Rainfall improves hydro situation

TIRANA, April 16 – The improving hydro situation in Albania’s northern Drin cascade where the country’s biggest hydropower plants are situated could ease government’s burden on electricity imports. The improved situation due to heavy rains and unexpected snowfall in northern Albania during this week and expected precipitation in the next couple of weeks are considerably increasing water levels in the three hydropower plants of the northern Drin cascade and domestic electricity generation which relies only on hydropower.
The Albanian government had announced it is working to arrange the import of electricity worth up to 90 million euros due to the critical situation in hydropower plants caused by a very dry year.
Water levels at the biggest Fierza HPP stand at 276 metres, only 30 metres above the stoppage point with summer ahead.
The high level of grid losses, estimated at around 50 percent of the electricity fed into the grid, due to the dilapidated distribution network and massive power thefts, risks negatively affecting the state budget due to government funding to carry out imports.
The Albanian government has recently approved around 82 million Euros in loan guarantees for KESH power corporation for electricity purchases due to the drought period until early January 2014.
Albania’s deputy Prime Minister Niko Peleshi, who heads a nationwide task force targeting to reduce grid losses and thefts, said Albania is estimated to have lost around 200 million dollars in 2013 from power losses which rose to 43 percent. The losses which are a result of massive power thefts and dilapidated distribution system are equal to 70 percent of electricity generation from the Drin cascade in northern Albania, where the biggest hydropower plants are situated.