THE POTENTIAL FOR BIOMASS ENERGY IN THREE ALBANIAN REGIONS

Biomass combustion is amongst the oldest and the most mature technique for conversion of biomass to energy, but still a great challenge lies ahead in developing new, more efficient and environmentally sustainable -systems. In light of the European Action and the National Strategy in the energy sector, Albania has enacted a friendly policy regarding renewable energy sources, including biomass. Execution of such projects is delegated to both regional and local authorities for various technical, economic and socio-environmental considerations as well as for an integrated approach to the land use planning. This paper identifies the main sources of biomass energy in three different regions of Albania i.e. Korça, Tirana and Vlora. It shows the weight of each possibility on the total potential for energy production by biomass as well as the type and distribution of each biomass. The manner how the potential offered by forestry, agriculture and agro-industry would be utilized will, apart from availability of appropriate technology, also depend on the ability of economic operators to organize themselves efficiently while respecting environmental sustainability.