Module 9 “Electricity from the consumer’s perspective”, School for Consumer Protection and European Integration, December 16-17 2022.

Module IX “Electricity from the consumer’s perspective (Chapters 28 and 15)” of the School for Consumer Protection and European Integration was held on December 16-17 2022.

The first lecturer of this module was Mr. Gjergji Simaku, Deputy Minister at the Ministry of Infrastructure and Energy. Mr. Simaku discussed with the participants about fulfilling Albania’s obligations for Chapter 15- Energy of the EU Acquis. To achieve the EU’s energy and climate objectives for 2030, EU countries must create a 10-year national integrated energy plan (NECP) for the period from 2021 to 2030 and Albania was the first contracting party to approve its NECP. Additionally, our country has made progress in environment protection, but it needs to pay more attention to environmental assessments of hydropower projects. Old cars should be replaced with electric ones and public transportation should also be turned into “green transport”. A recommendation that brings savings in the energy bill and care for the environment is the use of solar panels as Albania’s climate is also favorable for their use.

The second session was conducted by Mr. Romir Pajenga, Director of Dicretory of Tariffs and Prices at the Energy Regulatory Entity. Mr. Pajenga began with a presentation on the Regulatory Entity and why there is a need for a regulatory authority. The Regulatory Entity is a state authority responsible for exercising independent authority for regulating public services with commercial and non-commercial nature, according to the public service interest. Mr. Pajenga explained the “PRICE CAP” model, which allows the calculation of regulated tariffs and prices for electricity. He provided an overview of the emergency situation for electricity supply in our country. He brought to the attention of the participants some of the recommendations of the European Commission within the framework of the country’s integration process and discussed with them the challenges of the future of the energy sector.

The third session was held by Mr. Lorenc Gordani, Lecturer at “Tirana Business” University. He informed the participants about the opening of the market and the latest developments of the Albanian Power Exchange (ALPEX) and the development of the country’s potential in photovoltaic renewable investments. The Albanian Power Exchange – ALPEX is a joint venture owned by the Transmission System Operators of Albania (OST) and Kosovo (OSTT).

The next session was conducted by Mr. Sidrit Tako, Director of AlbGaz sh.a, and he informed the participants over the development of gas strategies in Albania. Albgaz sh.a functions as a combined operator by carrying out the activities of the Natural Gas Transmission System Operator and the Natural Gas Distribution System Operator in the Republic of Albania. Mr. Tako discussed the purpose of Law 102/2015 “On the natural gas sector”, which aims to guarantee sustainable and secure natural gas supply to customers, by creating a competitive and integrated market with regional and European markets, for high-quality services at reasonable costs, while respecting environmental protection requirements. Special attention during the session was given to the Gas Master Plan and priority projects, where some of them are: GNL Terminal in Vlora, Vlora-Fier Gas Pipeline (Interconnection with TAP), Small-Scale LNG Infrastructure (SS LNG), Adriatic-Ionian Gas Pipeline (IAP).

The fifth and final session was delivered by Mr. Gjergj Erebara from the Balkan Investigative Reporting Network (BIRN). He emphasized the role of the media in investigating electricity production in Albania. He also shared some BIRN articles that identified problematic cases that have a negative impact on consumers.