The National Agency for Water Supply, Sewerage and Solid Waste (AKUM), chaired by Alqi Bllako, on 27 January 2020 announced the winner of a tender for closing the existing EKO-Park solid waste landfill in Durrës. The winner was a joint venture of two operators: Albanian company Viktoria Invest International and Italian company De Mare Albania, which was registered at the National Registry Office just three days before the tender was announced. Albania’s special prosecutor for organised crime and corruption (SPAK) opened an investigation the following month and seized documents for the tender worth 17 billion lek (€138 million).

Procurement for the closing of the landfill was carried out without competition, but rather through a procurement procedure “with negotiation, without prior announcement”. According to data from the National Centre for Registration, Vicktoria Invest Internacional is a company under the ownership of Fatmir Kuçi and was founded in Albania, while De Mare Albania – under parent company De Mare Srl – is owned by the Italian citizen Fausto De Mare. De Mare’s concessionary company Integrated Energy BV previously carried out work in Albania at the Sharra incinerator, but De Mare Albania had never done work in waste management or in Albania. De Mare is reported to have collaborated with the company Integrated Technology Service Shpk for the construction of the Vlora landfill under the ownership of Klodian Zotos and Mirel Mërtirit, two names infamous for the criminal offence of active corruption regarding contracts to build three waste-to-energy incinerators through public-private partnership investment schemes in the municipalities of Elbasan (2014), Fier (2016) and Tirana (2017).

The affair of the EKO-Park in Porto Romano started on 1 April 2019 with the signing of a contract between Integrated Energy BV SPV and Casanova-Hernandez Architects for the development of the Durrës EKO-Park project. Investigative journalists report that the contract was signed six months before the tender was opened and two months before it was publicly announced as a project by Prime Minster Edi Rama. Meanwhile, in October of the same year, a tender was announced for the closure of the existing landfill and the construction of the eco-park with a fund of 1.9 billion lek (€15.46 million). Three days before the announcement of the winner, the government cancelled the tender due to a large earthquake in the area and on 27 December the national waste management agency awarded the tender to the joint venture De Mare Albania and Victoria Invest International for 18.5 million euros. In May 2020, all works were subcontracted for €6 million to the company ARTCON, which is owned by Denis Ymeri, the driver of Mirel Mërtiri. This is about €12.5 million less than the contract signed by De Mare and Viktoria International; the destination of this destination is yet to be reported by SPAK. The Dutch company Casanova Hernandes Architects which made the EKO-Park through Integrated Energy BV SPV is alleged to be involved also in this corruptive affair and is involved in important architectural projects in Albania in collaboration with Albanian companies close to government institutions, such as that of Erind Bejleri. Despite investigations by the special prosecutor since 2020 there have been no actions taken or further updates.