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Milot-Balldren phantom concession still active, government seeks unilateral solution

2024-06-14 10:58:30Biznes SHKRUAR NGA REDAKSIA VOX

Milot-Balldren phantom concession still active, government seeks unilateral

In March 2019, a concession contract between the Albanian government and the "Bardh Konstruksion" company for the construction of the Milot-Balldren segment of 17 kilometers became active.

In a special report on the monitoring of concessions for 2023, the Ministry of Finance reported that the status of the concession is "At the stage of fulfilling the preliminary conditions for the implementation of the project", although according to Finance, the Minister of Infrastructure has officially asked the company to terminate the contract.

But after this request, there are no further legal actions to resolve it, leaving it officially active. So Prime Minister Edi Rama announced a few days ago that this axis would be tendered.

The Ministry of Finance reported that the Ministry of Infrastructure and Energy in the capacity of Contracting Authority with letter no. 1069/3 dated 16.12.2021, has sent to the company "ANK" sh.pk, as the Concessionaire, and to the company "Bardh Konstruksion" sh.pk, as the Concessionary Company, the notice for the termination of the Concession/PPP contract "For the design, construction and the maintenance of the "Milot-Balldren" road segment, as a result of non-fulfillment of the terms of the contract by the Concessionaire Company and the Concessionaire, provided for in Article 7 "Non-fulfilment of Preconditions" as well as in point 4.2 of Article 21 "Financial Closing".

But in the report of the Ministry of Finance, in the descriptive table of the project, the current phase of the project is defined: "In the phase of fulfilling the preliminary conditions for the implementation of the project".

So the "Bardhi Konstruksion" company has a suspended status in the National Business Center, a measure that the CKB has taken against the company since it has not declared the beneficial owners and the fine for this purpose. The suspension in KKB was not requested by the concessionaire company.

The PPP object for the construction of the Milot-Balldren segment was initiated after an unsolicited proposal of the Albanian company ANK and in October 2018. ANK won the competitive procedure for the concession/PPP award of the construction and maintenance of the Milot-Balldren road, with a construction and maintenance value a total of 161.5 million euros. After a non-competitive renegotiation of interests, the value of the contract increased to 213 million euros without VAT, or 256 million euros with VAT, for a length of 17.2 km.

Debates also arose due to the fact that the winning company ANK did not have the capacity to build a road of such dimensions. While ANK promised to finance 52 million euros from its own capital, official data from the 2017 balance sheet (a year before winning the contract) showed that its total assets are only 16 million euros (2 billion ALL), while the total capital it is 3.2 million euros. The company had revenues of 16 million euros in 2017 and a minimum profit of less than 1 million euros. The company claimed that a loan of 70 million euros will be obtained. Throughout this period, ANK has not managed to secure financing.

The Lezha Bypass, or else the Milot-Balldren axis, is part of the Adriatic-Ionian Highway, a project that has been selected for funding by the Berlin Initiative because it connects the Western Balkans with the European Corridors. In the feasibility study, the official document that the Ministry of Infrastructure has for the Adriatic - Ionian, Balldren-Milot highway estimates a cost of 141 million euros (without VAT), or 177 million euros with VAT, which are valid for the construction of 17 kilometers of highway .

But, on November 7, 2018, in a meeting where the investment framework in the Western Balkans, administered by WBIF (The western Balkans investment Framework), was being discussed, it was decided that Albania should be asked to return 350 thousand euros that had received for the feasibility study for the Lezha Bypass (Milot-Balldren) because the Albanian government had decided to award it with a PPP type concession.

Officially, the concession was active until the end of 2023, while the Albanian government in 2021 financed a study for the construction of the road with budget funds, as the prime minister announced the opening of the tender this month./ MONITOR

Milot-Balldren phantom concession still active, government seeks unilateral

 


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