The presence of Evangelos Mytilineos, Chairman and CEO of METLEN Energy & Metals was an important element of the 9th Business Leaders Summit organised by the Bank of Cyprus.
In the context of his participation in a fireside chat, Mytilineos referred to the meeting he had with the President of the Republic, Nikos Christodoulides, noting in particular the agreement between them for collaborations between Cyprus and Greece with defence as a central axis.
He specifically emphasised METLEN's strong interest in contributing to the development of the Cypriot defence industry, inviting Cypriot companies to participate in collaborations and gain know-how. "For a leading role in Greece and Cyprus, we want to get some Cypriot companies, give them the know-how and for Cyprus to come along with us," he said, pointing out that this strategy is essential for security and future development.
At METLEN's R&D department, chemical engineers have managed to extract gallium, critical for microchip and defence applications. The pilot plant, which is already in operation, will begin its large-scale production next year. "This industry is the future for me," Mytilineos stressed.
Regarding energy independence and Cyprus, he noted that the country is a special case as electricity generation is based on diesel. He referred to the position of President Christodoulides, according to which a pipeline connection is targeted by 2027. The businessman went on to suggest that diesel be used only in the event of a breakdown. He even called on the Cypriot business leadership to take action, "It costs you a lot of money every day, it takes away your competitiveness, with unbearable pollution costs. Something needs to be done yesterday."
Mytilineos announced a little later that the largest battery complex in Greece, 330 MW, will be ready by Easter, created by METLEN, and that he intends to enter the 'game of competition' in Cyprus as well.
The event in Ukrainian 'the curse of Europe'
Referring to Ukraine, Mytilineos described the situation as “the curse of Europe,” underlining that the EU is the loser in the case of Ukrainian because it should not have let things get to that point. “There has never been a security architecture that includes Europe and Russia. If there was, we would have a continent with all the raw materials and industry of Europe,” he said. He added that any solution would be better today rather than tomorrow, but he appeared concerned about the future of Europe.
Critical pillar
He reminded the audience that businesses must look ahead: “If you don’t see what will sustain you the following day, what you had ten years ago won’t sustain you.” In this context, he added that beyond energy and metals, defence is a crucial pillar for the future of the company and the region.
Referring to human resources, he said that when a company is growing at a very rapid pace, by the time it has time to assimilate a transformation, the next step has already arrived. So, the shape that was chosen five years ago is not enough. So, a broad transformation of the company must take place, a laborious process, as he described it. But something that is inevitable, otherwise "you will be eaten by the size of an organisation that cannot be properly manned."
Regarding the green transition, it started wrong, Mytilineos said, only to move on a little later to offer up an honest position. According to him, serious mistakes are being made, there has been no costing and “we risk putting the cart before the horse”, something, as he said, he already warned about four years ago. Today, Germany is filled with RES that cannot be connected to the grid because, quite simply, “there is no grid”.
The panel was moderated by the Chairman of the Board of the Bank of Cyprus, Takis Arapoglou.
(Source: InBusinessNews)
