During the past few years, government has awarded 110 concession contracts to Albanian and foreign investors to build 300 small, medium-sized and big hydropower plants
TIRANA, Nov. 7 – The Albanian government is preparing documentation to hold three international tenders to build more hydropower plants on the Vjosa, Osum and Drini i Zi (Black Drin) rivers. This is announced by Economy and Energy Minister Nasip Naco who during a recent forum organized by the EBRD, said the major projects will be partly funded by government through public-private partnership schemes.
Government plans to hold tenders on the construction of several hydropower plants on Vjosa and Osum rivers in southern Albania, with a capacity of 350 MW and 100 MW respectively and in the Black Drin flowing into northeastern Albania with a capacity of 350 MW.
Government says that the projects are aimed at increasing Albania’s hydroelectricity capacities, currently at a utilization rate of only 35 percent.
During the past few years, government has awarded 110 concession contracts to Albanian and foreign investors to build 300 small, medium-sized and big hydropower plants. Their total capacity is estimated at 1300 MW with investments worth 3 billion Euros.
The Energy Ministry says it has identified 15 flagrant cases of concession contracts remaining only projects on letter and warned to revoke their licenses.
The Ashta project on the Drin River, a joint venture between Austria’s Verbund and EVN, is the major hydropower plant being built in Albania during the past 20 years. The 160 million Euro project with a capacity of 50 MW will be made operational by mid-2012.
Several hydropower plant projects, with a total installed capacity of 319 MW, contracted by EVN and Norway’s Statkraf are being implemented.
Albania has also granted licenses for the construction of 12 wind energy parks with a capacity of 1,600 MW.
Meanwhile, four small and medium-sized hydropower plants, currently under state ownership and managed by the Albanian Power Corporation KESH, have been included on the privatization list of 1,280 public assets. The hydropower plants (HPP), which the government intends to sell, include the Ulez and Shkopet HPPs on the River Mat, in northern Albania, and two small HPPs on the Bistrica River, in southern Albania. The four HPPs are reported to have an installed power of 77 Megawatts, accounting for 5.3 percent of hydro electricity produced by KESH.
Power generated from private small and medium-sized hydropower plants operated under concession contracts registered a slight 9.9 percent increase during the first half of this year, according to INSTAT data.
Small and medium-sized hydropower plants (HPPs) built under concession agreements accounted for 2 percent of domestically produced electricity in 2010. The Energy Regulatory Entity (ERE) said in its 2010 report that power produced by HPPs of up to 15 MW rose to 159 million kWh, registering a 78 percent increase compared to the end of 2009. Data show some 51 HPPs owned by 19 private companies operate in Albania. Five of them were made operational last year.
Since 2008, the business community’s interest to build small and medium sized HPPs has been on the rise following a government decision which authorizes state-owned power production company, KESH, to buy energy from each HPP build under concession contract under a set stimulating price approved by ERE.
Revenues of companies operating HPPs also rose to 1.1 billion lek (11 million dollars) compared to 580 million lek in 2009.
