TIRANA, Jan. 7 – The critical situation in the country’s hydropower plants due to prolonged lack of rainfall during the past few months forced the Albanian government to make a second review to the 2015 budget by awarding a 1 billion lek (Euro 7.1 million) fund on energy imports late last December. The fund was awarded as loan transfer to state-run power corporation, increasing state-lending to the energy sector to 2 billion lek (14.3 mln).
The decision made on Dec. 28 through a normative act which has the force of law for temporary measures, came few days after the 2015 budget was revised downward for a second time in mid-December following underperforming revenue even after a previous mid-year budget cut and a nationwide campaign against informality.
Lack of adequate rainfall during the past few months has forced the country’s state-run power utility, KESH, to reduce hydro-dependent domestic electricity generation and increase imports at a time when consumption is at its peak levels.
Power utility KESH has announced it has purchased electricity, worth 5.1 million euros at an average of 60 Euro/MWh for the first two weeks of this year.
Recent heavy rainfall during is expected to considerably improve the situation in Albania’s wholly hydro-dependant domestic electricity generation. Power utility KESH announced on Wednesday it has reduced planned electricity imports by 75 percent, postponing the contracted purchases for later, considering the heavy rainfall.
The delay of imports will not have extra costs for the Corporation” KESH said, adding that it is still keeping that the Fierza HPP out of work to increase the water reserve.
Water flows at the Fierza hydropower plant had dropped to a ten-year low of 60 m3.s but increased to 250m3/s following heavy rains this week, forcing the country’s biggest HPP to suspend production.
Water levels at the Fierza HPP were reported to have dropped to 276 meters last week, considerably below its peak level of 295 meters and only 10 meters below its stoppage point. The situation in the two other smaller state-run Koman and Vau i Dejes HPPs was similar.
A nationwide campaign to curb massive electricity thefts and collect accumulated unpaid bills since late 2014 has lifted the Albanian electricity sector out of financial collapse after a failed privatization of the power distribution operator by Czech Republic CEZ. The company is now back under state administration and has turned profitable due to collecting huge amounts of accumulated unpaid bills, a situation which continues and has also affected domestic consumption.
