The European Investment Bank (EIB) – the lending arm of the EU – will invest €80 million to improve Tirana’s water distribution system. The investment will enable reduction of water losses and continuous availability of drinking water for over 800,000 people. Provided with Team Europe’s support, this investment will modernise water management efficiency, improve water supply security and contribute to better health and environmental conditions in the capital, increasing resilience to climate changes and promoting economic growth.

The project will modernise the existing distribution network and provide continuous, reliable, long-term water supply service in the city through the Guri i Bardhë transmission line and the Tirana high-pressure water supply ring. It will also improve drinking water quality by eliminating the small personal reservoirs erected on rooftops, which have a high risk of contamination. The investment comes under the EIB’s Economic Resilience Initiative, aiming to mobilise finance to support growth, job creation, vital infrastructure projects and social cohesion in the EU’s neighbouring regions.

The Municipality of Tirana has already worked with the bank on its first urban redevelopment project in Albania – on the Lana riverfront in 2019. This project helped reduce pollution in the River Lana and reorganised streets and urban space near the riverbank.