During Euronews Albania’s “Me Pak Fjale” show directed by Neritan Sejamini, the topic discussed was the construction of two HEC (hydro-electric-power) dams in the banks of the Vjosa river, one of the last wild free-flowing rivers in Europe, inhabited by 140 protected species and 40 internationally declared endangered species.
The project consists of around 8 dams along the main Vjosa river and 23 smaller hydro-electric power plants built on its tributaries. However, 2 HECs are the main concern and risk for Vjosa, the ones in Poçemi and Kalivaçi, which contain big dams and require the construction of large reservoirs that create flooding and indefinitely change the flow of Vjosa, especially its middle and lower streams.
For the moment, work on these two HECs has been put off as in 2020, the Ministry of Environment didn’t grant the environmental license to the concessionary of the HEC project, even though they had previously received the authorization, back in 2017.
The case is currently being reviewed in the Court of Appeal as in the First Instance Court the case was won by the government.
The construction of these HECs would not only damage the natural state of Vjosa but it would also cause grave damage to the ecosystem and wildlife; it will change the economic activity of the area and on top of everything, it would destroy the touristic potential of the region.
The Kalivaçi dam is projected to be 47 m tall and it is estimated to swamp 1700 hectares of land or around 17 square kilometers.
The Poçemi (HEC) would have a 30 m tall dam that would also swamp about 2000 hectares or 20 square kilometers.
The Institute for Sustainable Development in Canada has conducted a study in 2020 for the Vjosa river, calculating the average costs in relation to the financial profit that would be generated from the construction of these two HECs.
According to their analysis, the Poçemi (HEC) will result in €233 million euros more cost than profit, while the Kalivaçi (HEC) will mount a €321 million euros cost of investment on top of the projected turnover.
The damage in agriculture alone from both these (HEC)s is estimated to be around €174 million euros.
