No agreement between Macedonia and Albania over Dam project

Saturday, 01 February 2014

Albania and Macedonia have not reached an agreement on concerns that the latter's plan to build a dam on Radika River, Albanian Foreign Minister Ditmir Bushati has said. A planned dam in Macedonia has raised concerns in neighboring Albania because it would ebb the water flow of a river into the Drin River that helps produce all of Albania's electricity. "We are not dealing yet with an issue between states in the strict sense of international law," Bushati said during an interpellation session in the Parliament. "Radika is not an issue between the two states but environmental, energy and economic issue," he added. In somewhat strange case, Albania is using vast water resources from Macedonia to power its electric grid, while Macedonia is not utilizing the very resources it owns. Should Macedonia tap into its own resources as planned, this will reduce Tirana's electric outlook. The dams are part of a drive in Macedonia to wean it off the dependence on fossil fuels.