Kosovo police have used pepper spray to disperse a crowd protesting the signing of a deal to privatize the country's electricity distribution network, according to The Associated Press.

Some of those protesting outside the main government building scaled the iron gates and were detained by police, the report says.

Shpend Ahmeti, an opposition activist, said that by signing the €26 million ($34 million) deal with the Turkish consortium Calik&Limak the government was underselling "the wealth of Kosovo's public" Critics have said the deal is flawed and was not open to public scrutiny.

Kosovo is one of Europe's poorest regions and the government hopes that privatization can kick-start its moribund economy.