The Port of Durres is the country’s largest port and is located 42km from the capital Tirana, adjacent to the city of Durres, in the northern part of the Bay of Durres. The port is a key node in Pan-European Corridor VIII, a transport corridor from the Italian ports of Bari and Brindisi to Durres, then across Albania, FYR Macedonia and Bulgaria, through to its Black Sea ports.
The project will have significant demonstration impact as the first loan to a state-owned company on a non-sovereign basis in the transport sector. Additional transition impact will be gained from the introduction of energy efficient technologies, improvement of environmental standards and the use of concessions as the port migrates to a landlord port model.
The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) is considering a EUR 15 million loan to finance the project with a further EUR 5 million coming from the Port of Durres Authority (PDA), a 100% state-owned company responsible for managing the Port of Durres. PDA is administered by the Ministry of Public Works and Transport of Albania (“MPWT”), whilst being operated on a commercial basis with independent management.