Pristina, 23 November 2015
The Government of the Republic of Kosovo, led by Prime Minister Isa Mustafa, held its 60th regular meeting, whereby adopted two draft laws and has taken on some of its other constitutional and legal responsibilities.
Government Cabinet during the meeting was informed on the progress of the construction of power plant “Kosova e Re”.
Prime Minister Mustafa informed the Government Cabinet about the visit and the meetings held on 18 and 19 November in Brussels, where, together with Deputy Prime Minister and Minister Çollaku, met with top leaders of the European Union.
“We have had high level meetings, we have met the President of the European Parliament, Mr. Martin Schulz, the Head of European Commission, Mr. Juncker, we have also met High Representative of the European Union, Mrs. Federica Mogherini, the Commissioner Avramopoulos, Vice-President of the European Parliament, Mrs. Lunacek, we also met the President of the Foreign Policy Committee of the European Parliament, Mr. Brok, and we had meetings with Belgian businesses and businessmen from Kosovo who operate in Belgium, and we talked with them about investment opportunities in Kosovo
I can say that in all these meetings, were discussed on the security situation and the risks that are threatening the countries of the EU and the world of extremism, which leads to radicalization and terrorism, and regarding the joint alliance that we have to work all to fight this phenomenon.
I have informed about our achievements in terms of economic development, in terms of the functioning of the rule of law and other priorities of the Government of the Republic of Kosovo.
We thanked them for their support for signing of the SAA, and we have asked the European Parliament to ratify this agreement as soon as possible, since it was ratified in our Parliament.
To everyone we talked we faced their preoccupation and their concern about our situation in our Parliament, with violent performances in Parliament, and their full incompatibility regarding that political issues to be resolved through violence, because it is said that this is the first time that in a country of Europe, whether EU members or not, are seeing such acts and actions, of what has been expressed full disagreement.
During our stay there our main topic was the issue of visa liberalization. In all these institutions, we have sought to liberalize visas, not as a gift to be given to Kosovo, but as an answer to be given to us, thanks to what we have fulfilled all criteria that were required from us as technical criteria for visa liberalization. We have emphasized that it remains only to decide, the decision is political liberalization. In all the meetings was concluded that we have fulfilled all criteria that we have been required, we informed also on some final recommendations, we will conclude within two weeks or three weeks. It is about the agreement that we should have with Turkey as bilateral agreements concerning repatriation, while all others are completed, and we expect the report to be positive at the end of this year, and also we are confident that in 2016, our citizens will travel without visas. When will be started to travel without visas, of course, it is not up to us, nor our government that decides, but it is up to institutions of the European Union. However, it is a great achievement that we managed to fulfil the criteria that were required from us, and that will have a positive response by the European Union regarding this.
There also have seen an interest of businesses to invest to us, for which concrete bodies will work in the future “, said Prime Minister Isa Mustafa.
Government Cabinet adopted the Draft Law on the Registration and Provision and Employment Measures for Unemployed, Jobseekers and Employers, which regulates the procedures of registration and delivery of services by the Employment Agency of the Republic of Kosovo.
Also, the Draft Law Amending and Supplementing the Law on Training, Vocational Rehabilitation and Employment of Persons with Disabilities, adopted by the Government of the Republic of Kosovo. Amendments and Supplementations made in the Law will make it more applicable and accessible for these categories of our society.
In the meeting today, the Government of the Republic of Kosovo has adopted the Regulation on internal organization and systematization of jobs in the Ministry of Infrastructure.
The Government Cabinet has reviewed and adopted the decision for saving and allocation of funds in accordance with Article 13 of the Law on Budget of the Republic of Kosovo in 2015.
Government of the Republic of Kosovo, with the decision adopted today, has allocated funds in the amount of 13 thousand euros to cover the expenses of the delegation from the Republic of Kosovo, engaged in assessment excavations in the region of Raska. These excavations made to detect and ex-humuar remains of missing during the last war in Kosovo.
Government Cabinet approved a decision to amend the Strategic Plan Document for 2015, which is also included quality assurance strategy for pre-university education from 2016 to 2020.
With the aim of concluding the activities planned for this year, the Government has allocated additional funds for the Office of the President, in the amount of 105 thousand euros from unexpected expenses.
Regarding the progress of the construction of power plant “Kosova e Re”, Prime Minister Isa Mustafa stressed that it is a very important project for Kosovo and is of great achievement to reach agreement with the company “Contour Global” and the World Bank as one of the main financial backers of the project.
“Financial Indicators are very good, because it turns a weighted average rate of around 11.7 capital. There was a fear of the return internal rate which has been tremendous and for the investor it meant that capital to returned for 3 years or 3 years and a half. This means that investors’ capital to turn within 5 years, but the rest is considered differently. However, we will ensure that the future economy, the citizens, have enough energy and to tackle energy needs. Then we will see within the government on how we will overcome this period of vacuum energy that may be caused at the end of 2017 with the closure of the power plant “Kosova A”, or finding an alternative to the development of partial or overall the energy capacity for which it was spoken previously in the Government. The effects are very important for the future in terms of a fundamental source of economic development, they are important also in terms of employment capacity during the construction phase, because it is about an investment of 1 billion euros, which supports significant employment capacity for the period for which construction will extend the power plant as well as direct effects on employment that we will have upon the activation of the plant. We provide full support to the Ministry of Economic Development and inter-ministerial group that is working on this, and also the Government will monitor all stages of this project, because it is one of the projects with significant economic place in our country “said Prime Minister Mustafa.
Minister of Economic Development, Blerand Stavileci informed of the positive progress in the framework of the “Kosova e Re”.
“Following the earlier phases concluded within this process and the opening of negotiations, after receiving financial offer from the American company, the quality of investors, developers and financiers of the” Contour Global “, we have completed an important part of the negotiations especially for those points which have been the subject of negotiation, which could potentially materially affect the project. On a recent visit we had in Washington with the sole purpose of the World Bank headquarters then to discuss these points, we have reached an agreement especially on two key points which have effects on the whole project:
– One related to the capacity of the unit and the other,
– The internal rate of return
Since within our government program we have two targets located in the area of energy, almost equally important, providing power supply and affordability of prices, all options and all projections are available in the second objective, ie the sustainability of the price. After analyzing all the options, we decided to have a generating unit with 500 megawatts and then reconciled with the private investor that internal rate of return on equity, ie the equity with which will contribute in significant reduction from the interval that is proposed 23 to 27 percent, a much lower rate and more acceptable, which is 21.5 per cent. Then, with these two important points resolved we are back in Prishtina and we held a meeting of the Steering Committee of the project “New Kosovo”, with all members having the right to vote and other members of the quality observers and have taken the decision to declare as the preferred bidder and in the meantime they have to send the guarantee which will open the way to sign a memorandum of understanding.
It is about a generating capacity of 500 MW with a total investment cost of 1 billion euros, of which 30 percent is provided by the private investor’s own capital and 70 percent from financial institutions and organizations.
The internal rate of return is 21.5 percent for the part of 300 million or 30 percent, while, for the rest as the interest rate, it is calculated a rate of 7.5 percent, or 70 percent.
If both these cumulatively we do together then we have a general average of 11.7 percent, which is again an affordableaverage rate, especially when dealing with projects of this nature.
In the course of employment, according to a pre-calculation of the company it is about 10 thousand jobs during construction, up to commissioning, and then after the commissioning of 550 permanent jobs. Also, with regard to environmental criteria, at the beginning the efficiency rate is foreseen to be 37 percent, and now it will be 40 percent. Which means the criterion environmentalist will be fulfilled and this is within the projects with the most advanced technology, known in professional terminology as super critical and we have only one more advanced technology that is ultra critical, but in the two countries so far, it did not function. In addition, not to forget that we will save the state budget, so there will not be a cent contribution from the state budget, and then we maintain everything perhaps at a later stage if we want to activate some mechanisms for “softened even more effects on tariffs. You know that even now in some recent studies made only accounts in the private sector had a loss of about 300 million euros a year as a result of not regular supply of electricity. Also, the generating unit will make the most important line of the 400 kV interconnection which also believe that within two weeks we will inaugurate, and will probably be the first countries in the framework of projects which take part in the Treaty of the Energy Community, so the project “New Kosovo” and line interconnection, which will create the possibility of a common market, which would later be part of the regional market, European, called European market trans for the energy.
What are the next steps?
Within two weeks we expect to sign a Memorandum of Understanding and thereafter open the road for the next phase of concluding commercial agreements that have been set. After commercial closing, we will have the bidding package for the construction of the Power Plant. After its completion, we will have a final financial closing and will begin with construction. All these stages, until construction, will take time 9-12 months. It is planned that one year from now or at the end of next year or beginning of 2017 to begin with construction, and after 4 to 5 years of construction, be commissioned these power plants. These, are the general information about the project and the next steps that we must follow up on its final implementation, “said Minister Stavileci.
Last modified: July 31, 2022