Saku Liuksia, program manager of Finpro agency – Expect more Finnish companies from sectors of energy and environmental protection

(Saku Liuksia) Harsh climate, large distances and basic industry structure were the main driving forces behind Finland's becoming a global leader in using biomass to produce energy. Large forest areas in comparison to fossil fuel supplies caused the country to invest considerable funds in thorough research of bioenergy, development and infrastructure.

Finnish bioenergy companies recently shared their experience with their Serbian partners about how they had adjusted their activities and their expertise to renewable energy sources at the seminary held last month in Belgrade. Ariterm, KPA UNICON, Miksei, Molok and Valmet presented their products and solutions, and nearly 30 meetings were held as well, where local companies were provided with an opportunity to talk to representatives of Finnish companies and institutions.

Can Finnish experiences help Serbia reach its goals regarding the share of RES in the total energy consumption, what the potential for cooperation between the two countries in this area is and whether Serbian companies can act as equal partners to their Finnish colleagues and how to strengthen our presence in the Nordic market was discussed by Liuksia Saku, program manager in the Finnish export promotion agency Finpro, one of the organizers of the recently held event, in his interview for eKapija.

eKapija: What are the most important messages communicated to business people in Serbia?

– Finland has expertise in the whole value chain from raw material (biomass) collection all the way to energy conversion, including logistics and handling. We are willing to solve your challenges and we firmly believe that Finland can contribute with its expertise and technologies to the use of renewable resources in a more sustainable way and utilize them in energy production more efficiently. We want to build a long term relationship between Finland and Serbia.

eKapija: B2B meetings were organized, as well, offering the participants an opportunity to speak directly with the representatives of Finnish companies and institutions. Were there some concrete agreements?

– Altogether 27 B2B meetings were held during this delegation trip. In addition, five meetings were organized for the whole delegation and many relevant industry experts were met and interviewed. Hopefully in the near future we can tell you more about concrete agreements. First steps in that direction have already been taken.

eKapija: Which Finnish experiences can Serbia use and apply in order to achieve a goal of 27% renewable energy share in total energy consumption until the end of year 2020?

– Finland has long traditions in utilizing waste in energy production. For decades, the waste and side streams in the forest industry have been successfully utilized in energy generation. Additionally, during the last few years, energy conversion of waste has displaced landfilling as the main form of municipal waste disposal.

eKapija: Among renewable energy sources, the biggest potential for Serbia is in the usage of biomass. Which factors can be the main initiators for Serbia to become a regional leader in biomass exploitation and utilization for energy production?

– A bottleneck seems to be the biomass supply chain, i.e. sourcing of biomass. Developing that market is very important in order to assure the supply of raw material (biomass) in an economically viable way. Energy companies that use biomass as fuel need to be guaranteed that they can get raw material for a good price for the next 10-15 years.

eKapija: Finnish companies are world leaders in development of solutions for energy efficiency. Can Serbian companies be an adequate partner to Finnish companies from this field?

– Absolutely! Serbia is a relatively cold country, too, and the need for efficient energy usage and heating is obvious. Partnering with local experts is crucial for Finnish companies in order to be successful in Serbia.

eKapija: With the exception of the energy sector and automotive industry, which recently grew into a dominant factor in economic relations of our two countries, in which other fields do you see potential for cooperation between companies from Finland and Serbia?

– Sectors such as energy and environment are definitely very interesting for Finnish companies. These are the sectors that require large investments in years to come and I am sure that you will be able to see more presence of Finnish companies in these areas. I would add here that other industries with most potential for cooperation are the textile, metal and food processing as well as the ICT sector.

eKapija: As an export promotion and internationalization agency of Finnish companies, what would you single out as a competitive advantage of companies from Serbia?

– I would emphasize the highly educated and skilled labor force that is abundant in Serbia. Serbian people are also very innovative. Companies should just give a chance and more freedom in decision-making to these people and it will certainly pay them back very fast.

eKapija: Serbian exports are almost three times smaller than imports from Finland. How could Serbian companies increase their export potential? How would you advise them? What should their approach be and which steps should they take in order to appear on the Finnish market?

– Focus should be on trade cooperation between small and medium-sized companies in Serbia and Finland. Quality of the products plays a crucial role if you look at the Finnish market. So, my advice would be to find some niche market and try to get there with high quality products. Increasing exports from Serbia to Finland through outsourcing in different industries is another option.

eKapija: What is the most important thing that Serbia needs to change in order to attract more Finnish investors? What are the business habits and characteristics of Serbian businessmen that Finnish people do not tolerate?

– I do not think that Serbia should change much, at least not much more than it is already doing at the moment. It should definitely continue with reforms and with the EU integration process as it brings confidence in the stability of the Serbian market. Respecting the rule of law, following long-term strategies and creating transparent and competitive business environment are the road to success.

I have not heard any major complaints from Finnish businessmen so far. I would not single out any habit or characteristic that Finnish businessmen would not tolerate. I can only say that Serbian businessmen would benefit from more long-term planning. In Finland, all of our strategies are based on long-term plans and on how to implement them.

Ivana Bezarevic

Finpro Finland Helsinki Finnish Export Association

Saku Liuksia

Finpro

Export Finland

Ariterm

KPA UNICON

Miksei

Molok

Valmet

renewable energy sources

RES

production of electric energy from biomass

energy efficiency

bioenergy

Finnish investments in Serbia

export to Finland

turning waste into energy

share of RES is electricity consumption