The energy sector problems have put in motion the World Bank, which
acted as the Albanian government’s adviser for the reforms in this
sector, including the privatization of the power distribution process.
The World Bank Director, Jane Armitage, declared for Top Channel that she feels disappointed by the privatization process.
“The process was very disappointing, especially for the results that we were expecting in the improvement of the service for the citizens, the guarantee to supply energy with an affordable price and good quality, and also to cut losses. There are great losses. People don’t get billed and even when they get billed, they don’t pay and nothing is done about this. We were expecting more investments and positive results. The situation is very delicate now. There are negotiations between the government and the private company, and we encourage a solution”.
The negotiations between the involved parties are reviewing a scenario, among which is a possible termination of the privatization agreement.
“I don’t want to comment about this now, but certainly, it is an option under discussion. It is still early to talk about this, but I want to underline that we have a very serious situation and all options must be reviewed for seeing the pros and cons of every possible solution”, Armitage declared.
The government and the World Bank have started working to forerun any possible scenario.
“The government asked an urgent project from us and we are already working on it, so that we can help Albania secure the energy imports for the next months. We will also see some of the main problems in this sector and try to resolve them. It is very disappointing and we want to work closely with the government and see if we can improve things”, the World Bank Director declared.
Top Channel
