Albanian state owned power generation company Korporata Elektroenergjitike Shqiptare (KESH) plans to build a 5.1 MW solar PV power plant at the reservoir of Vau i Dejes hydropower plant, informed the country's Ministry of Infrastructure and Energy.
KESH has submitted an application with the ministry to construct the PV project to seek license for the project saying it does not need any concessions or state support to build the same. As per the notice of the ministry, it will be accepting objections or comments to the project till January 23, 2021.
According to Balkan Green Energy News, KESH has been planning to install a 12.9 MW floating solar power plant at the same reservoir in a bid to make the 250 MW hydropower project a hybrid one. The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) had been contemplating project finance worth €9.75 million to a special purpose vehicle (SPV) owned by KESH to support 12.9 MW floating solar power plant with electricity generated to be sold on the non-regulated electricity market.
"The project will support the implementation of the first-of-a-kind floating technology solar plant in Albania and in the Western Balkans region and will promote the further use of the floating PV technology to increase the region's solar capacity through the efficient use of existing hydro reservoirs," stated the bank back then. "At the same time, the project will strengthen KESH's operational and financial performance through reduced reliance on hydro revenues and due to the floating technology's positive impact on the water levels of the existing reservoir."
In November 2020, the ministry launched a 100 MW solar PV tender to be constructed in Durrës region as the country's 3rd large scale solar plant (see Tender Launched For Albania's 100 MW Solar Park).