In the past few months, Albanian free market electricity supplier FTL, a subsidiary of electricity distribution system operator OSHEE, was forced to purchase electricity at record high prices on the open market due to the unfavorable hydrological situation, but also the energy crisis in global markets which brought prices on European exchanges to record levels.
In October alone, FTL imported 65 million euros worth of electricity in order to cover the country’s demand, with prices exceeding 300 euros/MWh in some cases.
The Government facilitated the purchase of electricity by providing a fund of 100 million euros for OSHEE by the end of the year, in the conditions when a state of emergency was declared in the energy sector, which will last until 15 April next year. This week, the Government announced that it would revise the existing measures related to the protection of vulnerable consumers, but also to the collection of outstanding bills, which have reached alarming levels. OSHEE forecasts that the loss at the group level will reach 72.8 million euros at the end of 2021.
On 11 October, Albania declared a state of emergency in the energy sector due to significant rise in electricity prices and announced that it would allocate 200 million euros for the distribution system operator OSHEE (100 million euros by the end of the year and an additional 100 million euros in 2022) and introduce measures for the protection of households and small businesses against rising energy prices.
