Albania: Tender for TPP Vlore concession cancelled

Albanian Ministry of Infrastructure and Energy announced that it has cancelled a tender for awarding the concession for Vlore power plant because none of the received offers meet the required conditions.
Last January, the Ministry published a public call for bids for public-private partnership or a concession for restarting thermal power plant Vlore and the construction of gas pipeline that will connect the plant to Trans-Adriatic (TAP) pipeline. According to the Ministry, 27 potential investors have expressed interest in this concession. Albania plans to restart operation of its thermal power plant with the supply of natural gas via TAP. TPP Vlore has 97 MW output and 112 million dollar project was financed by World bank (25 million dollars), EBRD (37.5 million dollars) and KESH (12.6 million dollars). TPP has been constructed by Maire Engineering (part of Italian Maire Technimont). TPP Vlore is oil fired, and it can be connected to natural gas pipeline and easily altered to gas fired. It is expected that TPP Vlore could cover 20 % of Albanian electricity deficit. According to tender documentation, the contract will be signed for a period of 20 years and the maximum funding made available is 58.5 million euros.