Minister Ismajli participates in the energy conference in Lithuania

The Minister of Economic Development, Fadil Ismajli, participated on 05 November in the conference on “Completing the Internal Energy Market”, held on 4 and 5 November in Vilnius, Lithuania. The conference was organized by the Government of Lithuania, which is presiding the Council of the European Union during the second part of 2013.

The conference was also attended by the highest European authorities in the sphere of energy, national resource management and economic development.

Taking part in the conference were also representatives of the European Commission, European Parliament, International Nuclear Energy Agency, etc.

In her opening remarks, President of Lithuania Daila Grybauskaite said that an integrated EU energy market will significantly impact on the diminishment of energy prices and will improve competition in the EU. Hence, according to her, more work should be vested in developing an accessible and safe energy market.

Minister Ismjali held a speech in the session organized for the panel of ministers of Denmark, Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia, Bulgaria, Cyprus and Moldova.

Mr. Ismajli focused on what Kosovo is doing in the sphere of energy, underlining at the same time on difficulties faced in attaining these objectives. “We have never had any dilemma on the fact that our country’s journey in the energy sphere is the one set by the EU, however, we need to enjoy support from the European Commission in accomplishing the relevant standards,” he said.

The head of MED informed that the legal framework is already set and relevant legislation will be implemented in the upcoming years, in order to ensure that the Republic of Kosovo will operate adequately in the European energy market, as an important stakeholder for the energy sector in Western Balkans.

Energy sector reform has undergone three key stages to date: restructuring (unbundling of the vertically integrated enterprise), strengthening of the role of the independent regulator, and privatization (distribution and supply being privatized already), Minister Ismajli stressed.

To this end, Minister Ismajli asked the EU to take into consideration Kosovo’s distinguishing characteristics from the electricity market aspect, and those related to the fulfillment of environmental requirements during a transitory phase.

The objective of the conference was to address the idea of establishment and development of a common energy market for EU countries, and other countries that aspire to become EU member countries. Noteworthy, the international conference on the energy market represents one of the most significant events of the Lithuanian Presidency of the Council of European Union, which was closely followed by European and global media.

energjia.al, 07.11.2013