28 Dec The process for the finalization of the EITI annual report 2016
On 6 December 2017, the EITI National Secretariat organized a meeting at the premises of the Ministry of Infrastructure and Energy, regarding final procedures for the preparation of the EITI annual report 2016.
The meeting was attended by the Deputy Minister and at the same time MSG Chairman, Enis Aliko; Head of the EITI National Secretariat, Ardit Kamberi, and by representatives of line Directorates at MEI, subordinate institutions, National Agency of Natural Resources (AKBN), Albanian Geological Survey (SHGSH), the EITI National Secretariat, and representatives of the Independent Administrator, Deloitte Audit Albania, contracted by the EITI Secretariat for the preparation of the Annual Activity Report.
The purpose of the meeting was to discuss on the requirements of the Independent Administrator Deloitte Audit Albania, regarding the problems faced during the data collection process, which have been officially reported by the respective Directorates of MEI, NARN (AKBN), AGS (SHGSH), etc.
The participants at the meeting raised concers about some delays in the reporting procedures by both state institutions and private entities.
Meanwhile, it was suggested that the Independent Administrator should coordinate work and make use of the online data already published on the official websites of the institutions, while taking into account only items and specifications where there is uncertainty and lack of reconciliation.
At the end of the meeting, the Deputy Minister, Mr.Aliko and the Head of the EITI National Secretariat, Mr. Kamberi, demanded that the Independent Administrator, in cooperation with the line Directorates of MIE, subordinate institutions and tax and customs authorities, submit a final version of the detailed material by mid-December, 2017.
The participants also agreed that strictly monitoring the collection of revenue generated from mining royalties and assessing direct social impacts on local communities living in extractive areas is crucial for them.
In this context, it is imperative to increase the level of interactive cooperation with local government units in order to finalize the monitoring and analysis of the actual benefits at local level of revenues from the exploitation of mineral and petroleum resources, as one of the key priorities of EITI Albania.
Legally speaking, the EITI reporting process in Albania is regulated by two principal laws, Law on Oil and Gas (amended in March, 2015), and the Law on Hydrocarbons (amended in October 2014).
Currently, for the preparation of the 2016 EITI Report were selected about 130 companies (based on production volume) from the mining sector (which account for about 89% of the country’s total mineral production); all companies having Petroleum agreements in place, and about 12 concessionary companies operating in the energy sector.
The National EITI Secretariat has published so far 6 official annual reports, covering 7 years (2009-2015). The official publication of the EITI Report 2016, which aims at promoting transparency and good governance of natural resources in the country, is due to be released by early February 2018.