TIRANA, Feb. 13 – Albania has signed an agreement with German company Deutsche Telekom to install electricity smart meters in a pilot project aiming at renovating an ailing energy system, Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama said.
The Bonn-based company will install 10,000 smart meters in some areas in capital Tirana, Rama said, adding all the cost would be made from the Germans, who were starting a pilot project that could spread in other countries in the region later.
“Our objective is that in this vision of transformation in the next five years, we will give every Albanian the opportunity to have a very accurate service and not pay even a cent more, which means the extraordinary growth of efficiency in the utilization of this source, great reduction of losses, and a second liberation of Albania,” said Rama.
Power consumers will pay in advance for the amount of power they want to use, giving an end to the non-payment of an already dysfunctional state-run power sector.
The government, assisted with a $150 million World Bank loan, is striving to persuade Albanians to settle old power debts and update an aged distribution network that have resulted so far with the loss of $550 million.
In January, Albanian Energy Distribution Network Operator (OSHEE) said it would invest over 50 million U.S. dollars this year to improve its distribution network.
Authorities have been for months cutting illegal power consumers and urging delayed paying consumers to do it fast until end of February or pay it in installments of no less than 2,500 leks per month (to be added to the normal monthly consume).
