Mallakastër and Kuçovë – Oil that Comes Out of the Ground but Does Not Turn into Development Flamur Bucpapaj

Mallakastër and Kuçovë – Oil that Comes Out of the Ground but Does Not Turn into Development
Flamur Bucpapaj
In southern Albania, in Mallakastër and Kuçovë, lies one of the country’s greatest natural resources: oil. In Mallakastër, oil even appears in some places at the surface, creating the impression of an easily exploitable resource, but in reality it remains a source that has not been transformed into sustainable economic development for the region or the national economy. This historical and industrial chain also includes the Kuçovë Oil Processing Plant, which for decades was one of the main oil refining centers in the country, while today it represents more of a memory of a lost industry than a functional capacity that generates added value.
The fundamental problem that has accompanied this sector is not the lack of oil, but the way it has been managed over time. Extraction in Mallakastër has often been carried out with outdated technologies and insufficient long-term investment, which has prevented the full and efficient use of existing reserves. On the other hand, the lack of a strong domestic processing industry has created a major gap in the economic chain, leaving Albania mainly in the role of exporter of raw material, while most of the added value is created abroad in the refining and industrial processing phase.
In Kuçovë, the decline of the oil refinery is the result of long-term technological depreciation, lack of investment, and absence of a long-term vision for heavy industry. Once a strategic asset for the Albanian economy, this refinery failed to adapt to modern standards of the oil industry and global technological developments. Over time, its role gradually diminished until it lost its full industrial function that it once had.
The situation is also influenced by the structure of the fuel market, where imports dominate alongside a limited number of large commercial operators. This has created a system dependent on imported finished products, while the development of domestic extraction and processing industries has lagged behind. In practice, this means that the Albanian economy is highly sensitive to fluctuations in international oil prices, without having an internal industrial mechanism that creates stability and balance. Instead of domestic oil becoming a strategic advantage, it remains disconnected from processing and the internal market.
Regional and global conditions further deepen this problem. The modern oil industry is not based only on extraction, but on a complete chain that includes advanced technology, refining, processing, and the export of high-value products. Countries that have truly benefited from their energy resources are those that have built this full industrial chain, while countries that remain only at the extraction level lose most of the economic value. In this sense, Albania is still not fully included in this industrial transformation.
The consequences of this situation are visible and tangible. Mallakastër, despite its large underground wealth, has not developed in line with its economic and social potential, remaining behind compared to the resources it possesses. Kuçovë has lost an important part of its industrial identity, and many jobs have disappeared along with the decline of the refinery. At the national level, Albania continues not to fully benefit from the added value that could be created domestically through oil processing and industrialization, remaining dependent on imports and external markets.
The judgment of this reality is clear and straightforward: the problem is not the lack of oil, but the lack of an integrated economic and industrial system that connects extraction, processing, and the market into a functional and sustainable chain. Without serious investment, technological modernization, and a long-term energy strategy, oil remains a resource that fails to become full economic development.
The future of this sector requires a deep structural transformation, where Mallakastër is modernized as a high-efficiency extraction zone, Kuçovë is restored as an industrial processing center through new investments and modern technologies, and a complete national energy chain is created that links resource, processing, and domestic market in a balanced way. Only in this way can the country move from an import-dependent economy and raw material exports to an economy that creates added value domestically and protects itself from global fluctuations.
Mallakastër and Kuçovë are not a lack of potential, but proof of a large potential that has not yet been transformed into real development strength for Albania.