INDEP: The "Colombia" model for Ujman, not applicable

The Institute for Development Policy (INDEP) has conducted its own analysis of the report. According to Dardan Abazi, researcher at this institution, the report prepared by the US Department of Energy is not suitable to be implemented in the case of Ujman.

About a month has passed since the Government of Kosovo had accepted the feasibility report for the Ujman lake. Since that time, how many times has he been asked about this issue, Prime Minister Albin Kurti has stated that this report is being analyzed by experts.

Even in the session of the Assembly of Kosovo, the head of the Executive has said that arguments from this report will be used to defend Ujman.

"We will use all the arguments in this recently published feasibility study, but also in other studies, to protect this wealth of Kosovo from any claim", declared Kurti.

But until now, KOHA has not received answers to the questions about who are the experts who are analyzing the report on Ujman, or the institutions to which this report was sent for consideration.

The Institute for Development Policy (INDEP) has conducted its own analysis of the report. According to Dardan Abazi, a researcher at this institution, the report drawn up by the US Department of Energy is not suitable to be implemented in the case of Ujman, regarding the proposal for operation like the Columbia River.

"The American Government's proposal through the study to have an agreement between Kosovo and Serbia unfortunately presupposes that our relations with Serbia are normal, of both countries that aim to increase cooperation between them, but these relations do not exist. We have seen a Serbia that constantly aims to block Kosovo and the energy sector even in past agreements".

Abazi has added that other recommendations for Lake Ujman should be included in Kosovo's energy strategy, so that it can be used properly. "We consider that for this reason we should take the elements that are very positive in this study and these elements should be completed with our energy strategy and with our internal documents, which would take into account the real situation with Serbia and would operationalize Ujman for economic development", he said.

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The US proposal is for the parties to take as an example the way the Columbia River works.

"We propose that Kosovo and Serbia take into consideration the technical arrangements from the treaty between the USA and Canada for the Columbia River in relation to the water supply of energy agencies and flood control, modeling the institutional needs to support such a commission for the Iber River as well", says the report of the US Department of Energy.

Ujmani is an artificial lake and constitutes the most important water catchment for the economy of Kosovo. His pen was built between 1970-1984. There is a hydroelectric plant that produces 35 megawatts per hour of electricity, as well as the long Ibër-Lepenc canal.

The project was built with a loan from the World Bank, for which the state of the former Yugoslavia guaranteed, while the payment obligation was taken by Kosovo, which at the same time expropriated the properties.