Unsolicited road PPPs to be outlawed in Albania

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The government of Albania is in the process of passing a law that will prohibit the private sector from proposing unsolicited public-private partnership (PPP) concessions to build, operate, maintain and rehabilitate national roads of special importance from July 2019.

Proposed by the Ministry of Finance, the bill is a result of recommendations made by international organizations, such as the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank. The government's reliance on unsolicited proposals to execute major projects has been criticised due to its elimination of competition.

The IMF requested that the government curb the granting of concession contracts to unsolicited proponents in early 2018, while the European Commission forced the government to halt the implementation of a concession for the construction of a national theater in September, as the law drafted to enable the concession would have restricted competition. There were also doubts over the concession's legality.

Unsolicited proposals are not to be outlawed entirely, with proposals for the construction of projects and/or services in ports, airports, production and distribution of electricity, heating energy and natural gas distribution outside of the bill's jurisdiction.

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