
In the western part of the Balkans in Europe, there is a 285 kilometer-long river, the Drin River, which flows
westward through northern Albania and directly into the Adriatic Sea, with a catchment area of 14,173 square
kilometers. Thanks to a steep riverbed slope and abundant water resources, Albania has built three cascade
hydroelectric power stations on the Drin River, namely, Fierza, Koman, and Vau i Dejës. The total installed
capacity of the three power stations approaches 1,400 MW, accounting for 70.6 percent of Albania’s total
capacity of nationwide hydroelectric power stations. They form the…