Early Warning System

Regions

Europe and Central Asia

Geographic location where the impacts of the investment may be experienced.

Countries

Albania

Geographic location where the impacts of the investment may be experienced.

Specific Location

Tirana

Whenever identified, the area within countries where the impacts of the investment may be experienced. Exact locations of projects may not be identified fully or at all in project documents. Please review updated project documents and community-led assessments.

Financial Institutions

European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD)

International, regional and national development finance institutions. Many of these banks have a public interest mission, such as poverty reduction.

Project Status

Approved

Stage of the project cycle. Stages vary by development bank and can include: pending, approval, implementation, and closed or completed.

Bank Risk Rating

Environmental and social categorization assessed by the development bank as a measure of the planned project’s environmental and social impacts. A higher risk rating may require more due diligence to limit or avoid harm to people and the environment. For example, "A" or "B" are risk categories where "A" represents the highest amount of risk. Results will include projects that specifically recorded a rating, all other projects are marked ‘U’ for "Undisclosed."

Voting Date

Mar 28, 2025

Date when project documentation and funding is reviewed by the Board for consideration and approval. Some development banks will state a "board date" or "decision date." When funding approval is obtained, the legal documents are accepted and signed, the implementation phase begins.

Borrower

Operatori i Shperndarjes se Energjise Elektrike (OSHEE)

A public entity (government or state-owned) provided with funds or financial support to manage and/or implement a project.

Sectors

Energy
Infrastructure

The service or industry focus of the investment. A project can have several sectors.

Investment Type(s)

Loan

The categories of the bank investment: loan, grant, guarantee, technical assistance, advisory services, equity and fund.

Investment Amount (USD)

$ 24.47 million

Value listed on project documents at time of disclosure. If necessary, this amount is converted to USD ($) on the date of disclosure. Please review updated project documents for more information.
Currency conversion note:
Bank reported 22.5
Converted using 2025-03-28 exchange rate.

Loan Amount (USD)

$ 24.47 million

Project Cost (USD)

$ 24.47 million

Bank Documents

PSD Translation (Albanian)

Primary Source

Original disclosure @ EBRD website

Updated in EWS May 27, 2025

Disclosed by Bank Apr 15, 2025

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Can you contribute information about this project?
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Project Description

If provided by the financial institution, the Early Warning System Team writes a short summary describing the purported development objective of the project and project components. Review the complete project documentation for a detailed description.

As stated by the EBRD the project consists of an up to EUR 22.5 million senior sovereign-guaranteed loan to Operatori i Shperndarjes se Energjise Elektrike (OSHEE), the state-owned electricity distribution and supply company in Albania. The loan proceeds will be used for investment purposes to finance the construction of the underground 110/20 kV substation in central Tirana. The original cost estimate for the substation of EUR 14.5 million, was based on a preliminary assessment. However, the final technical design, developed by a specialised external consultant, revealed an increase of ca. EUR 8 million. This increase was primarily attributable to inflationary pressures on raw material prices, enhanced project specifications, and the incorporation of final technical requirements.

The project will enable OSHEE to replace an old electric substation, with a new and innovative underground substation. It will be the first underground substation to be implemented in Albania and the wider Western Balkans region. It will be the first digitally-operated substation of OSHEE. Full digitalisation is expected to improve operational efficiency, quality of supply and improve health and safety parameters. The project will incentivise OSHEE to accelerate transition to digital infrastructure and implement organisational programmes (including trainings) to support the swift implementation and transition to digital infrastructure.

The project aims to reduce technical losses in the power grid and protect the substation from extreme weather events, corrosion and vandalism. The use of proceeds will support an electricity system where the grid emissions factor is below 100 gCO2e/kWh, which is the case in Albania due to its nearly 100% hydro-based power generation.
By replacing an over-the-ground substation with an underground one, the project will utilise the loan proceeds to fund the modernisation of OSHEE's critical infrastructure, specifically targeting the improvement of system reliability and operational flexibility. This will enable OSHEE to achieve significant reductions in transmission losses, bringing its performance closer to international best practices.

Investment Description

Here you can find a list of individual development financial institutions that finance the project.

European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD)

Private Actors Description

A Private Actor is a non-governmental body or entity that is the borrower or client of a development project, which can include corporations, private equity and banks. This describes the private actors and their roles in relation to the project, when private actor information is disclosed or has been further researched.

As stated by the EBRD, OSHEE is the 100% state-owned electricity distribution and retail supply company of Albania. OSHEE supplies all Albanian regulated customers and acts as the supplier of last resort for unregulated customers. OSHEE is responsible for the distribution network and acts as the offtaker of electricity produced by most independent power producers ("IPPs") in Albania. OSHEE's primary supplier is KESH who has a Public Service Obligation (PSO) to supply OSHEE with the necessary amount of energy to satisfy regulated demand.

Private Actor 1	Private Actor 1 Role	Private Actor 1 Sector	Relation	Private Actor 2	Private Actor 2 Role	Private Actor 2 Sector
-	-	-	-	Operatori i Shperndarjes se Energjise Elektrike (OSHEE)	Client	Energy

Contact Information

This section aims to support the local communities and local CSO to get to know which stakeholders are involved in a project with their roles and responsibilities. If available, there may be a complaint office for the respective bank which operates independently to receive and determine violations in policy and practice. Independent Accountability Mechanisms receive and respond to complaints. Most Independent Accountability Mechanisms offer two functions for addressing complaints: dispute resolution and compliance review.

Client - Operatori i Shperndarjes se Energjise Elektrike (OSHEE):

Enea Karakaci
Email: Enea.Karakaci@oshee.al
Website: www.oshee.al
Address: Blv. Zhan D'Ark, Tirane, Albania

ACCESS TO INFORMATION

You can request information by emailing: accessinfo@ebrd.com or by using this electronic form: https://www.ebrd.com/eform/information-request

ACCOUNTABILITY MECHANISM OF EBRD

The Project Complaint Mechanism (PCM) is the independent complaint mechanism and fact-finding body for people who have been or are likely to be adversely affected by an European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD)-financed project. If you submit a complaint to the PCM, it may assess compliance with EBRD's own policies and procedures to prevent harm to the environment or communities or it may assist you in resolving the problem that led to the complaint through a dialogue with those implementing the project. Additionally, the PCM has the authority to recommend a project be suspended in the event that harm is imminent.

You can contact the PCM at: pcm@ebrd.com or you can submit a complaint online using an online form at: http://www.ebrd.com/eform/pcm/complaint_form?language=en

You can learn more about the PCM and how to file a complaint at: http://www.ebrd.com/work-with-us/project-finance/project-complaint-mechanism.html