This article series tells the stories of the 15 finalists selected in the Made in Romania 2023 program. Made in Romania is the flagship program of the Bucharest Stock Exchange dedicated to the development and promotion of the Romanian entrepreneurial environment. The program’s goal is to select and promote Romanian companies that have the greatest growth potential and high chances of becoming impactful players in the local and even regional economy. As of 2024, the Made in Romania program has been rebranded BVB Arena.

Romanian entrepreneur Adrian Bodea founded Adrem in 1992 dreaming to bring his contribution to the modernization of Romania's industry, affected at that time by the chronic lack of investment during the last years of the communist regime.

"Today, we know that, unfortunately, most of the industrial units that existed in the '90s have disappeared and so, in the first years of our company's existence, we had to be extremely inventive and flexible in order to survive and grow. It is perhaps the reason why today we are so strong and specialized in the energy industry, this being one of the few industrial fields that have had sustained growth and benefited from reasonable investments", remembers Corneliu Bodea, co-founder, and CEO of Adrem.

The story of Adrem from its foundation to the present includes 3 stages. The first is the one intended for development, the stage in which the company started from scratch (0-10 million euros, 0-50 employees), followed by the stage of specialization and professionalization (10-20 million euros, 50-100 employees) and the stage in which the company is now, the stage of strategic development and definition as an important actor in the energy transition (20-70 million euros, 100-1000 employees).

Today, the Adrem group is nationally recognized as a leading provider of services for energy transmission and distribution infrastructure (maintenance, equipment installations), the largest provider of SCADA systems (automation for energy infrastructures), and a major player in providing systems that ensure energy efficiency (energy management, photovoltaic systems, etc.).

"Today, I am more than 30 years from the time I started, and I have the chance to live to see how this great family called Adrem grew up beautiful and strong. I meet annually with more than 1000 colleagues and share the joy and trust with them, I see a future full of opportunities in the field in which we work and feel how we actively participate in what we call the 'fight against climate change' thus ensuring a safe future for posterity ours", confesses the entrepreneur Corneliu Bodea.

Company identity

Adrem operates predominantly in the energy industry at the local level and diversifies throughout its value chain, providing systems and services both for energy production, transport, and distribution, as well as for the consumer and prosumer components.

"The hundreds of systems developed and installed by Adrem specialists are still working today on more than 4 continents, and we are proud to say that, for example, millions of energy consumers (either electricity or gas) benefit from safety and comfort as a result of responsibility with that we fulfilled our contracts, of the involvement and not infrequently of the ambition with which we stubbornly fought to succeed", adds Corneliu Bodea, co-founder and CEO Adrem.

Secrets of success

Living up to the company's values has been the most important factor in the organization's 30+ years of success. These values created and are creating strong relationships between people that today mean Adrem; these values created a context of trust and focus and gave the entrepreneur power and support in the simpler or more complicated decisions he had to make. This context created a path that they walked with confidence, and that brought them to the harbor no matter how winding or difficult it appeared at times.

“I took my lessons from people and from studies or books. My brother Adrian has been and continues to be my role model. I also had a special mentor in the person of a late specialist in the energy field, builder of the system that today we call the National Energy System, Mr. Gheorghe Iordăchescu, and I had the chance to work closely with another renowned expert and diplomat in the field of energy, the late Mihnea Constantinescu. I am grateful that I was lucky enough to be around such people who shaped my career as a connoisseur of energy, a leader of people, and a creator of a positive context", confesses Corneliu Bodea, co-founder and CEO of Adrem.

The entrepreneur remembers a difficult moment for Adrem represented by the wrong investment in the thermal cogeneration plant in the municipality of Suceava, an investment that was financed by a bank loan guaranteed with shares. The legislation had changed incorrectly overnight and resulted in the loss of this investment. The decision to build the power plant cost the company some good years, but the entrepreneur, together with his colleagues, found solutions to come back and cover the loss suffered. It was necessary to act quickly, change the business strategy, identify new opportunities, and have as little negative impact as possible.

"The trust built up over the years between myself, my colleagues, our partners, and funders was the essential element in overcoming this difficult situation. At the same time, he supported me during the difficult period and, at the same time, provided them with the security they needed", adds the entrepreneur Corneliu Bodea.

Future plans​

In the long term, Adrem has a growth strategy based on everything that happens in the energy transition, acting on several components of this process, and aims to become the main regional player in the energy transition, with more than 100 million euros turnover in the next 2.3 years. Adrem's perspective for 2030 aims at a doubling of turnover and regional consolidation. The major growth components are those related to the need to modernize distribution and transmission networks, energy efficiency, and renewable projects.

"We continue to investigate local and regional development and expansion opportunities to achieve our long-term goals. My opinion is that you can be strong here too if you have vision, determination, and are passionate about what you do. In the short term, we aim to increase the number of employees by approximately 10% and invest in the digitalization of the company. We want to upgrade the computer systems of the electricians in the field, which we will later extend to all employees. We will also invest in various machines that are necessary for us to carry out the work to the highest standards. Last but not least, we will formulate and implement the strategy for the development of the sustainability culture at the group level, with an emphasis on ESG integration, i.e. the adoption of environmental, social, and governance criteria alongside financial ones in all components of our business, horizontally and vertically in the organization", says the co-founder of Adrem, Corneliu Bodea.

What does it mean to be a “Made in Romania” brand

Romania is an energetically integrated component in the regional and European infrastructure. According to the entrepreneur, today, we find ourselves in this industry at the interface of two huge pressure plates: the fight against climate change and the geo-strategic permacrisis. The effect of these pressures will determine a major action in the transformation of energy systems, what we call: the energy transition. From this point of view, Romania, benefiting from special resources, will play a central role in the region and, why not, at the European level, and the necessary investments in the industry until 2030 could exceed 15 billion euros.

"For me, it is very important that we have managed to do impactful things in our country, both for the development of the economy and for our society. I believe in Romania, I believe in the people here, and I am glad that in the 31 years, together with my colleagues, we had the opportunity to contribute to the modernization of the energy industry, to bring innovation to the market, to support progress through the values that characterize us. It's hard, but also nice to be a Made in Romania brand, you have many challenges to face, but the success at the end makes the successes taste better. The unpredictable environment in Romania is one in which you ride, and those who manage to develop here become extremely powerful", concludes Corneliu Bodea, co-founder and CEO of Adrem.

*The Romanian version of this article was published in the Made in Romania 2023 booklet, which gathers the stories of the 15 finalist companies selected last year in the Made in Romania program. A new edition of the program, now branded BVB Arena, started in April 2024. More details about the program are available here.