Oil company Jugopetrol eyeing electricity generation from renewable energy sources in Montenegro

Montenegro-based oil company Jugopetrol will try to expand its energy portfolio and to assess the potential of Montenegro in the production of electricity from renewable energy sources, which is its area of interest for investment, said Antonis Semelides, executive director at Jugopetrol.

’Jugopetrol, owned by Greece’s Hellenic Petroleum, has already announced plans to transform from an oil and gas company into an energy company.

In an interview for the daily newspaper Dnevne novine, Semelides said that Jugopetrol wants to diversify its portfolio in Montenegro’s energy sector and to gain a strong foothold in it.

He recalled that for years now Hellenic Petroleum in Greece has not limited its activities to oil refining and fuel sale and distribution, but invests in the entire energy sector.

Accordingly, the company is involved in the distribution of natural gas via pipelines connecting the Southeast European region, in the LNG storage business, and in the electricity generation from natural gas and renewable energy sources, such as wind farms and solar panels.

“We believe that Montenegro has a considerable potential for growth in the energy sector, especially when it comes to electricity generation from renewables. Our plan for this year is to be active and to assess this potential, possibly through cooperation with other local companies,” Semelides said.

Semelides noted that although the Montenegrin market is narrow, it does not allow for sitting idly by.

“This year our primary focus will be the successful implementation of the gas stations’ rebranding project and the modernization of the oil terminal in Bar to improve environmental protection and security,” he said.

Jugopetrol has a retail network of 40 petrol stations, 3 yachting service stations in Kotor, Budva and Herceg Novi, an oil storage facility with a total capacity of 128,000 cubic meters in Bar and two aviation fuel terminals in Podgorica and Tivat.

In 2006 Hellenic Petroleum founded Hellenic Petroleum Renewable Energy Sources, a subsidiary investing in wind farms, solar, hydro and biomass plants in Greece.