KESH Adopts Climate Risk Management Plan

TIRANA, December 20
The Albanian Power Corporation (KESH) a state-owned hydropower operator adopted a climate risk management plan of Thursday. The decision Okayed by the Supervisory Council of KESH makes it the first hydropower operators in Europe to address the risks of climate change and climate variability through a formalized and strategic approach.
The adoption of the plan is part of the terms of a Euro218 million loan by the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) to support the company’s restructuring and transformation to a modern electricity generator operating in an electricity market that is being gradually liberalized.
“The climate risk management plan defines a list of structural and non-structural adaptation measures that will be implemented by KESH to mitigate climate-induced risks but also to seize opportunities arising from climate change,” EBRD reported on Thursday.
It was developed under a capacity-building program funded by the Austrian DRIVE fund and implemented by engineering and project management firm Poyry together with the Swiss hydropower operator KWO.

“Building know-how in the field of climate resilient hydropower operation is an essential element of our strategy to sustain and further develop our position as a leading electricity generator in the Western Balkan region,” EBRD quoted KESH’s CEO Agron Hetoja as saying.
On his part, EBRD’s Head of Climate Resilience Investment Craig Davies said: “We have entered an era where climate risk is real, with extreme events and changes in hydrological patterns increasingly expected. This project exemplifies how hydropower operators can take a first step at the corporate level to identify risks and opportunities to their operations.”
News Source: EBRD

Photo Credit: KESH