MET Energy Romania: We strive to be a socially responsible energy company

MET is a young company, created 11 years ago but it has followed its goal for innovation in the European electricity markets, according to Petre Stroe, CEO Met Energy Romania. “I would add the flexibility, which allowed us to reach this position on the Romanian market and to become an important player on the European market,” he tells The Diplomat – Bucharest.

Stroe says its focus for 2019 was to stabilize the profit, to complete the stage one of digitizing the company and to introduce at least one new line of business.

“For 2020, the focus will be on achieving a vertical integration of our activity, starting from the stable portfolio we have built, to which we will have to add part of production, both renewable and high efficiency cogeneration and the completion of the introduction of the adjacent services,” he explains.

MET has started its automation plan since 2017: “Going through the two successive acquisitions of two local suppliers, but especially through the development of a risk management system, as well as a module that will make the MET platform more accessible and continuing with the digitization part of the sale process as well as with the automation of the archive in the sense that two successive acquisitions meant two volumes of documentation, which created problems at the beginning but which were solved through the digitization process.This process will continue and will be completed in the next two years.”

Stroes says the main challenge for MET is the regulation of the electricity and natural gas market and the transition to the free market after an unhappy period due to Ordinance 114. “This will happen in stages, both for electricity and natural gas, in 2020 and 2021 respectively,” he explains. “The company followed an adaptation process after the emergence of the Ordinance, and will return to what it means to supply on the free market.This meant changing the systems, setting the activity, as well as creating new departments.”

Stroe argues that the energy industry will inevitably follow a trend of renewing the production park, considering that at the beginning of the year we will have to remove from operation a number of plants that will probably mean a 2500-3000Mwh installed. “This will create the possibility of developing adjacent services, as we have already begun to think, especially on the balancing side,” he adds. “All this will in fact mean placing the market on a correct foundation and aligning with the trend followed by the EU regarding the liberalization of the energy and natural gas markets.”

MET is an innovation-driven company, according to its CEO. “We believe that it is our responsibility to contribute to global social and environmental changes through green and sustainable solutions,” Stroe concludes. “The world’s energy security is affected by the rapidly changing energy sector. Large companies in the sector, such as MET, contribute to the stability of energy sustainability. With our recent acquisitions and our strategy to diversify, we are more than just an energy company. We strive to be a socially responsible energy company.”

(From the print edition)