TIRANA, Nov. 24, 2022 – Two Albanian non-governmental environmental organizations, PPNEA and AOS, supported by the international NGO EuroNatur as well as members international scientific community, have submitted a lawsuit in the Administrative Court against several Albanian governmental institutions responsible for the administrative process for the construction of Vlora International Airport.
“The non-governmental organizations will submit evidence and facts on the violation of several laws, such as the law on protected areas, the law on the implementation of the Environmental Impact Assessment, the law on territorial planning, the procedures related to the concession contract, as well as violations of the relevant regulations,” the organizations said in a statement.
In their claim, they note authorities used illegal processes and lack of transparency to get the project started.
“This illegal construction takes place in one of the most important wetlands with high biodiversity in the country, as well as along the Adriatic corridor, one of the most important routes for bird migration,” the organizations noted. “Albanian institutions are violating the laws of the country and international conventions, bypassing the procedures and rejecting the remarks of international institutions.”
The Albanian government says the project to build Albania’s third international airport does not affect the protected area of Narta and is essential for the development of tourism and the whole region.
Officials say the land used to be an old airport and the project will respect environmental rules.
The construction of the Vlora airport started a year ago and is being carried out by a consortium of companies, where 50 percent of the shares are owned by Mabetex of Kosovo entrepreneur Behgjet Pacolli, in partnership with the Turkish company, Yda Group, which has 48 percent of shares.
The Vlora airport will cover an area of 297 hectares and is expected to be completed at the end of 2024 with an estimated investment value of around 104 million euros.
Prime Minister Edi Rama said a few days ago during a meeting with tourist operators in Vlora that “the works for the airport are progressing very well and the first flight will be at the end of 2024. We hope there will be no surprises.”
