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The hefty bill on the Milot-Balldren axis/ 83.4 million euros for maintenance alone, 15 times higher than other concessions!

2026-09-21 15:46:35Aktualitet SHKRUAR NGA REDAKSIA VOX
The hefty bill on the Milot-Balldren axis/ 83.4 million euros for maintenance
Milot-Balldren

At 21.5 million euros/km, which will be fully financed by Albanian taxpayers, Milot-Balldre is one of the most expensive concessions that the Ministry of Infrastructure itself has given the green light for each kilometer to be built.

It's not just the construction costs that remain high, but what raises questions about this concession is more the operation and maintenance of the road and the tolls.

It turns out that just for the maintenance of 17 kilometers, a value of 83.4 million euros will be paid. But this value is higher than the costs of the usual contracts of the Ministry of Infrastructure.

On average, the value per 17 kilometers of maintenance of such concessions previously realized ranges from 5-5.4 million euros. Making the maintenance bill for Milot-Balldre about 15 times more expensive, i.e. 83.4 million euros.

According to experts, this is where the problem lies with the estimated concession invoices, who say that it is the costs that need to be clarified to understand whether the value is built on real needs and calculations.

"The ways in which they are manipulated are different, but the main one is through the selective setting of criteria for participants. Over the last decade, Albania has moved from a country that had, so to speak, corruption, to a country that had systemic corruption. And Albania today, at least in terms of public procurement, is no longer a market economy, in the sense that you cannot compete in the tender sector and win. That is, every public procurement seems to be fundamentally manipulated," said economics expert Gjergji Erebara.

But the questions go beyond the maintenance and operation bill. The second competition for this concession ended with three bids with the same value of 364.7 million euros. Two were disqualified and the winner received 93 points. If the price was the same, what were the criteria that made the difference?

Experts raise the problem of criteria that can limit competition and influence the determination of the winner.

"Albania is no longer a market economy. The lack of foreign participants in concessions, in competitions for large concessions. The lack of foreign contractors. If you remember, in the old days, Austrian companies would come and compete in Albania for road construction. Now you have the fact that you have absolutely no foreign companies. For decades... for a whole decade. For one to come to Albania to win the road construction tender... This shows, in other words, that you are no longer a market economy," said economic expert Gjergji Erebara.

Not just once, but twice payment from citizens. The "golden" road that will connect the north of Albania with the rest of the country, will force citizens to pay directly from their wallets, not only from the taxes collected so far. According to the tender documents, the government has decided that the reference toll fee on the Milot-Balldre segment will be 0.12 euros per kilometer.

This means that for the 17 kilometers of road, ordinary vehicles will pay 2.04 euros for each crossing. This makes this axis one of the most expensive in Europe, while even in developed countries of the European Union, crossing fees are 0.07 euros per kilometer or almost two times cheaper.

"The National Road, to the Milot-Thumanë, Thumanë-Kashar highway, going to this Milot-Balldre concession contract. All of these are absurd costs that are imposed on the Albanian citizen, while, so to speak, the main roads of the country are full of potholes, the roads are insufficient, the entrances and exits of the cities are a nightmare, the traffic is a nightmare. All of this traffic and this as a result of misuse, mismanagement and systemic corruption in tenders," said economic expert Gjergji Erebara.

This cost practically makes the capital a forbidden destination for citizens of the north. While the south of the country will undoubtedly be more expensive than traveling abroad.

In the end, this is not just a road that citizens will pay for with their taxes, but also every time they decide to drive on it. A bill that starts with hundreds of millions of euros for construction, continues with millions more for operation and maintenance, and ends with a fee for each crossing. The road is shortening the kilometers, but it does not seem to reduce the bill for citizens at all./ tch


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