News, November 2022

On 21.11.2022, the National Committee of Large Dams (ALBCOLD) organized the meeting for the month of November 2022.

In this meeting, several issues were analyzed and discussed as follows:

•  Rules of the use, operation, monitoring, and safety of the HPP Banja dam are presented by Devolli HP as the user of the dam and the reservoir created by it. The technical documentation of these Rules submitted to SKDM included the requirements of the ALBCOLD guidance expressed in Decision No. 3, dated 19.10.2020 regarding the drafting of the regulation. After the discussions of all the members, ALBCOLD decided to approve the Rules for the use, operation, monitoring, and safety of the HEC Banje dam presented by the company Devolli HP

For more detailed information, please click Decision No. 29 of ALBCOLD, dated 21.11.2022 here

•  The Request of the Defence Ministry for an opinion regarding the assessment of the risk from natural disasters at the central level. The request was accompanied by a draft decision that will be proposed to the Council of Ministers, the Consolidated Report for the assessment of the risk of disasters prepared by NAEC consultants as well as the relevant annexes for each of the risks defined in the report. After the discussions with all the participating members, ALBCOLD decided not to approve the consolidated report for the assessment of the risk of disasters in relation to dam breaks. At the same time, ALBCOLD requested the re-evaluation of the consolidated report regarding the dam cracks, taking into consideration the legislation in force for dams, the current condition of dams, the lack of contemporary standards for the design, monitoring, and safety of dams, the technical-economic analysis of the conditions of the dams. monitoring, utilization, and safety of dams according to the instructions of ALBCOLD.

For more detailed information, please click Decision No. 30 of ALBCOLD, date 21.11.2022 here

•  The progress of the project was financed by the Swiss government for the monitoring and safety of the dams of the cascade of the river Drin. The chairman informed the members of ALBCOLD about the meetings of representatives of the Swiss government and the visits to the HPP Fierze dam together with them and with the specialists of APC. In these meetings, the chairman of ALBCOLD emphasized the fact of the lack of information from APC regarding this project as well as the request for information regarding the progress of the project and the problems encountered during its implementation. Also, the support of the Swiss government was requested through the SECO program for familiarization with the Swiss experience for the methodology of the technical control process for the condition and monitoring of dams in long-term periods of 5-10 years, the performance of full technical control for the condition, monitoring and safety in the 6 dams of the Drin river cascade according to the requirements of DCM no. 147, article 37 and experience in Switzerland. A collaboration with the Swiss Dam Safety Authority and the involvement of Swiss experts in this field will be very important.

On November 15, 2022, a meeting was organized by the Chairman of ALBCOLD, Mr. Arjan Jovani with representatives of the Swiss government in connection with the project financed by the Swiss government through the SECO program for the safety and monitoring of the dams of the Drin river cascade. On November 17-18, 2022, the meetings continued on the ground by also conducting visits to the HPP Fierze dam. More details are given in the information provided during the ALBCOLD meeting in November 2022.