Speech of Prime Minister Edi Rama at the starting ceremony for the drilling of the well Shpirag 3 by the company SHELL:

Hello everyone!

Today it is no longer a secret what Jan Henk and Maks discussed with me some time ago regarding a new discovery of a significant reserve of oil and gas of better quality. But, for a period of time, it remained unspoken, because SHELL required more security in the technical sense of the word, in order to make this notice.

The greatest guarantee is that this company – whose annual income is 33 times higher than the whole GDP in Albania, just to give you an idea – decided not to terminate its investment program in Albania and not only that, but it got 100% of the shares after the agreement with the company Petromanas.

Of course it’s a super company and a super investment as added value that comes in Albania. This is the reason why today, we have secured both for the Vice President of exploration for Europe and for Jan Henk, a heat which is typical of the Persian Gulf countries, so that they will feel in the heart of the world in terms of oil exploration.

On the other hand, it is important to note that Albania is a rich country and that everybody must have a clear idea on this, the second richest country in Europe for its water potential, and the first richest country in Europe in relation to the territory of the population, for oil and gas onshore, hence, in the underground.

Shell also is negotiating with the Albanian government, and has actually completed the draft of a new agreement, and after operations in Blocks 2 and 3, will soon launch a new operation in Block 4.

What is worth mentioning and that to me is a good reason to express gratitude to SHELL, is that this company has agreed to change its approach in this new agreement, in relation to the previous agreement, and has agreed to share, – to put it in simple terms – more income with the Albanian people.

This is a fact which makes it completely true what is written in the SHELL motto, and also what we said before, both the Vice President and our friend Jan Henk, who is a sort of De Biasi of the oil fields in Albania, but who is still waiting to become as famous as De Biasi once he stars trading in the new amount of the good quality oil that was discovered recently by SHELL.

It is of great importance the fact that SHELL did not interrupt its programs with Albania, as she did with all the other programs due to the drastic fall in oil prices.

Of course, it didn’t do this because of the blind love for Albania, but because of the clarity of vision of development, given the fantastic results of recent exploration and the very encouraging indicators of a new oil and gas reserve, the largest to date in Albania.

Even more important than these is that Shell has accepted the new line of policy pursued by the government, to build agreements that are not at the expense of the Albanian people, but are made according to the reconciliation of interests. Until yesterday, the state budget has not received anything other than the rent for years and years, and certain companies have been exploring, have sold and claimed that they are not yet at the point where, under the agreements, they should pay something to the Albanian people. While today, the new agreement is a full guarantee for a long-term relationship, with mutual interest between the Albanian government and the company SHELL, which I want to thank for its exemplary coherence between their promise and their deed, for everything that SHELL propagates with passion, for its social profile and everything we had the opportunity to experience when drafting the agreement.

It has not been an easy deal. SHELL is not a charitable organization. It is one of the biggest bugaboos of world capitalism, but the truth is that it has remained in this table until the end to enter into an agreement on the full harmonization of interests.

With the signing of the new agreement for Block 4, we sign an agreement for a new foreign investment, of a large scale, in the territory of our country.

The fact that Shell continues to invest in Albania, while new investments in the oil sector have suffered a decrease due to price, is at the same time, a flag set to attract the attention and interest of other companies.

In fact, if we look in relation to the past, what is the quality, reputation and power of companies that are interested today to enter the market of oil and gas in Albania, this fact is significant and Shell has a major role in this regard.

But it has a big role, not only for oil and gas, but for all foreign investments in Albania. Our new agreement with Shell is a very clear message that we give to foreign investors. SHELL’s presence here is a very clear evidence that for those who want to invest in Albania, not to steal, or to fool the Albanian people, but to benefit mutually, Albania is an open and safe country.

This is an opportunity to make the right comparisons between a powerful company that invests seriously, that cooperates and thinks seriously about the future, not trying to take what it can today, and leave behind ruins in the state budget or in the Albanian territories, and other companies that while waving friendly countries flags have only tried to fool the Albanian people and avoid debts to the state budget. That era is over!

We do not get impressed by the flags of friendly countries, when they are waved to pressure the Albanian government. Nobody can make pressure on the Albanian Government.

In conclusion, while thanking once again from the heart the Vice President and the De Biasi of oil for being here, I want to assure everyone that our new policy on energy has entered a completely new stage. This investment also is indicative of this completely new stage, where now, after stopping the bleeding and stabilizing the sector, we have entered the irreversible process of market liberalization.

Meanwhile, people across the country are seeing the fruits of this great joint investment, since the end of June will be also the end of the flat bills era. The fact that this summer, in many tourist areas, service of electricity will be qualitatively different, and even remote areas, villages such as Ostreni, Valmartaneshi or any other village that has not have electricity for 25 years, has been detached from the system, and have lived using gas lamps, will turn on the lights in June, speaks for itself of the worth of this radical reforms that was painful and required sacrifices from many people. But, ultimately, it is a typical reform of the new philosophy according to which, with these reforms and these investments, we are building the new generation Albania.

Many thanks!