As part of Sustainability Week in Abu Dhabi, Prime Minister Edi Rama and Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni announced the signing of a strategic agreement for energy interconnection between Albania and Italy.
The agreement, which also includes the United Arab Emirates, aims to create an infrastructure that will enable the transportation of renewable energy from Albania to Italy through an underwater cable in the Adriatic Sea.
“I am very proud of this project, which is the result of close cooperation between our three countries,” said Meloni during her speech.
“This is a major step towards improving energy sustainability and strengthening ties between the Western Balkans Region and Europe,” the Italian Prime Minister added.
Meloni praised the historical ties between Italy and the Western Balkan countries, citing previous projects such as the 420 km power line connecting Italy with Montenegro and the Balkan Region. She stressed the importance of continuing these collaborations for mutual benefits.
“Thanks to this agreement, renewable energy produced in Albania will play an important role in meeting our energy transition objectives,” she stressed, adding that this project will involve not only governments, but also the private sector and network operators.
In his speech at the global summit “Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week”, Rama stated that this agreement is a very, very important instrument not only for the transmission of renewable energy from Albania to Italy, but also for increasing Albania’s capacity as a key player in the Region, based on its production with 100% renewable energy.
“This very important step for the Region and Europe would also not have been possible without the significant cooperation with the United Arab Emirates,” Rama praised.
The Prime Minister underlined that Albania’s partnership with the United Arab Emirates in the energy sector is very, very important for the Region.
“Albania’s partnership with the United Arab Emirates in the energy sector is very, very important for the Region, a Region where many wars, conflicts, bloodshed, misunderstandings have shaped our past and where cooperation and the common desire to be part of the great European family must be supported with concrete initiatives and steps to overcome the past,” Rama added.
In this regard, Rama praised the cooperation that has begun between the state-owned Energy Production Company, KESH in Albania, and Masdar of the United Arab Emirates, which aims to develop up to 3 gigawatts of renewable energy production to have an organized network in the European market, starting from the Region.
“It is a very important contribution not only to energy but to peace and cooperation in the Region in a way that we all need to achieve by joining the united European family. I also want to express my gratitude to the Prime Minister of Italy, Giorgia Meloni, who is here to participate in this week of sustainability and to bless this very important agreement between Italy, the United Arab Emirates and Albania,” said Rama.
The agreement was signed by Prime Minister Edi Rama, the President of the United Arab Emirates, Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, and Prime Minister Meloni.
The project aims not only to improve energy interconnection between the two shores of the Adriatic, but also paves the way for deeper cooperation between Italy, Albania and the United Arab Emirates in the green energy sector.