TIRANA (Albania), January 28 (SeeNews) – The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) said it is seeking a consultant to advise on the development of a common hydro power monitoring methodology for the Western Balkans in cooperation with civil society organisations.
“The assignment is expected to start in the first quarter of 2020 and has an estimated overall duration of 18 months,” the EBRD said in a statement on Monday.
The overall objective of the project is to develop in Albania and North Macedonia a hydro power monitoring methodology and establish a monitoring protocol agreed between relevant stakeholders and transfer skills and knowledge to these local stakeholders.
The estimated cost of the assignment is 120,000 euro ($132,277), exclusive of VAT, and will be financed by the EBRD Shareholder Special Fund.
“The project supports the EBRD’s approach to investment projects in the hydro power sector, i.e. employing the highest environmental and social standards and introducing good international practices in the sector, and assisting sustainable hydropower development planning through policy engagement and technical cooperation initiatives,” the EBRD said.
The Western Balkans region (Albania, Bosnia, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Kosovo, Serbia) has a very high conservation value with up to 30% of rivers currently in near-natural or pristine state, the EBRD noted. While hydropower provides continuous renewable energy, the construction and operation of hydro power plants can pose environmental concerns, in particular for water resources and in view of ecosystem impacts, such as aquatic biodiversity.
“Most HPPs are of a small or medium size, however the number and their location in areas of high ecological value represent environmental challenges,” the bank noted, adding that the implementation of mitigation measures, such as ecological flow and fish migration aids, and their monitoring needs to be ensured.
($ = 0.90709 euro)