The goal of the Albanian Government is to establish national power exchange this year for electricity trading. The initial plan for the establishment of a power exchange is made in March this year. The deadline for launching power exchange has been previously postponed due to lack of technical expertise and experience.
The establishment of the Albanian Power Exchange (APEX) will be coordinated with energy policy and standards of the European Union and integration in the regional energy market.
“The Albanian market will become the main platform for electricity trading, which will allow local players to buy and sell electricity quickly and easily, including trade with other countries. The Albanian power exchange should support the integration of Albanian power grid with the rest of Europe, including the neighboring countries in the region. APEX will increase price transparency and improve the investment climate for new energy projects,” said Albanian Energy Minister Damian Gjinkuri.
Meanwhile, in late January the Energy Regulatory Authority approved specifications for functioning of power exchange and adopted the rules of day-ahead market and intraday market. The regulatory authority began reviewing the rules of market management and payments and billing rules and is included in the approval process of import-export zone.
Albania has a large delay in electricity market liberalization, which is why it has been criticized in the latest report of the European Union.
Day-ahead market model is the main arena for electricity trading in the Nordic and Baltic region. According to this model, supply contracts between buyers and sellers are concluded the day before.
Buyer must assess how much electricity will be needed to cover the needs of the following day, from hour to hour, and how much it is ready to pay for it. On the other hand, the seller, for example, the owner of hydropower plant must decide what amount of electricity it can supply, and at what price, also from hour to hour.
Prices per hour are published at 12:42 or later. After the market prices are calculated, from 00:00 the following day contracted electricity is delivered per hour, according to the agreement.
