Kosovo Close to Finishing Power Cable to Albania

Kosovo's Electricity Transmission and Market Operator, KOSTT, will conclude its work on the 400 kilovolt electricity transmission line with Albania in a matter of days, KOSTT told BIRN.

While Kosovo is expected to conclude its part of the work within 2015, the deadline for Albania is scheduled for spring 2016.

The entire length of the line in the two countries will be 251.5 km.

KOSTT will sign a number of agreements with Albania to regulate electricity exchange between the countries.

Zana Bajrami-Rama, communications manager for KOSTT, told BIRN that the "agreements will be signed by mid-December", immediately after Kosovo announces the completion of its part of the project.

Work on the interconnection line between Kosovo and Albania started in 2014, financed in both countries by the German Development Bank.

The project aims to facilitate power exchange between the two countries, allowing for greater independence from expensive regional imports and setting the grounds for a common "Albanian" energy market.

Naim Bejtullahu, director of KOSTT in Kosovo, told BIRN that dedicated mechanisms should be in place for the joint system to produce the expected results.

"The feasibility study foresees both power systems working under a mutual regime. This allows for the establishment of a wholesale electricity market, which can operate according to mutual rules and standards," Bejtullahu said.

This mechanism is expected to be functional in a period of two to three years.

Gjergji Simaku, head of Energy Efficiency Policy at the Albanian Ministry of Energy, told BIRN that the interconnection line with Kosovo will liberate both countries from the control of regional electricity companies and allows for the creation of a...