The company says that the loan is vital for its investment plans and “that it cannot and will not be able to invest in the Albanian distribution system without getting the loan from the international banks.”
TIRANA, June 6 – Albania’s electricity distribution operator, owned by the Czech Republic’s CEZ, says it has applied for a 100 million Euro loan, which will be used for investments to minimize losses from the country’s outdated distribution network. In a statement, CEZ Shperndarje (former OSSH) says it is intensively negotiating with the European Bank for Development and the Reconstruction (EBRD) and the International Finance Cooperation (IFC) to receive the loan– which is one third the amount of the Eurobond issued by Albania in October 2010. Albania’s first-ever Eurobond at 300 million Euros was issued with a maturity of up to five years at an interest rate of 7.5 percent. “The loan will be used to invest in the outdated electricity distribution network which has a negative impact on the level of technical and non-technical losses, which remain among the highest in Europe,” said CEZ which has been managing the former state-owned distribution system for more than two years. The repair of the dilapidated parts of the grid would also lower technical and non-technical power losses, which have a key impact on electricity prices. The company says that the loan is vital for its investment plans and “that it cannot and will not be able to invest in the Albanian distribution system without getting the loan from the international banks.” CEZ Shperndarje (Distribution) says investments in Albania’s distribution network in 2010 grew to 4.5 billion lek (USD 45 million), up from 3.9 billion lek in 2009. The 2011 investments are estimated at 4.9 billion lek. CEZ says electricity losses in 2010 dropped to 30.4 percent, down from 33.92 percent in 2008 and 2009. Its bill collection rate also slightly improved to 78 percent compared to 76 percent in 2009. CEZ also denied that it is interested in buying any of the four small and medium sized hydropower plants which the government has put up for sale. In March 2009, CEZ signed a contract with the Albanian government after buying 76 percent of OSSH’s state-owned shares for 102 million Euros. Last December, Albania’s Energy Regulatory Agency (ERE) decided to keep electricity prices for 2011 unchanged, turning down requests by the three local operators who had wanted to increase power prices by an average of 12 percent. Albanian household and business consumers will sign new electricity contracts with CEZ Shperndarje, starting next September. The new draft contract obliges CEZ to provide 24/7 power supply and compensate household and business consumers in case of power failures. For more than one month, CEZ has been offering the e-bill service, which allows every client to check electric bills online and print their monthly invoice.
