New Law on Concessions and PPPs - Selection by a special commission, monitoring by the Contract Implementation Unit
The Law "On Concessions and Public-Private Partnerships" is expected to be amended by introducing new legal provisions. The draft law has been submitted to the Parliament, while according to the accompanying report it aims to create a clear, sustainable and competitive framework for the promotion of private investments through concessions and public-private partnerships (PPP).
According to the draft, the award of a concession contract or PPP will go through several mandatory stages. Initially, the project will be identified by public authorities and will be subject to a full feasibility study, where the costs, benefits, environmental impact and risk sharing are analyzed. This study must be approved by the Ministry of Finance, to ensure that it does not create a risk for the state budget. Subsequently, a special commission with legal and financial experts will be established, which will prepare the documentation of the procedure and announce the public competition. The establishment of this commission was considered positive by the American Chamber of Commerce during the phase when the draft was in public consultation, but according to it, the process of selecting its members is not clear, creating a risk of interference and lack of credibility in decision-making. In its comments, the chamber underlined the necessity of establishing independent and impartial evaluation structures to guarantee a fair selection of concession projects.
The contract is expected to be monitored by the Contract Implementation Unit, which must draft and submit to the contracting authority, at least, four periodic reports per year on the financial and non-financial performance of the contracts. The American Chamber suggested strengthening control mechanisms, including the obligation to report to an independent constitutional body, such as the Supreme State Audit Office.
Meanwhile, the draft law does not provide for the awarding of concession contracts or PPPs through unsolicited proposals and the rewarding of private companies that submitted them with up to 10% bonus of the total competition points.
Kosovo and Greece push exports forward/ Trade deficit decreases by 5.8% in the first 7 months of the year
During July of this year, Albanian exports have again recorded a positive performance, reaching the value of 35 billion lek, with an increase of 5.7%......
How to benefit from social housing? - Four main groups of criteria. From housing conditions to economic ones
As the Ministry of Economy, Culture and Innovation has published the document focusing on the social housing program, the criteria for how you can become a......
How many loans are banks giving to citizens? - BoA: High demand for loans and competition increased lending
Commercial banks have provided more loans to citizens and businesses in the first half of this year. According to the latest report by the Bank of Albania on......
142.8 MW of energy licensed - Solar energy dominates with 13 projects, 3 more hydropower plants are planned
The first seven months of 2025 have marked the granting of a high number of licenses for the production of electricity. According to official data from the......
"Boom" of new businesses in July - 45% increase, over 37 thousand applications registered
The tourist season has apparently increased citizens' initiatives to open a business. Official data from the National Business Center shows that in July......
Heatwaves “expose” Europe’s vulnerabilities - Rising demand challenges the sustainability of the EU’s energy grid
This summer, Europe has once again been hit by a series of severe heatwaves. In the past week alone, temperature records have been broken in southwestern......
Euro payments with AIPS "peak" - BoA: Over 218 thousand transactions in January-July, almost 22% more than in 2024
The amount of payments in euros made through the AIPS system hit a new record in July. According to data from the Bank of Albania, the number of payments......
Albanian agricultural products in world markets - Over 265 thousand tons exported in 6 months, an increase of 10%
Nearly 265.9 thousand tons of Albanian land products were sent to international markets in the first half of the year. According to official data from the......
