MBO Interview with Mr. José María Roger, President of Fersa Energías Renovables, S.A. About FERSA: Fersa, his most recent and ambitious project, focuses mainly on the development,
operation and ownership of wind, solar PV and biomass assets. This company holds an attractive portfolio of assets that are under construction, including an internationally diversified pipeline which provides considerable growth potential. Fersa has an installed capacity of 217.3MW that was distributed between Spain, France, Poland and India up to December 2010. It also has a total of 253.77MW in a pre-assignment registry for certain special regime installations in Spain.
MBO: Fersa started its activities in Montenegro four years ago. What was your motivation to start a business in Montenegro?
Mr. José María Roger, President of Fersa Energías Renovables, S.A. Short biography: The company was founded in Spain, in 2000, as a renewable energy producer, and is the first independent Spanish wind energy player to be listed on both the Spanish and European Stock Exchanges. Mr. Roger is also on the board of directors in most of the group’s subsidiary companies. He was awarded a business studies degree at Barcelona University and started his professional career in the sports market. In 1982 he founded Roha Sports, S.A., a Spanish company which specialises in the distribution of sports equipment. Continuing with his enterprising profile, in 1984, he started the company Balance Squash Raquets, S.A., and in 1989 Sports & Contact, S.A. and Texacom, S.A. All of these are sales leaders in Spain in the manufacture, design, importation and marketing of sports equipment. From 1989 to 1997 he also worked in real state. He founded Inpro Group, S.L., a real state investment company with projects in Barcelona and Tarragona, and was also involved in Hafria, S.A., a company operating in Palma de Mallorca. In 1995 he joined the Danish Multinational called Neg Micon as Managing Director. This company is a world leader in the manufacture, installation and development of wind projects. During the period 1995-1999, Mr. Roger was on the board of directors for several companies operating wind farms and was also President of Ute Union Fenosa Ingneieria - Neg Micon. Currently, in addition to being the Chairman of Fersa, he additionally holds directorship positions in Truck Wash Europa, S.L. and is the Chairman of Real Wind, S.L., an investment company which specialises in business properties and energy opportunities across the world.
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With a long background in business, I saw that Montenegro offers good possibilities to develop good business in energy, especially wind energy. Also I had the opportunity to contact the right people. They knew what foreign investment means for the Montenegrin economy and were very pleased to give us all the support we needed. This is the most important point when you want to invest and develop a business abroad; you basically need to be supported by the government in that place.
MBO: How would you describe cooperation from Montenegrin state institutions so far? As I have already said, cooperation from Montenegrin state institutions was essential and has been a positive experience for Fersa. We could not have made any plans to develop wind energy in this country without their help. In particular, we have developed a good level of communication with the Montenegrin Investment Promotion Agency (MIPA) and with the Ministry of Economy. Both of these institutions have been involved since the beginning of the process and we developed a good professional relationship.
MBO: When do you expect to start the construction of the first wind power plant in Ulcinj and what is your biggest challenge for the project? If all of the administrative procedures have been completed by the government in July we expect to be able to start work in the first quarter of 2012. The biggest challenge in the project will be to get all of the project finance requirements ready by that date.
MBO: What is your opinion of the current situation regarding the energy sector in the Western Balkans and in Montenegro? I think it has improved a lot, but I still think that there is a lot more to do. It is important to draw up a plan in order to identify areas of growth, and to aim for a good mix of energy in order to reach the desired goal. Moreover, it is important not to forget about the electrical infrastructure in each country and to remember the systems that connect the area. Both of these are very important points; these two factors together will ensure that the energy sector has sufficient capacity for the region.
MBO: How do you see the future trend of usage of renewable energy, particularly in the light of recent difficulties caused by the earthquakes in Japan regarding nuclear energy? Unfortunately I think it is very sad that we have to wait for tragedies like the earthquake in Japan to make us all think and be aware that there are other ways of achieving progress without having to sacrifice our natural resources. It is very common to read about renewable energy and that it is the way forward, the future. There is no doubt that this is not just the future but also the present. In Spain, for example, we produce more than 26% of the total energy required through renewable energy sources.
MBO: Do you have any other plans to expand in this region, or perhaps to expand further into other sectors in Montenegro? We are ready to continue developing renewable energy in Montenegro. We have a good knowledge of the country and a very good relationship with the administration and the government, so it will be a pleasure to find new opportunities for investment in Montenegro. Fersa only can invest in the energy sector, but I am sure that the fact that it is now a listed company has created waves in other sectors. I think we are a good ambassador for Montenegro and are also a perfect example for other Spanish companies in that they will see that this country has opened its arms to welcome us. Fersa and I, personally, are very proud to be, metaphorically, making a bridge and to be guiding other Spanish investors to Montenegro. We have been working to support and help the opening of the new MIPA office in Spain, and are also aiming to give our assistance in bringing more investors form Spain to Montenegro and vice-versa.