today announces that the construction of TATRA-1, a major international shipping port located in the Tatra mountains, Slovakia, has reached its 50% completion milestone.

This critical stage of construction concludes the levelling of 30 square miles of mountainous terrain, the development of an artificial lake and the integration of early port infrastructure with the local community.

Clint Topperman, YourPort’s Chief Executive Officer, said, “Are you recording this? Who are you? The press? No comment.” After his initial remarks, he followed up with, “TATRA-1 is a milestone in the infrastructure development of Slovakia, and a much needed boost to the economies of the three minor settlements in the area. All 768 residents are behind our plans.”

TATRA-1, International Shipping Port under construction

Barry Sunk, Sunk Capital’s Chief Executive Offier, said, “Our investments into YourPort continue to drain our resources in only the most positive of lights. We’re proud to be supporting such a crucial project, bringing jobs, oil and international imports to the local economy.”

A challenging geological situation

Initial consultations showed that construction of a major international shipping port in such a remote, mountainous area with thousands of square miles of virtually inhospitable terrain was not a sound commercial decision. YourPort has shown that not only was it possible to achieve, but that budget and time overruns only occured on 437 occasions—a record low for the business.

I’m so pleased to get my international shipping port. There’s more work to be done, for sure, but it will bring us jobs and goods from the village across the lake. There was previously a road, but this was demolished to make room for the lake.”

Ružena Kováčová, Resident of Šťastné Potoky

Harold Gant, YourPorts’s Director of Construction, said, “It wasn’t easy, but we were ultimately able to flatten enough of the mountain range to build the artificial lake basin two miles in length. Residents will now be able to import goods from as far away as across the lake.”

Harold Gant of YourPort explaining construction challenges

Considerate construction for the local environment

Since the TATRA-1 project broke ground last year, YourPort has been a committed advocate for the local environment. One such case involved YourPort researchers discovering that bears do not thrive when their habitat is flooded with millions of gallons of oil and industrial chemicals. This scientific insight led to Project Paw, an environmental initiative led by YourPort that saw the local bear population rounded up and relocated to an undisclosed site.

Project Paw, a YourPort initiative to safetly relocate bears to a new, undisclosed site.

National infrastructure to put the hamlet of Šťastné Potoky on the map

The 34 villagers of Šťastné Potoky have long been forgotten by the rest of the world. It was only in 2014 that they were connected to the national power grid, and running water didn’t come until 2023. For a village with an average age of 72, they will now be able to boast of a major international shipping port.

In order to achieve this milestone, YourPort bypassed consent for a few targeted demolitions. After cleanup, and the forced evacuation of 11 people, the groundwork began on the reinforced concrete quay.

Šťastné Potoky underwent minor structural rearrangement

The first ships arrive

One of the first vessels to arrive in the newly created lake was the Undoubtable, a 180,000 ton ship registered to Sunk Capital carrying 21,000 containers of second-hand air conditioning units.

Due to the isolated location of TATRA-1, the Undoubtable was airlifted in from the Netherlands in a vast and complex operation that took over a year of planning and preparation.

Selma Ardley, First Officer aboard the Undoubtable, said, “This is an unprecedented manoeuvre in both aviation and maritime spheres. While the cost to relocate the vessel was estimated at twice the cost of the TATRA-1 port itself, Sunk Capital are nevertheless committed the fully funding this innovative project. Now the people of Šťastné Potoky will have enough air conditioners to last a lifetime.”

A Sunk Capital analyst calculated that each villager would receive approximately 45,134 air conditioners.

Several villagers have pointed out that the mean annual temperature of the region is approximately 5.5°C (42°F), however on the rare occasion that the temperature rises above 10°C, those air conditioners will be invaluable.

The Undoubtable is airlifted into TATRA-1 from the Netherlands.

A minor inconvenience, quickly resolved

YourPort are renowned for their excellence in construction planning and regulatory compliance. It came as a great shock, and clearly of third-party cause, when the initial completed phase of the artificial lake was built to a depth of ten feet instead of the 100 feet required for an operational port.

As a result, one of the container ships, the Bastille (an unregistered ship with a dubious safety record) ran aground immediately after it was airlifted in.

The Sunk Capital press team will be on hand throughout this project to bring you the latest news and updates from the ground. 

The Bastille container ship runs aground in ten feet of water