ZAGREB, 6 April 2022 - Croatia's tourist industry expects an increase in turnover during the forthcoming Easter holidays, according to findings of a survey conducted by the National Tourist Board (HTZ). However, uncertainties stemming from the war in Ukraine can affect these expectations.

During the Easter holidays last year, when Easter was on 4 April, Croatia registered 36,000 tourist arrivals and 140,000 overnight stays.

This year, Easter falls on 17 April, and the norm is the later the date that Easter falls in, the more tourists can be expected.

Easter and the school spring holidays are usually seen as the heralds of the summer season.

According to the survey, the Rijeka coast and islands off Rijeka as well as Dubrovnik-Neretva County are the most optimistic about this Easter season, expecting a 20% rise in comparison to last year's results.

The Istria and Zadar counties expect a growth ranging between 16% and 20%, while the forecasts of  the Šibenik and Split counties are about 10% rise.

Concerning the mainland of Croatia, the capital city of Zagreb expects a growth higher than 20%.

During the Easter holidays, hotels usually start opening their doors, and the highest number of hotels that have announced the reopening for the new season in mid-April are in the Dubrovnik and Šibenik counties.

For more, check out our lifestyle section. 

ZAGREB, 6 April 2022 - The state budget earned HRK 870 million from generating electricity from wind and the sun in 2021, when 3.5 TWh of power was generated from renewable energy sources (RES) under the  support scheme of the Croatian Energy Market Operator (HROTE),  the Večernji List reported on Wednesday.

HROTE,  whose main task is to encourage and provide subsidies for the production of electricity from renewable sources and cogeneration, managed to cover its loss of HRK 370 million from 2020 and to earn an additional 500 million kuna, the daily newspaper reported today.

The loss in 2020 was due to a drop in electricity prices during the COVID pandemic. However, electricity prices have since skyrocketed, which has boosting earnings of the operator. As a result, it wrapped up the first quarter of 2022 in the black, with HRK 500 million on its accounts.

In 2021, HROTE paid HRK 3.3 billion in incentives.

The operator's director Boris Abramović was quoted by the daily as saying that the cost of the electricity from €30 per MWHs at the beginning of this year jumped to over €60 per MWh.

In 2021, a total of 3.5 TWH of electricity was generated from renewable energy sources as part of the production subsidised by the HROTE sheme.

This amounted to 35% of the total electricity generation in Croatia in 2021.

Broken down by the type of renewables, more than a half was generated from wind farms (52%), 17% of electricity generated from HROTE-supported RES generation came from biomass power plants, 16% from cogeneration plants and 10% from biogas plants.

Last year, solar power plants had a 2% share in the total electricity production covered by HROTE support scheme, according to the VL article.

(€1 = HRK 7.5)

For more on Croatian companies, check out our business section.

April 6, 2022 - Two of Manjgura's recent projects are nominated for the Grand PRix Award of the Croatian Public Relations Association (HUOJ) for the best communication projects in 2021, marking also Manjgura’s 25th anniversary.

Total Croatia News readers are familiar with the marketing company, as we've worked together on several projects in the past. One of them, Viber Total Croatia Total Info Community – virtual reception of Croatia in the covid era won the Grand Regional Grand PRix last year.

The project of the first public interactive exhibition on diabetes in Croatia called "DiJAbetes under Control", which took place last November on Zagreb's Cvjetni Square, was designed and implemented by Manjgura for Zagreb Association for Diabetes to inform the public, as well as patients, about the ways to influence positive treatment outcomes with good glucose control and timely treatment, despite the focus of decision-makers and media on COVID-19 and pandemic-related issues. One in 11 people in Croatia suffers from diabetes, while at the same time this disease is the third leading cause of death – every day, 13 people in Croatia die from diabetes-related complications.

During the three days of the exhibition, 1,589 people viewed interactive content, while the exhibition itself was featured in all central news and broadcasts of national televisions, as well as print and online editions of a large number of media.

Last year, Manjgura also achieved excellent success in the field of political communication – in the "election year" of 2021, Krešimir Macan, Manjgura owner and prominent regional election adviser, led the campaign of  Marko Filipović (SDP) for the mayor of Rijeka, among three other winning campaigns.

The project was particularly challenging, as the elections took place under pandemic conditions, while Rijeka was the city with the most candidates for mayor in the last local elections.  Although the people in the know and the polls at the beginning of the year did not give him much of a chance, Marko Filipović won a firm victory in both rounds and secured the Social Democratic Party of Croatia (SDP) a majority in the city council, keeping Rijeka "red" contrary to the expectations of many. With the efficient and affordable use of digital video combined with digital advertising, Marko Filipović virtually entered every house in Rijeka in just a month and a half, turning from a "Kvisko" loser, unknown to two out of three citizens of Rijekas, to a convincing election winner.  He promised Rijeka would remain "OPEN AND FREE" and that as a "NEW FORCE OF THE CITY"  he would meet with a "NEW RHYTHM OF THE CITY", which he consistently communicated in all phases of the campaign.

The Grand PRrix winners will be announced on 12 April this year, and you can find out more about the projects and the prize itself here.

April 6, 2022 – On Saturday, April 9, the annual Osijek Ferivi Half Marathon will be held, with a range of events for professional and recreational athletes alike.

As SiB writes, the citizens' race and relay race will start at 10.00 am on Ante Starčević Square, while children's races will start at 5.00 pm on the promenade of the upper Drava coast, west of the winter port. A press conference was held yesterday on the central city square in Osijek, the Ante Starčević Square, at which the 18^th Osijek Ferivi Half Marathon was announced, a traditional event that will this year take place on Saturday, April 9.

This is the largest and most visited race in the ​​Slavonia and Baranja region, which has been held since 2005 and brings together many athletes, recreationists, and other citizens who want to enjoy running through the streets of Osijek. In addition to the half marathon (21.1 kilometers), there is also a 5km citizens’ race "Are you running, lega?", as well as the men's, women's, and mixed relay races of 3 x 7 kilometres and children's races from 300 meters to 1 kilometer. The organizer of the event is the Marathon Club Hrvatski Sokol from Osijek, and the sponsors are the Osijek-Baranja County, the City of Osijek, the Tourist Board of the City of Osijek, and the Croatian Red Cross.

"The pandemic finally allowed us to gather in large numbers and continue to socialize outdoors through running, cycling, walking, and other sports. I urge our citizens to come to the race because the contemporary lifestyle means a lot of sitting and using cars or public transport, so we need to practice sports. I am sure that everyone who runs the race for the first time will be excited for the next Osijek Ferivi Half Marathon," said the prefect Ivan Anušić.

The citizens' race and the relay race will be starting at 10.00 am on Ante Starčević Square, while the children's races will start at 5.00 pm on the promenade of the upper Drava coast, west of the winter port. More than 1,250 competitors have already registered, not only from Croatia but from 10 other countries (USA, Sweden, Norway, Serbia, Slovenia, Northern Macedonia, Hungary, Germany, Austria, Bosnia and Herzegovina).

The Osijek Ferivi Half Marathon is not just a sporting event, but a combination of sports, entertainment, culture, and tourism, and contributes to the branding of Osijek. What is especially enriching about this event is that not only athletes but also recreational athletes take part, and even more so that children do. The city will continue to support this event", said the mayor of Osijek Ivan Radić.

He added that Osijek cares about its athletes and sports facilities and that this year Osijek will acquire a real Olympic swimming pool (at the Copacabana pools) for the first time, as well as introduce scholarships for athletes of the 5th and 6th categories while striving to raise sports and recreation to a higher level.

The Osijek Ferivi Half Marathon is an event that has been organized by the Marathon Club Hrvatski Sokol since the first race. The Club entered into a partnership with Ferivi & Co d.o.o. in 2008. and the race has since been called the Osijek Ferivi Half Marathon. Last year, the event had a record number of participants and outstanding accompanying content.

To read more about sports in Croatia, follow TCN’s dedicated page.

April 6, 2022 – Most of the projects that are being implemented in the city of Osijek are financed with extra-budgetary European and national money.

As Lokalni.hr writes, Osijek has become a large construction site. There is no part of the city without cranes and machines everywhere. At the moment, projects worth a billion kuna are being implemented. Most of them are financed by extra-budgetary money, both European and national.

An underpass is being built on Čepinska, which will solve traffic problems that are more than half a decade old. Reconstruction is underway at the Copacabana beach, which will provide Osijek with its first real Olympic swimming pool. The tram line is also being reconstructed, which is a prerequisite for the introduction of low-floor trams. The baroque core of the Fortress is being restored. The most modern wastewater treatment plant is being built in Nemetin. The City of Osijek has donated land to the Osijek-Baranja County in the Nemetin Economic Zone which will serve for the construction of the regional distribution centre for fruit and vegetables. The construction of the Economic Centre is also underway, with the most modern fair space for Osijek.

“The city of Osijek has taken big steps forward. There are many projects. We have listed only the largest. But we don't mean to stop there. We are ready to apply for projects worth HRK 440 million with the National Recovery and Resilience Plan. The documentation has been prepared. We paid special attention to the construction of new kindergartens, as well as the extension of the existing ones and the expansion of schools”, says the mayor of Osijek, Ivan Radić.

One of the projects planned for application with the National Recovery and Resilience Plan is the already mentioned reconstruction of the Copacabana beach, for which the city budgeted 34,743,875 kuna in 2022. The list of the projects further contains arrangements of the Cultural Centre with a budget of HRK 7,884,209, as well as the reconstruction of Trpimirova Street from Vukovarska to the Drava River with roundabouts and pedestrian/bicycle underpasses – the preparation of the project documentation.

Another important project is the construction of road, bicycle, and pedestrian infrastructure in the function of developing public transport and promoting zero-emission transport to improve flow, eliminate bottlenecks and increase traffic safety in the City of Osijek, worth 35 million kuna. It integrates three transport infrastructure construction projects. One of them is the construction of an intra-zone street in Jug 2 in Osijek with traffic areas, mixed sewerage, and public lighting from Opatijska to Medulinska street. Another is the reconstruction of a pedestrian (and bicycle) bridge over the Drava river in Osijek, while the third is the reconstruction of Bizovačka and Osječka streets in Josipovac.

For more, check out our politics section.

April 6, 2022 – The Vukovar Gymnastics Club performed outstandingly in the 1^st round of the Croatian Cup, bringing home team gold and an array of individual medals.

As hrv writes, the 1^st round of the Croatian Cup in the Basic Program of Women's Sports Gymnastics was held on April 3 at the Sokol Centre in Osijek in the organisation of the Osijek-Žito Gymnastics Society. The Vukovar Gymnastics Club had representatives in all categories in the team and individual competition. The oldest category was the only one without new competitors. In the other three categories, in addition to already experienced competitors, new members of the competition group performed. In the junior category, one new competitor performed, while in the cadet and junior categories half of the team consisted of girls who all took part in a competition for the first time. All of them did very well and successfully completed the first competition. Special praise goes to those who won individual medals in their first official competition: Lea Služek, Franka Markešić, and Iris Špehar.

The Vukovar Gymnastics Club was the most successful in this competition where the gymnasts in all categories won the team 1^st place, as well as the most individual medals. All Vukovar’s gymnasts performed as follows:

Cadets – team 1^st place. Individually: 1^st Ema Županović, 2^nd Franka Markešić, 3^rd Una Baždar 5^th Jana Cvetković, 8^th Marina Đerđ and 9^th Franka Ljubić.

Younger juniors – team 1^st place. Individually: 1^st Služek Lea, 2^nd Špehar Iris, 6^th Mirosavljević Adrijana, 7^th Gavrilović Ljiljana, 11^th Velerajter Natali, 18^th Horvat Livija.

Juniors – team 1^st place. Individually: 1^st Badanjak Helena, 2^nd Gavrilović Olivera, 4^th Jaman Mirjam, 5^th Božanović Ana, 10^th Mirosavljević Marijana and 11^th Roša Lorena.

Younger seniors – team 1^st place. Individually: 1^st Gužvić Kristina, 2^nd Ivanković Tena, 4^th Skokić Lana, 5^th Andrašević Dijana and 9^th Mašić Tea.

The next competition for the Basic Program will be held in June.

After this competition, The Vukovar Gymnastics Club has brought home another 4 team gold medals, and individually 4 gold, 4 silver, and 1 bronze medal.

To read more about sports in Croatia, follow TCN’s dedicated page. 

April 6, 2022 - Nestlé has planted a pedunculate oak forest at Lonjsko Polje Nature Park and donated electric scooters to support more sustainable forms of transport.

Nestlé, the largest food company globally, donated 115 pedunculate oak seedlings and four electric scooters to the Lonjsko Polje Nature Park. The seedlings together form a natural small oak forest, and each of them represents one Nestlé employee in Croatia. Electric scooters support and remind the company of the importance of switching to more sustainable forms of transport.

"Nestlé is aware of its role in shaping the planet's more sustainable future. At all levels of the business, we invest significant resources to contribute to reducing waste, the use of disposable plastics, and the reduction of water pollution. As part of the #ChooseGreen initiative in Croatia, we are taking concrete steps towards sustainability. This year, in partnership with the Lonjsko Polje Nature Park, we have focused on reducing greenhouse gas emissions, which contribute to global warming," said Laurentiu-Florin Dimitriu, Nestlé CEO for Croatia, Slovenia, and Bosnia and Herzegovina.

According to experts from the O2 Project, pedunculate oak is essential for the entire animal world in Lonjsko polje and is a source of food for many organisms, from insects to deer. Many animals also found a home on the oak trunk. The bald eagle, one of the largest birds in Croatia, nests in tall oak canopies, while in rotten trunks or dead parts of the tree, we can often find larvae of the stag beetle. Just one pedunculate tree represents a small ecosystem, so we can only imagine what one forest of this tree means.

This green giant grows up to 50 meters in height and has a trunk diameter of up to 2.5 meters. When we talk about age, oak becomes even more interesting because some trees are as old as 1500 years old. The moment we plant a small 30-centimeter tree or maybe an acorn, we can expect this plant to witness many more moments on Earth.

"Afforestation of all areas of the country is important for countless reasons. The primary goal of our project is to increase and preserve forest areas for the disposal of CO2 from the atmosphere. Nature often has the answer to most of our questions, including this one. Plants are one of the best stores of carbon in the atmosphere. They use the process of photosynthesis to use atmospheric carbon to create food for all their processes. With each new afforestation project, just like this one, we are closer to achieving our goals," said Goran Ladišić, co-founder of the O2 Project.

From the Nature Park, they thanked the company for its support in creating a common green future for all citizens from the area of ​​Lonjsko Polje and the area of ​​the entire county.

"We are happy to accept this valuable donation. Pedunculate oak prefers climates with high groundwater that are necessary for its survival. Therefore, it is not surprising that this is one of the main tree species in the Lonjsko Polje Nature Park. We are richer by over a hundred new youngsters. Our visitors now have additional activity at their disposal when visiting the Park - a tour with electric scooters," said Marija Kušmiš, director of the Lonjsko Polje Nature Park.

Nestlé continues with strong local initiatives focusing on environmentally responsible behavior.

Photos: Lonjsko Polje Nature Park / Komunikacijski laboratorij

For more, check out our lifestyle section. 

April 6, 2022 - Good news for EFT Airways! This successful Croatian aviation company has announced it is expanding its fleet after less than a year in the sky. 

Croatian private airline ETF Airways is currently preparing for the arrival of a third aircraft in its fleet. This airline started operations in the summer of 2021, and in less than a year it is increasing the number of aircraft in its fleet, reports Croatian Aviation. 

Namely, the Croatian carrier specializing in charter and ACMI operations will soon add another B737-800 aircraft to its fleet. It is an aircraft that will be named "Discovery" and will be entered into the Croatian aircraft register under the code 9A-KOR.

As the airline announced on its official LinkedIn profile, the aircraft is currently undergoing a detailed inspection, and upon completion, it will join the fleet and begin charter operations in the upcoming summer season.

At the end of May last year, ETF Airways presented its first B737-800 at Pula Airport, registration number 9A-LAB bearing the name "Voyager", and the number of aircraft soon increased to two, with the arrival of 9A-ABC, the name "Enterprise".

Less than a year after the start of operations, the airline is increasing the number of aircraft to three and is the only Croatian operator to have American-made aircraft (Boeing) in its fleet. 

ETF Airways is building a successful aviation story in Croatia and is currently hiring new cabin crew members. 

It should be added that the other two Croatian airlines have also increased their fleet. Namely, two weeks ago, Fly Air41 added the fourth aircraft to its fleet, registration number 9A-ZAG, while on April 6, Trade Air should land in Zagreb from the United Arab Emirates with a new A320 that will bear the 9A mark in the Croatian register - 9A-BTK.

For more, check out our travel section.