Albania Secures Safety of Hydro-Plants, the Country’s Main Energy Source

Albania’s hydro plants provide nearly 80% of the country’s power, so it is imperative to ensure their upkeep and safety.

That’s the aim of Albania’s Dam Safety Project, supported with World Bank funds.

Project official, Fatos Bundo, explains that renovation measures now underway at three of the country’s largest hydro-plants in the Drini river cascade will prevent any serious problems in the future.

“Had we not implemented this project, the daily degradation would have eventually made it necessary to undertake extreme action, as opposed to what we are doing now,” he says from the base of Komani, Albania’s most powerful hydro-plant located in the country’s north.

Through the Safety Project, Komani and two other plants are being refurbished with electro-mechanical equipment, including new IT systems for control protection and monitoring.

“With the modernization of the turbine system, we can now control the amount of electricity generated here, depending on the needs of the population,” says Bundo.

He adds that the hydro-plants’ external services - also known as “faces” - have been renewed as well, in order to prevent any leaking.

“The danger after the rehab of the power plant is zero. Of course, we will have to continue maintaining it, but since these renovations, it is 100 percent sure that there is no danger to the public,” Bundo says.

That’s good news for Zef Hajdaraj, a resident and hotel owner in the village located at the base the Komani Hydro-plant, which he says has provided energy - as well local jobs - for many years.

“Everyone will benefit by investing in the safety of the hydro plant. The young people who find work there, as well as the entire population,” says Hajdaraj, 66.

 “They know now it is secure,” he says.