Shell abandons Shpirag/ Rama-Balluku duo's propaganda with oil reserves

The Dutch company "Shell" has decided to withdraw from Albania, suspending oil exploration in Shpirag, a dream that the prime minister apparently failed to make a reality. In addition to the failure, the company is leaving with a loss of 1.1 billion euros for the operations they have carried out in search of oil.

Rama has often declared with great fanfare that the discovery of oil in Shpirag would make Albania a rich country, claiming that the oil reserves in Shpirag are of the same quality as those in Saudi Arabia.

"The discovered oil is of the highest quality. It is the first time that this has happened in our country because the oil resources that have been discovered in the past and that have been exploited and are still exploited, such as, for example, Patos - Marinza, are sources of heavy oil that as such is used for bitumen, solar, but it is not an oil that can enter the consumption of vehicles and its value is very modest. Meanwhile, according to the analyzes carried out by the Dutch laboratory, the oil discovered in the Shpirag area is an oil of the same quality as the premium oil of Saudi Arabia ," Rama declared.

For years, the prime minister has sold the Shpirag oil as a historic achievement, an opportunity to further develop the economy, which resulted in a failure.

Rama has been making such statements since 2014, continuing in 2016, 2019, 2022 and even 2023.

The story of Shpirag oil

In the Shpirag area, oil exploration began in the late 1980s, but a lack of funding did not allow production to increase further.

For the first time, oil was discovered in 2001 by the company Oçidental Petroleum, in a well called Shpirag 1 with a depth of 5055 m. But, despite finding oil, the company stopped operations after considering the area unprofitable.

Twelve years later, in 2013, a company called Petromanas drilled a second well and conducted tests. The second well was 5,547 meters deep and the oil found was “light” oil, meaning high-quality oil that fetches a higher price on the international market. Since then, Shell, which bought Manas’ interests in the project, has also drilled wells 3, 4, and 5.

Rama and Balluk's 'Show'

In August last year, at the height of the hot summer, Rama and Balluku appeared at a media conference in Shpirag, to show the work being done by Shell on the oil wells.

Balluku stated that by January of this year, we would have a public result from the company.

"In October of this year (2023) and until the end of December, or at the latest in early January 2024, the Shell company will conduct tests to extract Shpirag oil to the surface. In January, we will have a public result, which the Shell company itself will declare ," declared Balluku.

Balluk's statement was followed by her boss, who spoke proudly of a massive investment plan that would bring Shpirag's oil not only to the domestic market, but also to the world market.

"A massive investment plan is also being prepared because all that reserve must then enter the relevant infrastructure and be released to the domestic and global market. The discovered oil is of the highest quality, it is the first time that this has happened in our country because other sources are of a heavy oil that is used for bitumen, solar, but it is not oil that can enter the consumption of vehicles," Rama said at the time.

But, apparently, the Rama-Balluku duo's conference was nothing more than a "show" that, at the height of the heat, sought to make the propaganda more 'fresh' than to arouse happiness among Albanians who, according to the prime minister, should now be rich from the discovery of oil.

Rama in 2016

The Prime Minister of Albania, Edi Rama, stated in a Facebook post at the time that the oil and gas reserves are of the best quality in the world oil market, the prestigious company SHELL has brought to Albania the most powerful technology probe (the probe alone costs 72 million euros) to begin work on opening the wells.

Rama in 2017

Through a post on Twitter, Prime Minister Rama announced the news that the company SHELL is close to discovering large oil and gas reserves in Shpirag.

"Extremely encouraging news from the meeting with the SHELL company? We are still a few weeks away from the proof of the truth of Shpirag, where all the data speaks of a large gas and oil reserve? If the proof is successful, the impact on the economy will be considerable starting in 2020?" writes the Prime Minister.

So, just like last year, just like two years ago, or even 10 years ago, the government's oil news is just to fill propaganda.