As Poslovni Dnevnik/Darko Bicak writes on the 22nd of September, 2020, although much more water will flow under the Sava's bridges before electric cars in this area become something normal and in mass use, progress is still visible almost on a monthly basis. Could Croatia become a global centre for sports car development and production?

The first commercial electric cars appeared about 10 years ago, and only a few years later in Croatia began subsidies for their purchase with a hefty amount of up to 10 thousand euros per car, making the country among the most generous in the EU. While at first subsidies were mostly sought after and distributed for hybrid vehicles with electro-petrol engines, now the focus is firmly on electric cars.

All this led to the figure of almost a thousand electric cars with Croatian license plates. Although this figure makes a statistical error in the mass of a total of 2.2 million registered motor vehicles in Croatia (about 1.8 million passenger cars), progress is still visible. While in northern Europe the electrification of the vehicle fleet has started to reach double-digit shares, and Norway has gone the furthest, in the rest of Europe, those numbers and shares are still modest.

In the whole story, Croatia is in a somewhat specific situation. Although there is no automotive industry, the pioneering attempt of Mate Rimac and his Rimac Automobili has led his story to serious dimensions that are measured in billions in value. Rimac is mainly engaged in designing and manufacturing technology for other electric car manufacturers, but he also presented his demonstration examples of hypersport vehicles through the Concept_One and C_Two, which, as the names suggest, are actually still concepts without mass production.

Plans with Bugatti

But just as the Kostelic family once created hundreds of thousands of recreational skiers in Croatia with their global skiing success, mostly out of fans of the sea and the sun, the story about Rimac made electric cars in Croatia a hot topic for everyone in Croatia. This story is evolving and moving forward all the time, and although it is currently difficult to distinguish what is true and what is just a set of wishes, Croatia could soon become a global centre for sports car development and production.

In addition to its Concepts, Rimac could soon take over the production of the globally much better known brand, Bugatti, which is currently part of the Volkswagen Group. As Rimac's company has already caught the eye of Porsche, which is also a prominent member of the VW family, it seems that VW wants to concentrate its production of hypersports cars in Croatia, which would result in a larger or smaller ownership stake in Rimac Automobili. The fact that the largest German automotive industry is seriously counting on an ''electric future'' is also showcased by the fact that just last week they had the presentation of one of perhaps their most significant models of this decade - The Porsche Taycan.

Although VW already had electric cars under its belt, primarily Golf and Up, as an upgrade of the brands of well-known petrol and diesel cars, Taycan is still one step further. Motives for purchasing electric cars can be reduced to three main reasons - environmental awareness, savings and speed.

While in Croatia e-cars are mostly procured for the expected savings - because electricity is cheaper than fuel and oil, and charging at public filling stations across the country is still mostly free, in northern Europe the most common reason for the purchase of e-cars is environmental awareness.

The story with the Taycan is based on speed. Electric cars have much higher accelerations due to their technology. For example, the standard petrol Porsche has an acceleration of 0-100 km / h in 3.2-5 seconds, while the strongest Taycan takes only 2.8 seconds to reach the same speed. Rimac's Concept_One takes 2.6 seconds and the C Two takes 1.8 seconds.

Could Croatia really become the new sports car development and production centre? With the likes of Mate Rimac and everything he has so miraculously acheived so far, from gaining the attention of the likes of Porsche to placing the country on the automotive map, it is becoming less and less difficult to imagine.

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September 22, 2020 – Following the example of a similar project that Vienna is implementing with its citizens, a new EU project – Living Streets – will come to life in Poreč this September. It is a project of revitalizing the streets of European cities, turning them into "living rooms". Poreč, along with the Croatian city of Križevci, was granted 20,000 euro for its implementation.

The City of Poreč applied for this project in cooperation with the city company Parentium d.o.o. and the Zone Association (Udruga Zona) for improving the quality of life, as part of the EU project EUKI (European Climate Initiative) Living Streets.

The competition was conducted in Croatia by the Terra Hub association, and Poreč won with a maximum of 73 points for its city "living room" project.

"The project aims, in cooperation with citizens, with systematically and long-term micro-transformations of city streets and spaces that are often congested with traffic and cars, especially during the summer months, to point out the importance of public space in urban areas," says Gordana Lalić, the director of the city company Parentioum d.o.o.

'Living rooms' of cities

One of the project infrastructure solutions will be the installation of the so-called parquets ("parklets"), pavement extensions that provide the tenants of nearby buildings with more space and possibilities for rest and socializing.

"We are witnessing that city street and squares are much more than transit areas. They are primarily spaces that can and must enrich the community – socially, and economically. To achieve this, it is necessary to 'activate' the streets, facilitate access for pedestrians and cyclists, and implement programs that encourage the participatory action of our citizens," explains Ajna Temimović from the City of Poreč.

A detail of trifora windows on the Ghotic Palace in Poreč / The City of Poreč

"By creating space for people, inviting them to socialize, that is, presenting a public space accessible to everyone, urban city spaces are enriched, and their original purpose, which is to serve the citizens, is returned to them," adds Temimović.

The parquet concept will be built on the model of the Austrian capital Vienna, where, according to the same principle, about thirty locations have already been turned into pleasant meeting places and good neighborly relations.

This year, thanks to many projects, Vienna took the title of the best city in the world in terms of quality of life for the ninth time in a row. Their project CityMaking! Wien, among other projects, encourages citizens to arrange their small oases to relax and socialize in front of the buildings in which they live.

Freedom Square (Trg slobode), the main square in Poreč / The City of Poreč

The importance of climate change mitigation

Poreč therefore successfully follows the Viennese example of revitalizing urban spaces, while the Croatian capital attempts by citizens to bring a breath of life to the streets during these difficult times are banned and even punished for absurd laws, as we witnessed when two Zagreb citizens planted a small garden in front your building during the lockdown.

"Cities have a key role to play in climate change mitigation and adaptation processes, and all new projects involving urban development must be guided by this," Lalić points out, adding that the planned duration of the Living Streets project is 12 months and it will be implemented from September 2020 to September 2021.

In the Poreč area, the transport sector is responsible for more than half of the total CO2 emissions, or 58.87 percent.

Poreč from above / The City of Poreč

"Sustainable mobility thus becomes one of the key topics of sustainable policies, i.e., one of the preconditions for further sustainable development of the city, and ensuring the highest possible level of quality of life for the citizens of Poreč," says Temimović.

In addition to parquets, a series of workshops, actions, and public events are planned, all to „encourage the reduction of the use of personal vehicles, which will consequently reduce negative impacts on human health, reduce greenhouse gas emissions and improve the quality of life in the town,“ says Lalić.

A great interest of other Croatian cities for the project

However, Poreč is not the only city that can boast the Living Street project. Namely, as many as 21 Croatian cities have applied for projects to transform their streets into a pleasant and safe space for socializing and connecting citizens.

Poreč and Križevci are the winners of the competition with the highest number of points, and the cities that took third to sixth place – Labin, Pazin, Sisak, and Velika Gorica – were placed in the status of "potential cities" for which the Terra Hub Association, in agreement and cooperation with cities, will try to provide additional funding for implementation.

Other green projects in Poreč

As Temimović explains, Poreč has been working intensively on the implementation of "green" projects for a long time.

So far, the city has participated in the national action "Plant a tree – do not be a stump" ("Zasadi drvo – ne budi panj") in which citizens planted more than 500 tree seedlings. They also have as many as seven charging stations for electric cars, and their utility and traffic police use electric vehicles.

According to Temimović, they obtained co-financing for them from the Environmental Protection Fund, and through another EU project, they are in the process of procuring an electric-powered minibus to develop a pilot project for public transport.

The purpose is, of course, that over time, Poreč streets become greener and, above all, more accessible for citizens to socialize.

The old town Poreč / The City of Poreč

ZAGREB, September 22, 2020 - Economy Minister Tomislav Coric said on Tuesday that the advertisement for the position of the CEO of state-run oil pipeline operator JANAF would be published as soon as possible, after the current executive Dragan Kovacevic was remanded in custody on corruption charges.

"Concerning the provisions of the JANAF statute, it is necessary to appoint an acting director until the appointment of the new one through a public competition," the minister explained.

He said that this would be done as soon as possible.

Asked by the press whether he had visited Dragan Kovacevic's club, Coric said that he had known Kovacevic since 2013.

Coric explained that he had "made his acquaintance first of all due to economic topics."

Coric, who had served as the energy minister in the previous cabinet, said that considering the fact that his department covered JANAF, he had met Kovacevic on several occasions and visited the club.

Media outlets have reported that "the club" in downtown Zagreb refers to private premises owned by Kovacevic's private company and used by state officials and business people to socialise.

Coric said that he had met Kovacevic a few weeks ago.

The scandal involving Kovacevic, as well as the owner of the private Elektrocentar company, two mayors and a few more suspects broke out last week. Twelve of the 13 suspects in this influence peddling and public tender probe have been placed in custody.

Kovacevic is suspected of having received kickbacks from the main suspect, the owner of Elektrocentar, Kreso Petek.

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ZAGREB, September 22, 2020 - The Fiscal Policy Commission has supported the government's fiscal policy measures, warning that due to the high level of public debt and low potential growth rates one should focus on measures to alleviate the impact of the pandemic and help boost the economy's medium and long-term potential the most.

The Commission determined on Tuesday that macroeconomic projections for this year, which represent the basis of the revised budget, were being achieved albeit with a slightly changed dynamic.

The economic decline in Q2 will be partially offset by economic results in Q3 which are slightly better than expected, however, contrary to budget projections, the risk of the pandemic continuing into the second half of the year with a faster dynamic postpones normalisation of the system and stronger economic recovery for the period to come.

In such conditions the projected economic decline of 9.4%, on which the estimate of the budget revenue is based, could become a reality, but what worries are increased risks to planned recovery in 2021, the Commission says.

According to data on budget execution in the first half of the year, despite the measures taken, such as temporary tax write-offs and government subsidies, the budget revenue is good, primarily owing to the good results of the first part of the tourist season, which could help the projection of the budget revenue for the entire year 2020 become a reality as well, the Commission says.

On the other hand, the government's fiscal measures regarding spending have resulted in an increase in budget expenditures that are slightly higher than expected. In the second half of the year, most of those fiscal measures are expected to be phased out, which would reduce the pressure on spending, the Commission says.

It warns that at the moment nobody can forecast how long the pandemic will last, and the longer it lasts, the longer the existing measures could be in force or even new ones regarding budget expenditures could be introduced.

Despite such uncertainty, the budget deficit forecast could still be achieved, it says.

The consolidated budget deficit in H1 was HRK 17.9 billion, or 4.9% of the country's GDP.

In the first half of 2020, the budget revenues dropped 7.2% to HRK 60.4 billion while budget expenditures increased by HRK 10.1 billion, or 15.2% to HRK 77.1 billion.

When extra-budgetary users and local and regional government units are added, the budget deficit amounts to HRK 17.9 billion or 4.9% of GDP.

H1 GDP was down 7.8% in real terms from GDP in the same period of last year.

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ZAGREB, September 22, 2020 - Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovic on Tuesday said that developing a reliable and stable legal framework and predictable fiscal framework had a key role in achieving a strong Croatia economy-wise.

"That is essential to have a stimulating business environment, production, investments and employment," Plenkovic said opening a conference organised by the Vecernji List daily and Podravka food manufacturer on tax policy in the function of boosting competitiveness of Croatia's economy.

The state needs to develop a system without legal and fiscal unknowns for entrepreneurs and that means a passable system and each new wave of tax reforms starts on the first day of the year, said Plenkovic.

He underscored that during the term of his cabinet more than HRK 9 billion had been released through tax cuts and currently 1.9 million citizens are exempt from income taxes which is twice as many as at the start of the first term of the government under his premiership.

The average wage has increased by HRK 1,150, which is five times more than in the period between 2011 and 2015, he recalled.

For the purpose of boosting purchasing power of households. VAT has been halved for basic food items and certain commodities and the non-taxable income has been increased, the premier said.

Continuation of tax cuts

Plenkovic underlined that tax cuts would continue in 2021, which would include reducing income taxes brackets: from 36% to 30% and from 24% to 20%, while profit tax for small enterprises from 12% to 10%.

During this term VAT on all food will be reduced from 25% to 13% but circumstances for that are still not ripe. Taxation of real estate transactions will be abolished too but not necessarily on 1 January 2021, he added.

All VAT tax payers will be able to choose whether they will pay it after an invoice has been paid, he added and digitisation will continue for tax and administration procedures.

Plenkovic underlined that a desirable Croatia for its residents is a country that is safe, resilient to crises, with macro-economic stability and a country with solved transitional problems.

Plenkovic underscored that the government is focused on four points, strengthening economic sovereignty which comprehends self-sufficiency in production and increased exports.

About €1billion to save jobs until end of year

Plenkovic said that the fight against Covid-19 showed how important and inevitable the state's role was because only it can ensure the necessary support with financial support schemes and on the other hand ensure financial stability of public finances.

Plenkovic underscored that as a result of the government measures, Croatia has not seen a huge increase in unemployment.

To date HRK 6.3 billion has been invested in job-retention measures and has saved about 600,000 jobs in 100,000 companies, he said.

By the end of the year that amount will have risen to about €1 billion in forms of grants to the private sector, added Plenkovic.

An important factor will be in European funds that Croatia will have at its disposal in the next four to seven years, he added.

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ZAGREB, September 22, 2020 - The Dubrovnik-based Improtanne Resort hotel company was given two Financial Agency (FINA) Golden Balance awards on Tuesday - for the most financially successful business according to financial ratings and for the most successful business in the hospitality sector in 2019.

Since 2008, FINA has been giving the annual awards to best businesses in several fields according the criteria of their profitability, liquidity, debts, activities and cost efficiency.

Of the 136,260 businesses which submitted financial statements, FINA shortlisted 2.9%, or 4,008 businesses: 178 micro-enterprises, 2,582 small enterprise, 1,005 medium-sized enterprises and 243 big companies. 

For instance, the Rijeka-based Ugor company won this year's award for the most successful enterprise in the sector of agriculture, forestry and fisheries, the Orahovica-based Radlovac was the winner in mining, Jadranska Vrata from Rijeka in transport and logistics, H&M in trade, the Cepin-based Iver was the most successful business in construction, Zagrebinspekt in the sector of expert, scientific and technical activities.

This year, the award-giving ceremony was held for the first time in a digital form. Addressing this event online, Finance Minister Zdravko Maric recalled that 2019 would be remembered as a year with great achievements of Croatian entrepreneurs.

However, the coronavirus pandemic in 2020 has imposed new challenges on all of us, he admitted.

Since the start of the crisis, Croatia's government has been managing the situation in a timely and appropriate manner, the minister said.

So far, seven billion kuna has been granted under the schemes aimed at the support to wages and job retention, he added.

FINA management board chair: 2019 with record results for Croatia's economy

The FINA management board president Drazen Covic said that 2019 was a year with record results for doing business in Croatia.

"In terms of the total revenues, Croatia's economy rose by more than 10%," Covic said.

The profit of businesses increased by six percent, and investments in non-material and material assets strongly grew, by 15%, and exports increased by more than six percent, he said.

Since 2020 FINA has been monitoring the trends in employment, and last year, entrepreneurs employed a record high number, nearly 970,000 workers, Covic said.

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ZAGREB, September 22, 2020 - The national day for the elimination of violence against women was marked on Tuesday outside the Zagreb Municipal Court where three women, killed at the court during divorce proceedings in 1999, were commemorated, with the message that any violence is unacceptable.

President Zoran Milanovic said at the commemoration that the tragedy at the Municipal Court would forever be "a stain and a painful reminder of what  happens when rage and hate get the better of a person, especially a man."

The responsibility of men is crucial, it starts in the family and at school, Milanovic said, adding that the situation had improved since he was a child as things that were once considered normal are no longer considered normal.

"We will never be like Denmark or Sweden, nor should we, but we must take care that boys are taught, while they are still little, that problems are not solved with fists and that they should channel their rage, energy and hormones into something acceptable and definitely non-violent," said the president.

Justice and Public Administration Minister Ivan Malenica said that the government worked continuously on amending the legal framework as well as on raising awareness of domestic violence and its prevention and of the need to send a message that it was unacceptable.

"We are all collectively and individually responsible and should not turn a blind eye or a deaf ear to cases of domestic violence and violence against women and children," he stressed.

Supreme Court president Djuro Sessa, who also attended the commemoration, said that everyone witnessed violence on a daily basis, from verbal assaults to physical violence in public, and that people were starting to consider this as something normal, which was why it was up to judges not to accept it.

Zagreb Municipal Court president Jadranka Liovic Merkas warned that 20 years since the Municipal Court tragedy, despite a good legal framework, the number of women victims of violence was still high.

"By commemorating that tragedy every year we are trying to point to the problem of violence against women and send a message of zero tolerance to any form of violence," she said.

On September 22, 1999 Mato Oraskic killed Judge Ljiljana Hvalec, attorney Hajra Prohic, and his wife Gordana Oraskic and severely wounded court reporter Stanka Cvetkovic during his divorce proceedings.

Croatia observes September 22 as the national day for the elimination of violence against women in memory of the victims of that murder as well as all other women killed in violent crimes.

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September 22, 2020 - For six consecutive weeks this summer, the Martinska venue alone welcomed over 10, 000 international visitors to its music festivals in Sibenik. Zero cases of Coronavirus occurred.

Over recent years, three things have firmly placed Croatia on the international stage – Game Of Thrones, the World Cup and music festivals. Running for over a decade now, music festivals are the oldest of these. They have elevated places like Pula and Tisno to become among the most-Googled destinations in the country.

So popular now are Croatia music festivals, that many say the summer season of music festivals in Croatia has supplanted the famous hedonistic holidays of Ibiza as the hippest place to go. Incredible disappointment was therefore felt by tens of thousands of expectant party people earlier this year when most of the international Croatia music festivals decided to cancel their 2020 events. They did so in response to the Coronavirus pandemic.

One venue stood alone – Martinska, a 20-year-old site for music festivals in Sibenik. Over six consecutive weeks, all of their 2020 festivals took place. They did so under strict adherence to epidemiological guidelines. And, following a wait of two weeks after the final event (to cover any potential Coronavirus incubation period), site organisers Pozitivan Ritam have released their results - zero cases of Coronavirus.

“It's not only the five festivals and one concert event that we did,” Pozitivan Ritam director Vedran Meniga told TCN, “The Fortress of Culture in Sibenik had more than 30 events this summer and Project Vojarna in Sibenik had two parties this year with over 4000 people. On one RTL television show, they described Sibenik as the Croatian Wuhan when 3000 people were in the town for one techno party there. But, at the end of the season, none of these events resulted in a single Coronavirus infection. Not one.”

Following a successful lockdown earlier in the year, cases of Coronavirus were limited in Croatia at the start of the season. Yet, some were understandably hesitant to come. Music festivals in Sibenik still managed to attract visitors from Britain, France, the Netherlands, Belgium and Germany to Martinska. Even after the middle of August when cases began to appear in other regions and international visitor numbers dried up, the festival site was still busy with Croatians and partygoers from near-neighbouring countries. At the end of August, there were no more than five infected persons in Sibenik. None were music festival or music event attendees. Throughout much of the summer, Sibenik recorded zero cases.

“The music festivals in Sibenik are proof that it's possible to work doing events during the era of Corona,” Meniga tells TCN. “Of course, all of our events were open-air and no doubt that helped.”

"When cases started to reappear elsewhere at the end of July, I went to the civil authorities and epidemiologists immediately, before they came to us,” says Vedran. “The civil authorities and the police grant the license for the events. I presented them with a plan and they were satisfied. They allowed us to continue.”

“It helped that Martinska is across the bay from Sibenik. Festival attendees don't even need to go into the town to come, they drive here straight from the Magistrala (Croatian coastal highway). Also, Martinska's capacity is five times bigger than the numbers we were going to cater for. The site can accommodate six to seven thousand. We expected no more than 1500 daily. That was more than enough space to maintain physical distance. We carefully took all contact details for each attendee at the entrance, in case something appeared and we (or authorities) had to later contact people. We also took everyone's temperature. And in addition to the required epidemiological sanitization, we also installed disinfectant pillars at every single point where money or goods exchanged hands. All our staff wore not only masks but also gloves. Four times the civil authorities made surprise visits to the site for inspection along with epidemiologists and police. Each time they were completely satisfied.”

Current forecasts for the Coronavirus response predict that a vaccine will not be available to cover everyone until the autumn of 2021. This has serious implications for at least one more tourist season. Yet, with the incredible achievements seen this summer at Martinska's music festivals in Sibenik, we can all take hope that events, tourism, and even life itself may continue to be enjoyed in the near future, as long as we're all smart about it.



All photos 2020 Martinska © Seasplash / Pozitivan Ritam. 

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