No Vlora for AMBO

TIRANA, Sept. 27 – The oil pipeline known as AMBO (Albania, Macedonia, Bulgaria Oil) will not end in the Vlora area, following protests from residents there saying that would pollute the tourist environment. Prime minister’s economic adviser Selami Xhepa said that it was already decided that Vlora would not be any more as the ending point for the oil pipeline. It might be somewhere in the area from Seman to Porto Romano.
The governments and parliaments of Albania, Macedonia and Bulgaria where the pipeline cross, should in a short time pass the laws on its construction. “The three-side agreement approved from the government representatives from Albania, Macedonia and Bulgaria opens the way to AMBO to make the feasibility study, technical and financial project which are required to start constructing the pipeline, said Xhepa. If approved the construction would last three years. The project is being discussed in the last 12 years but the crisis in the region have delayed its start. The pipeline will cost some $1.3 billion starting from Burgas in Bulgaria, through Macedonia and then in Albania to a port city to be taken on ships away to western Europe. The trace in Albania is supposed to change from what was agreed in 2003 with Vlora at the end. It will cross at Qafe Thane, Prrenjas, Librazhd, Elbasan, Cerrik and then might change to Fier, or Porto Romano in Durres. The initial project had 143 kilometers in Albania.
AMBO, 913 kilometer long, is part of the Corridor 8 projects in infrastructure (roads) railways and telecommunication. It aims at transporting some 750,000 oil barrels per day taking it from areas around the Black Sea like Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan and Turkmenistan. It will bring considerable profit to Albania, some $50 million annually, because of being used as a transit place but also will employee many people and get cheaper oil.
Big American companies are involved in the investment like KBR part of the Hullyburton group that will also involve the Italian subcontractor Teknit.U.S. company Walsh will make the environmental feasibility study. It is expected that many financial institutions like Exim Bank, World Bank, Mitsubishi Bank and others will be involved in the project.