Montenegrin Electricity Transmission System (CGES) achieved a net profit of 24,8 million euros last year, announced the Chairman of the Board of Directors of the company, Aleksandar Mijušković, and added that it will continue with investments and development in order to meet the growing needs of users.
"Everything that has been achieved so far is not only a confirmation of our commitment, but also creates new opportunities for further development and innovation. Last year, we achieved an outstanding result and a net profit of 24,8 million euros," Mijušković said in an interview with the Mina-business agency.
He recalled that the company has been recording excellent business results since its founding, and since 2021, even historic ones.
"I will remind you that in that year we made a profit of 16,9 million euros, in 2022 20,3 million euros, while in 2023 we had a record profit of as much as 35,7 million euros, which is a total of almost 100 million euros in profit since I was first appointed as the President of the Board of Directors of our company," Mijušković specified.
He added that the strength of the company's vision and strategy, as well as the commitment of the team and all employees, is being confirmed.
"It is important to note here that our company's activities are regulated by the Regulatory Agency for Energy and Utilities (REGAGEN), so the profit achieved is subject to corrections, in accordance with the regulatory mechanism," said Mijušković.
According to him, the crucial factors of this success are, above all, the implementation of significant infrastructure projects, investment in new technologies, as well as significant improvements in work processes.
"Focusing on the implementation of important, we can say visionary, projects has influenced the significant growth of our revenues from electricity transit, while by applying new technologies and improving work processes in all areas of our business, we have obtained a much more efficient and reliable system with the historically lowest loss rate, despite the much higher transit and flow of energy through our system," explained Mijušković.
When asked how and to what extent CGES has influenced electricity transmission tariffs for system users this year, Mijušković replied that the company's achieved business results bring multiple benefits, not only to CGES shareholders, but also to all users of the electricity system.
"In recent years, CGES, with its good business results, has influenced the reduction of the electricity transmission tariff paid by citizens and businesses in Montenegro," Mijušković said.
When it comes to this year specifically, the total price of electricity should have been 5,73 percent higher for all households with a dual-tariff meter.
"However, the correction of the electricity transmission tariff for this year, which reduced the price of CGES services by as much as 9,5 million euros, reduced the percentage increase in the total electricity price for this most numerous category of consumers to 3,41 percent," explained Mijušković.
He emphasized that the increase in prices and tariffs on bills did not occur largely due to the fact that the correction of CGES's profits in previous years was used to reduce the transmission tariff for this year.
"This is supported by the fact that last year the share of the electricity transmission tariff in electricity bills was around 6,6 percent, while that percentage, after REGAGEN's decision on corrections to CGES's regulatory allowed revenue for this year, is 4,5 percent," said Mijušković.
Speaking about CGES's investments in the transmission system, given the numerous projects implemented in the previous period, and further development plans, Mijušković said that CGES, recognizing the challenges, is investing in the modernization and expansion of its capacities in order to ensure the stability of electricity supply to all its users.
"A significant number of investments have been made in the previous period, which I am extremely satisfied with. The efforts made have brought visible improvements in the quality and reliability of the electricity transmission network," said Mijušković.
However, as he said, the company is aware that there are still many challenges ahead.
"We will continue with investments and development to ensure even better performance and meet the growing needs of users through a five-year investment plan, worth 207 million euros, which envisages significant infrastructure projects. Thanks to these investments, the opportunity for growth, infrastructural progress and improvement of the quality of life of citizens throughout the territory of Montenegro will be created," stressed Mijušković.
He particularly highlighted the largest infrastructure projects, first of all, the Trans-Balkan Corridor, the implementation of which will significantly increase the capacity for energy transit from the Balkan Peninsula to Italy and fulfill the necessary conditions for connecting the Montenegrin electricity market with the Italian, i.e. the single European electricity market.
There are also projects to increase the capacity of existing and establish new interconnections with neighbors, as well as significant projects to strengthen the internal network, which are necessary to successfully integrate all planned renewable electricity sources into the system.
As Mijušković pointed out, the aspect of safety and reliability of the operation of the power system is also important.
He announced that the "green transition", as the replacement of conventional fossil-fuel-powered electricity sources with environmentally friendly, renewable electricity sources is popularly called, has brought major challenges to the electricity system of the entire Europe.
"As the production of electricity from renewable sources cannot be controlled, large, uncontrolled flows of electricity have begun to appear in the power system, which threaten the stability and safety of the system. These problems can only be effectively resolved by strengthening the internal network and interconnections with neighbors, which CGES has foreseen in its plans and is working on with dedication," said Mijušković.
Also, as he emphasized, an important aspect in solving these problems is the development of new mechanisms for regional cooperation and coordinated work to preserve the security of the electricity system at the regional and European levels.
"We have so far initiated the implementation of several different mechanisms with neighboring transmission operators to preserve regional system security, and together with them we are making great efforts to overcome all challenges in operational work, of which there are now many," said Mijušković.
When asked how many employees CGES currently has and how much this data differs compared to 2009 when the company became independent, Mijušković replied that the number of employees on March 31 this year was 340, while in 2009 they had 316 employees.
"So, in the past 16 years of business, only 24 more employees," Mijušković said.
He emphasized that at the same time, the transmission network was significantly expanded.
The number of high-voltage substations has increased from 19 to 30, while the length of transmission lines has increased from 1,27 thousand kilometers to 1,55 thousand kilometers, while the complexity of all business processes has increased manifold.
"I would like to emphasize that we are a company that pays special attention and constantly invests in human resources, as well as in improving efficiency and rationality in business. However, I will make a comparison with regional TSOs, which have an incomparably larger number of employees than us, which allows them to more effectively deal with increasingly complex challenges in the electricity sector," added Mijušković.
For example, Croatian HOPS, Albanian OST, Macedonian MEPSO increased the number of employees by 2010, 2024, and 15 percent, respectively, for the period 20-40, which is a similar case with other transmission companies in Europe.
Mijušković announced that behind the success of CGES stands the selfless effort, work and dedication of its employees, who, with their knowledge and dedication, have faced every challenge in the best possible way.
"Their motivation and dedication to their tasks contribute to completing each project at the highest level, which is a reason for pride for our entire company. Therefore, the fact that we have achieved all these successes with a slight increase in the number of employees over the past 16 years speaks volumes about their efficiency, dedication, and exceptional engagement," concluded Mijušković.
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