Zubin Potok, 4 August 2026
The Acting Prime Minister of the Republic of Kosovo, Albin Kurti, attended the inauguration marking the completion of the major rehabilitation project of the Ibër Lepenc main canal, “Water Security and Canal Protection,” in Zubin Potok.
Addressing those present, Prime Minister Kurti highlighted the importance of the Ibër-Lepenc Canal and the investment made to enhance its security.
“Through this €18 million project, 37 key sections along the 49-kilometre canal have been rehabilitated, and a buffer reservoir, or compensatory reservoir, with a capacity of 30,000 cubic meters has been constructed, enabling emergency water supply to the power plants or water utilities in cases of emergency,” he said.
He stressed that protecting the canal is not merely a local issue or solely a technical matter, but rather the protection of the Republic’s everyday life—of electricity in homes, water flowing from taps, production in the economy, and bread from the fields.
“This project demonstrates that our Republic is not satisfied with merely reacting to risks; it builds capacities to prevent risks and to ensure that essential services continue to be delivered continuously and with the required quality,” the Prime Minister emphasised.
Full Speech by Acting Prime Minister Kurti:
Honourable Ms. Artane Rizvanolli, Minister of Economy,
Honourable Deputy Ministers Getoar Mjeku and Triera Kasumi Berisha,
Honourable Mr. Faruk Mujka, Chief Executive Officer of the “Ibër Lepenc” Public Enterprise,
Honourable members and representatives of the Board,
Honourable journalists,
Ladies and gentlemen,
Citizens of Zubin Potok,
Distinguished guests,
Today, we are inaugurating the completion of a major Ibër-Lepenc project, “Water Security and Canal Protection.”
We are standing beside this section of the water canal, which is no longer visible—and for a good reason. It has been rehabilitated and, at the request of local residents, covered in order to improve safety for everyone.
Since it was constructed in the 1980s, this canal has been vital infrastructure for the Republic of Kosovo. Beginning in this municipality and extending for 49 kilometres to Prishtina, it supplies water to our power plants, which generate up to 90 per cent of our electricity, irrigates agricultural land across the Kosovo Plain, and provides water to drinking water treatment plants serving nine municipalities and more than 500,000 inhabitants.
For this reason, its protection is not merely a local issue, nor only a technical one. It is the protection of the Republic’s everyday life—of electricity in our homes, water from our taps, production in our economy, and bread from our fields.
Through this €18 million project, 37 key sections along the 49-kilometre canal have been rehabilitated, and a buffer reservoir, or compensatory reservoir, with a capacity of 30,000 cubic meters has been constructed, enabling emergency water supply to the power plants or water utilities whenever emergency needs arise.
This project demonstrates that our Republic is not content merely to react to risks; rather, it builds capacities to prevent them and to ensure that essential services continue to be provided continuously and at the required standard.
We chose to inaugurate this project here, at this very location where the canal once posed a danger to local residents, but where today the Ibër Lepenc Enterprise invests in infrastructure, creates employment opportunities, and fulfils its mission in service of the state.
The Municipality of Zubin Potok occupies a special place in the Republic of Kosovo. The Ibër-Lepenc Enterprise carries out a significant part of its activities in this municipality, employing around 60 local residents, the majority of whom belong to the Serb community.
Furthermore, Lake Ujman is located here in Zubin Potok, holding approximately 350 million cubic meters of water and reaching up to 370 million cubic meters at full capacity. Consequently, Lake Ujman contains almost three times as much water as the combined reserves of Batllava, Badovc and Radoniq Lakes.
Zubin Potok is also home to the Ujman Hydropower Plant, the largest in our country, with an installed capacity of 35 MW.
The covering of this 400-metre section constituted a separate component of the project. The Enterprise included this component to enhance the security of the canal and to benefit the residents of Zubin Potok, financing it entirely from its own resources in the amount of approximately €1.1 million.
As a result, the canal will be safer and better protected against any potential damage. At the same time, the covered surface will be available as a public space for community activities.
This is an investment in water, but at the same time it is an investment in national security, public safety, and the confidence of our citizens, regardless of their ethnicity or place of residence. It is proof that the state is present wherever everyday life depends upon it.
The Ibër-Lepenc Enterprise will continue to fulfil its mission and serve citizens of all communities without distinction.
The Government of the Republic of Kosovo will continue investing in the north—not only through distant words, but through tangible security, employment opportunities, quality public services, and public spaces where citizens are treated equally and meet one another as equals.
Congratulations on the completion of this project. I thank the workers, engineers, the Ibër-Lepenc Enterprise, the World Bank, the Ministry of Economy, and everyone who made this joyful day possible.
Thank you!
