Year-end oil sales of €45 mln save 2016 budget from new cut

TIRANA, Jan. 4 – The Albanian government collected about €45 million from the sale of some 167,000 metric tons of crude oil last December in a much-needed operation as oil prices slightly picked up to $55 a barrel to avoid a new year-end budget cut as government revenue continued underperforming even after a mid-year downward review. The sale operation by state-run Albpetrol oil company came on Dec. 17 after two previous auctions had failed to attract interest. Porto Romano Oil, an Albanian-owned company, part of Bolv-Oil, one of the country’s biggest oil operators, purchased the whole amount as a sole…