Albania Reschedules Debt with Italian Companies

TIRANA, Nov. 7 – Albania rescheduled payments on it debt with two Italian companies, from loans taken out during the first post-communist years, the Finance Ministry said Tuesday. The Finance Ministry signed Tuesday rescheduling 3.4 million (US$4.3 million) of debt to two Italian companies, according to a statement. The deal was signed between Finance Minister Ridvan Bode and Paolo Boni of Inalca Spa and Alberto Ghelti Zoboli of Almed Srl. The principal of 105.850 euro to Almed would be paid Dec. 15 this year, while that of Inalca of $3.279 million was aprtly paid in June and the next amount in December as well. The ministry said that the Italian companies had pardoned the debt interest. Albanian authorities considered the rescheduling a “guarantee for Italian investment in our country.” Neighboring Italy has been one of the main donors to post-communist Albania, one of Europe’s poorest nations.