Eastern Europe

The following provides a summary of a variety of projects that Valu Add has undertaken in Eastern Europe in its areas of expertise.

Eastern Europe  –  See Projects In:  Middle East    North America   Asia & Southern Africa
  • Planning and Local Governance Project –USAID: Valu Add is serving as a main subcontractor to Tetra Tech ARD to implement the five-year USAID Planning and Local Governance Project (PLGP) in Albania. The goal of PLGP is to provide technical assistance and training to the Government of Albania (GoA) and to Albanian local government institutions, to help the GoA and local governments successfully implement decentralization legislation, policies, and reforms.  Valu Add is leading Component II-Improve local government management and oversight of selected public utilities to provide services in accordance with European Union (EU) standards.

 

  • Water and Sanitation Technical Assistance Project in Albania: The Consortium Valu Add & GFA Consulting Group are contracted to implement a jointly funded 3-years Austrian Government/European Union capacity building project for the Albanian Water Supply and Sewerage Sector, with the target of formulating and implementing three regionalization agreements between local governments and their respective water utilities.

 

  • Prishtina Regional Water Company: Valu Add has provided Project Management services under Component C – Institutional Strengthening of the KfW funded investments to the Prishtina Regional Water Company in Kosovo. The Institutional Strengthening included areas such as improvements in bill collection and arrears collection, staff development plan, public relations and promotion programs, performance oriented management system, support to tariff application process, and water loss control and non-revenue water reduction program.

 

  • Lake Shkoder Water Supply and Environmental Protection Project: Valu Add served as the major sub-contractor to the Joint Venture Stucky/Dornier and Schneider to implement the Institutional Component of Lake Shkoder Water Supply and Environmental Protection Project funded by KFW. This component was mainly focused to address intensive training, set-up and proofing of three major software data management systems (Billing and Collection; Finance and Accounting; and GIS/Block Mapping).  Valu Add provided regular support, over a four-year period, in the implementation of Business Planning Process, improvement in management systems, financial planning and forecasting, bill collection efficiency, organizational development and personnel management, comprehensive and sustained staff training program, routine management reporting and performance review procedures, customer focused and commercially oriented customer service department , and public relations programs.

 

  • Guidelines for Management of Water Supply and Wastewater Utilities in Albania: Valu Add provided consulting services to GIZ and the Government of Albania to develop a set of Guidelines for the Management of Water Utilities.  These Guidelines are developed to be comprehensive to help the relevant stakeholders to provide orientations for the management of drinking water and wastewater utilities, and for the assessment of drinking water and wastewater services.  They are designed to address drinking water supply and wastewater systems in their entirety, and are applicable to systems regardless of the scope of services of the operating utility (source water facilities, treatment facilities; distribution networks; collections networks; residue processing facilities). The Guidelines are intended to facilitate dialogue between the stakeholders, enabling them to develop a mutual understanding of the functions and tasks that fall within the scope of water utilities.

 

  • Training Development and delivery for members of Supervisory Council for Water Utilities: Valu Add, under joint funding by USAID and GIZ, developed the Manual and Training Course for Supervisory Council Members of Water Supply and Sewerage Companies in Albania. This course has been added to the training schedule of the Water Supply and Sewerage Association of Albania to be conducted annually, as needed, to meet the demand of Supervisory Council members to become fully aware of their duties and responsibilities.

 

  • Water Supply and Sewerage Strategy of Albania: Valu Add recently assisted the Government of Albania to develop the Water Supply and Sewerage Services Sector Strategy for Albania.  This Sector Strategy for Water Supply and Sewerage Services in the Republic of Albania, for the period 2011-2017, has been prepared with the purpose of presenting Albania’s Vision, Mission Objectives and Actions Plans in a clear, specific, quantified and time bound manner, with stated institutional responsibilities. The intent in taking this somewhat different approach to a Sector Strategy was to ensure that there would be no confusion or misunderstanding of direction and purpose.

 

  • Shkoder -Bushat Regional Solid Waste Management: Valu Add has been contracted by the Local Government Program-USAID in Albania to provide Institutional Consulting Services to support stakeholder dialogue that will lead to a final consensus on the institutional structure for the management and oversight of the landfill operation.  Valu Add is preparing a 5 year Business Plan for Bushat Solid Waste management Company that will address the key issues of forecasted amount of solid waste expected to be disposed on an annual basis at the landfill.; staffing needs of the landfill; annual operations and maintenance budget; annual capital expenditures budget; revenue needs of the Company to be financially self-sustained;  near and longer term environmental and resource recovery issues and the unit cost for disposal of Solid waste at the landfill.  Valu Add is also assisting the Company develop a Model Solid Waste Disposal Agreement that would be the basis for the local units of government to enter into a formal agreement with the Company for the disposal of Solid Waste.

 

  • Solid Waste PPP for Tirana and DurresReview of legal and institutional framework with the aim to establish whether the basic conditions are given for the successful implementation of PPP transaction in Solid waste Disposal in Tirana and Durres areas.

 

  • Water Utility Business Planning Model and Five Business Plans, Republic of Albania. Valu Add served as prime contractor for the development of a business planning model to be applied and used by water supply and wastewater utilities in the Republic of Albania.  The model consists of an integrated Excel-based workbook and a 100-page Users Manual to guide the utility management through the business planning process. Once the model and users manual were completed and approved by an inter-ministerial working group, Valu Add was tasked by the General Directorate of Water Supply and Sewerage to provide training and technical assistance to five water utilities in various parts of Albania, in the preparation of a five-year business plan.  One particularly uniquely challenging situation was the preparation of a business plan for two utilities that were required to merge, to be eligible for foreign donor capital assistance.  The business plan is now function as a “road map” that these two utilities can follow to physically merge into one company over the course of three years.

 

  • Utility Business Plan, Lezhe, Albania. Valu Add Management Services has been appointed by LGPA, under Subcontract No: LGPA – 09-012 to assist the Lezhe Water Supply and Sewerage Company to develop a Five-Year Business Plan focused on quantified strategic goals, defined performance improvement programs, a forecasted financial plan that progresses toward full cost recovery, and a rational tariff strategy, applying the methodology of the Guideline and Model of Developing a Business Plan for Water Utilities in Albania that has been prepared by the General Directorate of Water Supply and Sewerage of Albania and accepted as the standard for all Albanian water utilities.

 

  • Utility Business Plan, Fier, Albania. Valu Add Management Services) has been awarded a Fix Obligation Grant by the Local Governance Program in Albania to assist the Fier Water Supply and Sewerage Company develop a Five-Year Business Plan.  The Business Plan is based on an analysis of the organizational, technical and financial situation of the utility with the purpose of identifying weaknesses, and in defining “measurable” performance improvement action plans to overcome those weaknesses.  Valu Add assisted the Senior Management of Fier Water Supply and Sewerage Company to present the Final Business Plan to the Supervisory Council.

 

  • Water Utility Regionalization Feasibility Study, Republic of Albania. Served as subconsultant and team leader under PADECO, a Japanese consulting firm, for a feasibility study funded by the Japanese Government and under World Bank direction that will consider the potential and the models for a greater regionalization of the water utility sector in Albania, which has 54 water supply and/or sewerage companies, and an undefined number of communal water supply systems.

 

  • Performance Monitoring and Benchmarking, Republic of Albania. Served as the Prime contractor under a World Bank funded project to establish a water supply and wastewater monitoring and benchmarking unit within the General Directorate of Water Supply and Sewerage.  The four-year project includes the selection of key performance indicators for the sector; the design and implementation of a national data collection program with 30 utilities in the first-year pilot survey; the development of data management system to store and process the data; and the training of a professional staff of three individuals in the General Directorate, who will be dedicated to this continuing activity.

 

  • Water Utility Sector Reform, Republic of Montenegro. Team leader for the development of a Water Utility Reform Plan for the Republic of Montenegro leading an international team of regulatory, utility finance and utility management experts, plus a ministerial level Working Group to design reforms that would facilitate the full transfer of water supply and wastewater assets to local government, while also building the foundation for improve corporate governance and commercial behavior.

 

  • Water Utility Capacity Building, Republic of Montenegro. Served as subcontractor to The Urban Institute under its Good Local Governance Project funded by USAID for the water supply and sewerage enterprises in Montenegro.  The services include training in the develop of business plans, development of a water loss reduction manual, development and implementation of a national performance indicator and benchmarking program, building capacity for the national water supply and sewerage association, and structuring and conducting study tours outside Montenegro.

 

  • Utility Business Plan, Kruja, Albania. Provided management capacity building to the Kruja Water Supply and Sewerage Company (Albania) as a subconsultant to IncoWest (German consultant) to assist the Company in developing a 5-Year Business Plan; installation and training the Customer Service staff in the operation of a computer-based billing system; development of a customer relations program; and development and implementation of a new Customer Service Agreement.

 

  • Utility Business Plan and Management Systems, Lushnja, Albania. Provided management capacity building to the Lushnja Water Supply and Sewerage Company (Albania) as a subconsultant to Dorsch/IncoWest (German JV Consultant) to assist the Company in developing a 5-Year Business Plan; installation of computer-based financial/accounting system and a computer-based billing and collection system; fully train the accounting and billing staffs in the operation of computer hardware/software; develop spreadsheet based water balance program; develop a customer relations program; and design a meter installation capital recovery program.

 

  • Water Utility Sector Capacity Building, Republic of Montenegro. Subconsultant to the Urban Institute in Montenegro to undertake a series of assignments to strengthen the water sector to include the delivery of training in the development of business plans for water utilities; develop of a business plan for the Association of Water and Wastewater Enterprises of Montenegro; development of a Water Loss Reduction Manual; delivery of training to public officials in private sector participation; and development of a monitoring and benchmarking program for the water sector in Montenegro.

 

  • Privatization Analysis and National Model, Republic of Albania. Conducted field investigations, data collection and report preparation for a report titled, “Albanian – Urban Infrastructure Investment and Development Privatization Pilot Programs for Water Enterprises”.  Initiated the corporatization program for the water enterprises of Albania to transition these infrastructure utilities to public water companies.  Served on the Advisory Committee of The World Bank consultant retained to manage the privatization implementation.

 

  • Institutional and O&M under Master Plan, Elbasan, Albania. Prepared the Institutional Management and the Operations and Maintenance sections of a water and wastewater master plan for the Elbansan Water Supply and Sewerage Enterprise, Republic of Albania, as a subcontractor to the firm of C. Lotti of Rome, Italy, under a World Bank loan.  The Elbasan system is now the first 30-year water supply and sewerage concession on Albania, under contract with Berlinwasser.

 

  • Commercialization Analysis of Four Water Utilities, Albania. Conducted the Commercialization Study for the water supply and wastewater enterprises of the Cities of Korca, Kruja, Kavaja and Rrogozhina, Republic of Albania, under contract to the German Development Bank (KfW).  The recommendations included specific action plans to achieve self-sustaining utilities with implementation plans covering the range from direct technical assistance to contract management.  Preparation of ToR’s for the Contract Management of the Kavaja Water Supply Enterprise and the Technical Assistance/Capacity Building of the remaining three water supply enterprises.

 

  • Develop ToR of Management Contractor, Kavaja, Albania. Developed the Terms of Reference (ToR) for the provision of long-term, on-site technical assistance, by way of a management contractor, to the newly formed Utility Regulatory Commission for the Republic of Albania, under a contract with the German Development Bank (KfW).

 

  • Expert Assistance to Transition Utility to Commercial Company, Pogradec, Albania. Provided direct senior advisory services to the water supply enterprise of the City of Pogradec, in the Republic of Albania, to facilitate its transformation into a commercial company under Albanian law.  These advisory services also included the conduct of a detailed due diligence assessment of the financial and record keeping aspects of the enterprise.  All of this was conducted under a contract with the German Development Bank (KfW).

 

  • Expert Assistance for Major Management Contract-Four Cities, Albania. Served as Lead Facilitator, to the Ministry of Public Works, Republic of Albania, for the tendering of a Management Contract to provide water supply and sewerage services to the Cities of Durres, Lezhe, Fier and Saranda, under a World Bank-funded, five-year project.  Developed a unique “inter-company” agreement to allow for a rational, structured relationship between the four Water Companies and the successful private sector service provider.  Worked directly with the Water Company Directors to modify and refine the performance parameters to be used to determine the annual performance incentive payment to the successful private sector service provider.

 

  • Utility Restructuring and Financial Training-Three Cities, Albania. Provided institutional structuring and commercialization consulting services, plus served as the Assessment Phase workshop facilitator for the water supply and sewerage study of the Cities of Lushnja, Berat and Kucova, Republic of Albania.  Subsequently conducted cost center-based accounting and budgeting training to the relevant staff under the same project.  All of this work was as a sub-consultant to RODECO Consulting under its contract with the German Development Bank (KfW).

 

  • Infrastructure Elements of Tirana Structure Plan, Albania. Served as Lead Subcontract and Infrastructure Team Leader under subcontract to PADCO, Inc. for The World Bank funded Albania Urban Land Management Project.  This Project will produce a Structure Plan for the Tirana Urban Area, as will as implement up to 12 subprojects, valued at over $10 million, to retrofit informally settled areas with essential infrastructure.

 

  • Transaction Advisor for Management Contract, Kavaja, Albania. Served as Transaction Advisor in a procurement process to retain the services of a private sector Management Contract to management the Kavaja Water Supply and Sewerage Company (Albania) for a period of four years.  These services included the issuance of the request for proposals, technical and financial bid evaluation, contact negotiation, and oversight during the transition phase.  This contract was funded by KfW.

 

  • Local Government Capacity Building under Decentralization, Albania. Served as a Subcontractor to The Urban Institute under its two-year Local Government Assistance Project funded by USAID.  The Project was focused on continuing to provide support to the Decentralization Task Force and to assist in building capacity within local government to assume the new authorities and responsibilities under the new Local Government Law.

 

  • Utility Services Consolidating and Restructuring, Focsani, Romania. Provided direct technical assistance to the Utility Director for the City of Focsani, Romania to reorganize the utility to create more direct lines of authority and responsibility.  Designed and conducted training to implement a “bottoms-up” budget and capital planning process.  Conducted training and organizational structuring for a Customer Services Department within the Regia.  Negotiated with the Mayor of Focsani to assume direct responsibility for public services that are public goods and not utility services in nature.

 

  • Water Utility Training, Kosovo. Prepared several training modules and delivered all training courses to selected water supply and sewerage enterprises in support of the USAID/UNMIK institutional strengthening program in Kosovo.  The modules addressed critical accounting and financial procedures and practices that are essential to the operation and management of a financially self-sustaining utility.  Three of the eight modules also addressed such key issues as Water System Monitoring and the related procedures for making repair/replacement decisions; Capital Program Management; and Maintenance Management.  All the training deliveries are made by Albanian national trainers in the Albanian language.

 

  • Develop Business Plans for Two Water Utilities, Kosovo. Working with local Public Utility Service Providers (PUSP) in Kosovo, Valu Add prepared 5-Year Business Plans, for the Peje and Podujeve PUSP’s in Kosovo under a USAID task order.  The Business Plans were a prerequisite for USAID providing capital grant assistance.

 

  • Advice on Unaccounted-for-Water, Konjic, Bosnia. Served as a Senior Advisor to the City of Konjic, Bosnia and the Hydrologic Institute of Sarajevo for an “unaccounted-for-water” study of the Konjic Water Supply Company.  This project was performed under the USAID’s Ecolinks Program.