FLASH NEWS
Email to Rama/ Head of the American Chamber of Commerce calls on the Government: Cancel the tender for Porto Romano. The existing project deprives Albania of the chance to be competitive in the region!
2026-03-07 14:56:59 / POLITIKË
The head of the American Chamber of Commerce in Tirana, Grant Van Cleeve, has addressed a public letter to Edi Rama and senior government officials, regarding the Porto Romano tender.
Van Cleeve considers this project as a decision that is made once in 100 years and requests the postponement of the competition because, according to him, the existing project deprives Albania of the chance to be competitive in the region.
Below is the full letter:
Honorable Edi Rama – Prime Minister of Albania
Honorable Enea Karakaçi – Minister of Infrastructure and Energy
Honorable Ermal Nufi – Minister of Defense
1. Liburn Aliu – Executive Director of the Durres Port Authority
Albania has a historic opportunity to reshape the logistical geometry of the Balkans, shifting the region's economic gravity and achieving strategic dominance in connectivity through the construction of high-capacity corridors anchored in Porto Romano.
Infrastructure is engineering.
Logistic dominance is good governance and leadership.
Speed changes geometry faster than ideology.
The decision planned for March 9 regarding Porto Romano represents a national strategic moment that will shape Albania's geopolitical and economic position in Southeast Europe for decades.
Ports are built once a century, and strategic mistakes made at ports can determine the fate of a nation for a century.
If Porto Romano is built at its current limited scale, Corridor 8 will fail structurally and freight flows to Southeast Europe will continue to be captured by Piraeus and Thessaloniki, leaving Albania outside the main Mediterranean logistics system for the next century.
Major ports are among a nation's most important geopolitical assets. Unlike roads or railways, which can be expanded over time, major ports are typically built only once a century, and their initial scale determines their long-term strategic potential.
The Fundamental Problem
The current design of Porto Romano is extremely small:
1,400 meters of quay wall
2.38 hectares of port area
Ports compete on scale.
In today's maritime economy, a 400-meter port that can realistically accommodate only ONE large ship cannot compete with a 24-kilometer port.
Corridor 8 depends on Porto Romano
Transportation corridors follow ports — not the other way around.
A small port cannot generate the volumes of goods needed to support a major east-west logistics corridor like Corridor 8.
Corridor 8 will not follow a small port. If Porto Romano remains small, regional cargo will continue to pass through Piraeus and Thessaloniki.
Strategic Context
Due to its geographical position between the Adriatic Sea and the Black Sea, Corridor 8 has been a strategic objective for more than three decades.
However, not all geopolitical actors share the same interest in developing a strong east-west logistics axis in the Balkans. Some actors benefit from maintaining existing north-south flows, centered around other Mediterranean ports.
Infrastructure in regions with geopolitical competition is never neutral.
Strategic Opportunity
Porto Romano could become the central logistics platform of Southeast Europe, integrated with Corridor 8.
A strategic scale development should aim to:
1. 18 meters water depth capacity;
2. 2+ million TEU container capacity;
3. large logistics zones and Free Trade Zones;
4. RoRo and energy terminals (including LNG from the USA);
5. NATO's naval and strategic infrastructure.
This platform would place Albania at the center of regional supply chains.
NATO's Strategic Dimension
A deep-water Porto Romano, connected to Corridor 8, would significantly strengthen NATO's strategic mobility and resilience in Southeast Europe.
Strategic Choice
The question is simple:
Will Albania depend on Piraeus and Thessaloniki — or will the Balkans depend on Porto Romano?
A small Porto Romano will remain a secondary national port.
A large Porto Romano could redefine Albania's strategic role in Southeast Europe.
Proposed Solution
1. We respectfully request that the Porto Romano tender scheduled for March 9 be postponed and reviewed based on the latest NATO and Corridor 8 requirements.
2. We can facilitate the EPC+F development of a larger Porto Romano within this year, co-financed by partners from the United States and Italy, and carried out by strategic suppliers from the US, Italy, the Netherlands and Turkey.
3. We can provide the best American engineering firms to assist in the design review of Porto Romano, the railways, highways and all dual-use infrastructure of Corridor 8, built to NATO standards, in full coordination with NATO and to secure additional funding from NATO.
With respect,
Grant Van Cleve
COO, Tecnal
Happening now...
Germany, the "curse" of Rama and Berisha
Nga Bato Kosova
ideas
When crisis becomes a system: Dilemmas of the Republic of Kosovo
Nga Sokol Neçaj
The opposition must and will be bigger than an individual.
Nga Taulanda Jupi
top
Alfa recipes
TRENDING 
services
- POLICE129
- STREET POLICE126
- AMBULANCE112
- FIREFIGHTER128