Rama sheds light on the behind-the-scenes of investments in Sazan and Zvërnec, here’s why there is still no construction permit, the truth of the property trials involving SPAK and the non-negotiable condition for an in-depth environmental assessment according to EU standards
Prime Minister Edi Rama reacted yesterday regarding the public debates on investment projects on Sazan Island and in the Zvërnec area, which have faced strong criticism, where protests have been held throughout the country for 15 days. Through a long note on social networks, Prime Minister Rama emphasized that no part of the Albanian territory has been put up for sale and that all procedures are being followed in accordance with the law.
According to the head of government, Sazan Island remains the property of the Albanian state and its sale has never been discussed, and underlines that the proposed model for tourist development foresees the state’s participation in the investment, while negotiations with investors continue and there is still no final agreement.
“Not a single square meter of Albania has been put up for sale, no one has made any bargains behind the people’s backs, and the Republic of Albania has been represented with undoubted dignity, in a negotiation that has not yet been closed,” Rama emphasizes in his Facebook post.
Regarding the project in Zvërnec, the prime minister emphasized that the land where the investment is envisaged is private property registered in the cadastre for years and that its purchase was carried out through agreements between investors and legal owners. He also underlined that the disputes of some parties claiming ownership are under judicial review and are not related to the government.
“The entire course of the facts of this story shows the world that Albania is not a godless country; Albanian institutions function with integrity, professionalism and without any complexes towards foreign investors; the Albanian government leads Albania with vision and dignity,” he adds.
Rama’s full post:
“FACTS OUTSIDE THE TURBID INTERNET CHANNELS OR A MIRROR FOR ALL THE ALBANIAN STATE’S PROPAGATORS???? SAZAN ISLAND is state property, which has never been intended (nor sought) for sale.
* The form of making this state-owned land available to turn it into a top-level tourist destination is thought to be through state participation in the investment. Based on a detailed negotiation process, the state will receive quotas as an involved party, while the island will always remain the property of the Albanian state.
* Negotiations are still open and there is no final agreement yet. In parallel, the investors have continued work with development studies, but have not yet presented the architectural project and the corresponding environmental study.
The above speaks for itself about the dignified and professional approach of the Albanian government in protecting the interests of the state and the public. Investors, for their part, have shown full respect for our institutions and a very cooperative spirit. Not a single square meter of Albania has been put up for sale, no one has made any bargains behind the backs of the people, and the Republic of Albania has been represented with undoubted dignity, in a negotiation that has not yet been closed.
THE ZVËRNEC INVESTMENT AREA is a private property registered in the cadastre for many years. The development plan of that area is the result of an agreement between the investors and the owners holding the property titles in the cadastral register (as in all endless cases of private property development). The investors have purchased the properties from them and are currently the legitimate owners of the land in question.
* As sometimes happens with the Albanian coast, the area has other claimants. In this case, not one party, but two parties. On one side are two families who claim the property as long-time owners and on the other side are many families who claim the property as former members of the communist agricultural cooperative.
They have all taken their claims to court.
* But in the meantime, according to Albanian law and every law in the world on private property, third-party claims cannot prevent either the development or the sale of property by entities that have it registered in the cadastre. The registrations in this area were made long before this governing majority came to office.
* The case has led to SPAK having an open investigation into one of the sellers of the property, in connection with another matter. At the request of prosecutors and by decision of the judges, the amount paid by the investors for the purchase of that part of the property was executed as a transaction in favor of the investors, without being transferred to the seller, but to a frozen bank account.
* The seller will not be able to withdraw that amount before the investigation is closed, and if the court decides that the amount is not due to him, then the amount will be seized and transferred to the state compensation fund for owners. This means that if and only when the court grants the right to one or more of the claimants of the property in question, they will be able to receive the amount they are due from this fund.
The above clearly shows that the sale and purchase of property in Zvërnec has no connection with the government, it is simply related to the most elementary relationship between private entities, in a system where the right to private property is a fundamental human right. On the other hand, the above also clearly shows that the judicial authorities have acted not only in complete independence, but also in the interest of the state and in protection of the right to private property, whether when they have considered the transaction carried out by the investors correct, or when they have decided to place the amount in a frozen account.
INTEREST IN INVESTMENT IN ZVËRNEC officially came in 2024 when investors submitted a master plan to the National Territorial Council, which was also made public on the Opinion show by one of the company’s architects.
* The master plan was reviewed at the meeting of September 25, 2024. The National Territorial Council did not approve the master plan, but requested its substantial revisions, setting the bar high for an exemplary development for Albania Tourism 2030 in the European Union.
* Requirements for reducing the intensity of development, providing special measures for the protection of the lagoon, surrounding habitats and environmentally sensitive parts of the development area are documented.
* A year and a few months later, on March 30, 2026, the investors re-presented themselves before the National Territorial Council, with a new draft master plan that reflected the parameters requested by the council. The NTC approved the development permit at that meeting, which is not a construction permit and does not authorize the start of construction works, but paves the way for the project preparation phase. In the meantime, for the aforementioned permit to be issued and enter into force, the legal and technical conditions must be met, for which the work of the group of architects involved continues.
* It should be noted that in order to obtain a building permit and authorization to begin construction works, after the development permit has been issued, the developer must submit a detailed architectural project, along with the necessary technical documentation.
* The permit to enclose private property for development, by decision dated April 29, 2026, is part of the legal procedures granted at the request of the property developer to enable field measurements, monitoring activities for the environmental study and other preliminary measures of a preparatory nature, which are necessary for the technical documentation of the construction permit.
* In parallel with the territorial planning procedures, the developer has officially submitted a request for an Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA), for which the relevant state structures have been engaged according to law.
* After completing the screening and scoping phases, the state authority responsible for the environment decided on May 15, 2026, that the project should undergo not just a regular environmental impact assessment, but an In-Depth Environmental Impact Assessment.
Therefore, before the final project implementation documentation is approved and before the request for a construction permit is reviewed, the developer is required to prepare and submit an In-Depth Environmental Impact Assessment.
* The assessment in question must analyze in detail and with undoubted professional competence, the potential impacts of development on biodiversity, habitats, ecosystems, landscape values and other elements in accordance with Albanian environmental legislation and with the relevant European Union standards, legislation and regulatory framework.
* In this specific case, it has been requested that the In-Depth Environmental Impact Assessment should examine, among other things, the potential effects of the project on protected habitats and species, ecological connectivity, coastal and lagoon ecosystems, landscape integrity and long-term environmental sustainability.
* The findings and recommendations that will emerge from the In-Depth Environmental Impact Assessment, as well as the opinion that the relevant authorities will form on the quality of the assessment, will constitute a reference point for any further decision-making related to the progress of the project.
* The news about the removal of the status of the relevant development area as a protected area, in order to pave the way for this investment, is one of the biggest untruths that have been spread beyond imagination against this colossal investment for Albania.
And of course, the claims raised on this untruth have unfairly damaged the unquestionable moral, legal and professional integrity that the Albanian state and administration have shown throughout the process of handling this investment with an extraordinary potential impact on Albania’s Gross National Product itself.
* The “Pishë Poro – Nartë” area has never changed its category as a “Protected Landscape”, since 2004 when it was first declared as such. So it has been and is a protected area, classified as Category V according to the IUCN (Protected Landscape). This is also clearly specified in the Decision of the Council of Ministers dated September 25, 2024, which has absolutely not changed the status of that area, but has only specified its defining criteria.
* This area has no connection with the Vjosa delta as it is deliberately confused in the smoke, as if it will be affected by construction. It is impossible to happen, because the Vjosa in all 480 km of its flow together with its branches and the mouth in the Adriatic, has the highest level of protection, National Park, Category I, now part of the UNESCO Biosphere Ecosystems.
* Our protected areas system is based on the international classification framework of the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), which applies different levels of limitations for each of the categories of protected areas, and the law “On Protected Areas”, adopted in 2017, as the first law to include European directives in the field of biodiversity, has fully integrated the above categories into the national legal framework.
* According to the criteria set by the international framework, Category V is not a “no development” area, but a protected landscape where biodiversity, natural values, and human activity must coexist in a harmonious and sustainable manner.
* The 2017 law is not affected by any 2024 change to the explicit provision in the European standard that a Protected Landscape may include settlements and other forms of land use.
* More specifically, point 4 of Article 20, written as early as 2017, stipulates that activities that bring about changes in land use, including construction works, wastewater treatment plants for farms, highways, navigable canals, urban developments and other infrastructure or development projects, may only be carried out after obtaining the relevant permit from the National Territorial Council.
The above says a lot, which they would do well not to forget next time they slander our country, all those who, in Albanian or especially in foreign languages, universally mistreated Albania and its government with comments, chronicles, articles or various kinds of crazy explosions on social channels, as if they were synonyms of a Banana Republic, without a state, without institutions, without a flag or even dignity. The entire course of facts in this story, universally shows that Albania is not a godless country; Albanian institutions function with integrity, professionalism and without any complexes towards foreign investors; The Albanian government leads Albania with vision and dignity, as shown by the epochal transformation and new image of our country, despite the completely undeserved mudslinging of these days, from the collective anti-Trump hysteria or from the terrible vices of the new age of technology itself, where the central place of facts has been occupied in recent weeks by a slanderous spectacle of rumors, fabrications, accusations and denigrations that echoed everywhere in the name of a shameful pseudo-anti-corruption.
CURRENTLY EXPECTED:
* Completion of documentation for the issuance of the development permit;
* Application for a building permit with a detailed project, along with all relevant technical documentation;
* Detailed Environmental Impact Assessment Document;
* Analysis by the relevant authorities of the findings and recommendations of the Detailed Environmental Impact Assessment;
* Study on the environmental impacts of the project on biodiversity, habitats, ecosystems, landscape values and other environmental components;
* Ensuring compliance of the submitted project with Albanian environmental legislation and with European Union environmental standards, legislation and regulations.
THE FACTS ARE HIGHER. ANYONE WHO WILL TRY TO PULL ALBANIA BACK DOWN WILL NEVER SUCCEED. ALBANIA WILL NOT BE AFRAID OF BIG DREAMS. THE ALBANIAN PEOPLE WILL NOT SHUT DOWN IN THE FACE OF ANY BIG CHALLENGE. TOGETHER WE WILL MAKE EUROPEAN ALBANIA THE PRINCESS OF MEDITERRANEAN TOURISM AND WE WILL SHOW ALL THOSE WHO GOSPELED THAT OUR COUNTRY IS NO LONGER WORSE, THAT ALBANIA IS VERY SERIOUS ABOUT ITS EPOCAL TRANSFORMATION,” Prime Minister Edi Rama wrote yesterday on social media.