Kosovo, Water Supply Improvement and Water Resources Protection for Gjakova Regional Water Company: Feasibility Study, ESIA, Detailed Design, Tender Dossier

The Regional Water Company Gjakova (RWCG) manages and operates the water supply and sewerage systems in the Municipalities of Gjakova and Rahovec and part of the villages of the Municipality of Prizren. The main water network covers more than 300 km², and, with the secondary distribution network, it reaches about 750 km². The source of water for the supply system is the Radoniqi Lake.

To ensure the provision of efficient and high-quality water supply in the service area of RWCG, reduce water losses in the network, protect water resources, and increase the financial sustainability of the operator, Kosovo* has proposed a three-component investment focusing on:

• Installation of smart meters in the supply system. It is estimated that around 41,000 water meters need to be replaced with smart meters and another 37,000 new water manholes have to be built before smart meters are installed.
• Replacement of asbestos cement (AC) pipes with polyethylene pipes in the service area, i.e. approx. 50 km of AC pipes in the urban area of Gjakova and 90 km in Rahovec and Prizren villages.
• Protection of 7 km of the deviation canal, which fees water from the Lumbardhi River to the Radoniqi Lake, with concrete prefabricated elements.

For these purposes, WBIF allocated a technical assistance grant in December 2020 to finance the preparation of a Feasibility Study, ESIA Study, Detailed Design and Tender Dossiers for construction works and supervision of works.

* This designation is without prejudice to positions on status, and is in line with UNSCR 1244 and the ICJ Opinion on the Kosovo Declaration of Independence