Prime Minister Edi Rama took the first flight from Tirana to the new Kukes International Airport Zayed on Sunday, 150km far from the capital. The launching of the airport operations was done one week ahead of general elections in the country. Rama had promised to have the first London-Kukes flight before elections, but today’s Air Albania flight landed in Tirana first, where Rama boarded it, and then flew to Kukes. He was welcomed by hundreds of Socialist Party supporters at the new airport. In the electoral rally held on the occasion, the Prime Minister said the airport will be able to start international operations in “50-60 days”. He claimed that “all airports first start operation as local ones”. Minister of Transport Belinda Balluku said that the private company that built the airport will get in touch with airline companies, which will be able to use the airport starting from June 17. She added that direct connections from Kukes will include Germany, Switzerland and Great Britain but didn’t clarify what airline companies have decided to establish connections with Kukes. Rama said there is a big interest by international airlines to start flights with Kukes. No details were given what companies have expressed interest. Last week, the Committee of Experts overseeing the pandemic recommended the government to resume flights with the UK, after their positive assessment of the COVID-19 situation there. Immediately after, the government announced it was allowing flights from the UK after a 4-month ban, adding that the first flight from London to Kukes would take place on April 18. The flight was expected to bring to their home city 132 UK residents, according to Balluku’s announcement last week, but less that 40 passengers appeared on the flight from Tirana to Kukes on Sunday. It remains unclear whether construction works at the airport are completed, and whether the airport has been certified nationally to launch operations. https://exit.al/en/2021/04/18/new-kukes-airport-welcomes-rama-aboard-the-first-flight-from-tirana/

With the help of a loan of up to €25 million from the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), Poland will become the site of the first facility in the European Union (EU) for recycling both car batteries and other waste containing metals, in response to the rapid rise of electric vehicles. The EBRD financing for Elemental Holding S.A. will be part of a wider package raised to finance the construction of the pioneering facility, which will be one of the first in the world to treat spent lithium-ion batteries for electric vehicles and other waste containing metals that are critical for e-mobility. Elemental Holding S.A. is a Polish company engaged in the collection and recycling of platinum-group metals and electrical waste and has a worldwide presence. The company has operations in Poland, other European countries, the Middle East and the United States of America. Frederic Lucenet, EBRD Director, Manufacturing and Services, said: “This is an outstanding example of how new technology and progress with the green economy are working hand in hand. The EBRD is actively supporting Poland’s ambitious agenda to become a low-carbon economy and has already financed several large e-mobility projects with domestic and foreign investors.” Michal Zygmunt, Vice-President of Elemental Holding S.A., added: “The project reflects the strategy of Elemental Holding focusing on the recovery and refining of critical raw materials, with the application of low-carbon-footprint technology and innovations.” The facility entails the deployment of state-of-the art innovative technology supplemented and co-financed by the Polish National Centre for Research and Development (NCBR) with the support of the European Commission. The plant will produce secondary metals and other materials that can be reused as raw materials for new batteries or other applications, providing an essential service in the lithium-ion batteries value chain. These batteries are a core component of electric vehicles, sales of which are forecast to overtake those of petrol- and diesel-powered cars as the transition to a low-carbon economy progresses. The project will reduce greenhouse gas emissions and support the circular economy in the e-mobility sector. The production and use of recycled batteries and metals can lead to carbon savings as high as 98 per cent compared to their primary counterparts, as well as to a more efficient use of scarce natural resources. The project benefited from technical cooperation support provided by the TaiwanBusiness-EBRD Technical Cooperation Fund and Spain. To date, the EBRD has invested €10.8 billion in 456 projects in Poland. The Bank is a leading investor in the renewables sector and has previously also co-financed two battery investments for electric vehicles in the country. https://www.ebrd.com/news/2021/with-ebrd-financing-poland-builds-first-recycling-plant-for-car-batteries-.html

Commercial flights resumed at Albania’s Tirana International Airport on Friday after they were blocked for two days by an air traffic controllers’ strike. The first commercial flight with passengers left the airport for Italy on Friday at 9:05 a.m. (0705 GMT). Only “essential” flights took place the previous day. Those included a plane bringing a batch of virus vaccines. The government has hired Turkish and Greek controllers to replace the local ones. The controllers, who are seeking a pay rise, have avoided calling their action a strike, as that is not allowed under Albanian law, instead declaring a temporary inability to work due to stress. Prime Minister Edi Rama said two groups of controllers from Turkey and Greece would “work together to continue the operation.” Many Albanian controllers have agreed to resume work, he added. The government considered the controllers’ walkout illegal. Three controllers have been detained and are being probed on suspicion of abuse of post. Twenty-seven others were also questioned. The controllers’ union says their pay has been cut by 62% over the past year due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. Over the same period, Albania’s air traffic has fallen by 57%, according Infrastructure Minister Belinda Balluku. The minister said air traffic controllers are paid $2,490 a month — five times the country’s average salary of about $500. The incident has also turned into a political issue as there is a parliamentary election in the country on April 25. https://apnews.com/article/turkey-albania-coronavirus-pandemic-tirana-air-traffic-control-d10275b1c06ee18d4f9127d110e95325