Wrote: Etrit Rexhepi
Articles have been published with headlines claiming that the Energy Regulatory Office (ERO) has declared that there will be no increase in energy tariffs.
These articles were published on Monday (February 2) by media outlets such as "GazetaBlic.com","AlbanianPost.com","KlanKosova.tv","Zeri.tv”And“GazetaMetro.net".
However, the headlines do not specify that these are the tariffs of the NEMO (Nominated Energy Market Operator), which is not an energy supplier to citizens and which is not the institution that sends bills to citizens.
Within these articles, it is explained that ERO held the first Board meeting for 2026, where it reviewed the request for determining NEMO revenues and tariffs for the period 2026–2028.
Why is this content being treated?
On Thursday (January 29), it was reported that three energy operators in Kosovo – KESCO, KOSTT and KEDS, have requested an increase in electricity tariffs for 2026 (see here).
There is no decision yet on these requests, which have been reported to affect citizens' bills by more than 20 percent.
By not specifying that it concerns NEMO tariffs, which is something different compared to the reports of late January, the headlines may create the misunderstanding among readers that there will be no increase in the energy price they pay. Therefore, the headlines do not match the real content of the decision.
What is NEMO?
NEMO (Nominated Electricity Market Operator) is responsible for the organization and coordination of the energy market in Kosovo and the region. It cooperates with KOSTT and OST to manage the day-ahead and intraday market coupling. In Kosovo, the NEMO for the bidding zone is the Albanian Electricity Exchange ALPEX SHA.
What is a Distribution System Operator (DSO)?
According to Article 27 of Energy Law, the OST manages the distribution network and ensures that energy reaches consumers safely and fairly.
So, NEMO organizes the energy market, while OST ensures the distribution of energy to consumers.
On the ERO website, in the link for tariff review processes, a clear distinction is made between the requirements for “maximum allowed revenues” for the universal service provider (USP), the Distribution System Operator (DSO) and the System, Transmission and Market Operator (STM), and the determination of NEMO tariffs for the years 2026-2028. While the maximum allowed revenues are decided annually, the NEMO decision period is three years. (see here)
For more information, see the application document. KESCO(which was reported in the media) for an increase in the maximum allowed revenues, January is mentioned as the application.
As for the request for determining tariffs NEMO The date is November 2025.
When are tariffs set for consumers?
ERO reviews and sets electricity tariffs for consumers every year. These tariffs are announced on 1 April and are valid until 31 March of the following year. This clearly shows that the final decision on NEMO tariffs is not related to the price that consumers actually pay for energy (see here).
In the article published by the news agency "KosovaPress" it is emphasized that in this ERO meeting, KESCO's request for a 21 percent tariff increase was not reviewed (see here).
Analyze:
The claim that ERO has stated that there will be no increase in energy prices for consumers is incorrect.
The headlines published by some media outlets have created this misunderstanding by not specifying that the latest decision only concerns NEMO tariffs, which are not related to the price that citizens pay for energy consumption.
ERO held a Board meeting to review NEMO's requests for tariffs for the period 2026–2028, while tariffs for consumers are determined annually on April 1 and are not related to the latest decision on NEMO.
Based on the working methodology, hibrid.info evaluates these titles as well as "Clickbait".
Reasoning:
“Clickbait” is considered to be informational content whose title is general and does not disclose the location of the event, context and relevance. Such texts and articles aim to attract the attention of the audience with sensational headlines with misleading consequences, which do not accurately clarify the content of the article. “Clickbait” headlines are mainly made to attract readability in the case of media publications and/or to earn from clicks in the case of commercial publications.