ZAGREB, October 6, 2019 - Prime Minister Andrej Plenković on Saturday visited the construction site of the HEP power company's Korlat Wind Farm near Benkovac, which is worth HRK 500 million, will have 58 MW of power and be put into operation in August 2020.

The expected annual output of 170 GWh, or 1% of the annual electricity consumption in Croatia, will be enough to supply more than 50,000 households, HEP said in a press release.

"This investment... is indeed important because it shows that HEP, as Croatia's strongest and most important energy company, has a good understanding of the context of Croatia's new energy development strategy, which is being prepared, as well as of our focus on renewable energy sources, in line with our global commitments and European trends," Plenković said.

"That's why the inauguration of works on the Korlat Wind Farm and the preparation of the Korlat Solar Power Plant project are important for supplying 50,000 with electricity as well as for following global and ecological trends in energy development. I'm glad this investment contributes to GDP growth in Croatia," he added.

The wind turbines will be made, delivered and put into operation by the German company Nordex, while the Korlat Wind Farm will be built by two Croatian companies, Ing-Grad and Fractal.

HEP CEO Frane Barbarić said the company was developing a number of other wind farms to be built by 2030, increasing output by 1,500 MW, half of which from wind farms and solar power plants.

By 2030, HEP plants to produce 350 MW of power in wind farms and as much in solar power plants, the equivalent of the output of the Krško nuclear power plant. One of the solar power plants HEP is developing will be built next to the Korlat Wind Farm and its output would be 75 MW.

The combined power of the two plants using renewables will make Korlat a unique location for the production of green energy in Croatia. The investment is estimated at 480 million kuna, HEP said.

HEP is currently building the Vis Solar Power Plant and will soon begin work on two more, Cres and Vrlika Jug.

The company expects that by 2030 the share of renewables in its production will increase by 50% and that annual production from renewables will go up from 6 to 9 billion kWh.

More energy news can be found in the Business section.

The Erste Plavi and PBZ Croatia Osiguranje mandatory pension funds and the Croatia Osiguranje insurance company are the most likely new owners of Dalekovod Professio, a company which manages some of the wind farms in Croatia, according to unofficial information confirmed by several sources, reports Jutarnji List on January 5, 2019.

For a 50 percent stake, through which Dalekovod had a share in the Eko and Velika Popina companies, they will pay 115 million kuna. The remaining 50 percent is owned by Ante Ćurković, a former director of the Croatian Electric Company (HEP), also known as the owner of the best wind farm locations in Croatia, who allegedly has no intention of selling his share.

The transaction has not yet been completed. A stock sale contract has been signed, but before the formal takeover, it is necessary to perform further due diligence and obtain approval of the Supervisory Board. It is very likely that this will be done smoothly and quickly. After the transaction is finalized, a new company should be established, which will have shares in both companies, Eko and Velika Popina.

Pension funds have decided to enter the wind farm industry because they see a good chance of making money there. The company controls two of the best wind farms in Croatia, at the most suitable locations, from which high yields are expected.

“The wind farms provide a predictable revenue stream and good returns to fund members. I think this is a reasonably good investment with little risk. It would be great if this was just one in a series of investments of pension funds in renewable energy sources and I hope there will be more opportunities in that sector,” said a source informed about the situation in Dalekovod.

Dalekovod has now finally got rid of its non-core portfolio, the wind farms for which it was unsuccessfully trying to find a buyer for years. The company even negotiated with HEP and several other potential buyers from Croatia and abroad. However, the transaction has not been realized until now. The pre-bankruptcy proceedings foresaw the sale of the wind farms.

More news on the wind farms in Croatia can be found in our Business section.

Translated from Jutarnji List (reported by Jasmina Trstenjak).

ZAGREB, November 21, 2018 - Construction work on a wind farm inland from the northern Adriatic town of Senj began on Tuesday, with Prime Minister Andrej Plenković saying that this 160 million euro project of a wind farm in Croatia was an excellent example of cooperation between Croatia and China.

The 156-MW wind farm, consisting of thirty-nine 4-MW turbines, will be built by the Chinese company Norinco International and will spread over 45 square kilometres. Construction should be completed in two years and the wind farm should be operating for 23 years. Estimated annual output is 530 million kWh.

Plenković said that this project opened a new chapter in relations between China and Croatia and delivered a strong message in terms of investment. He said that this investment would make a considerable contribution to the total share of renewable energy sources in electricity production in Croatia.

The prime minister expressed confidence that the project would be completed according to schedule and that some of the work would be performed by Croatian businesses and workers.

Plenković said that Croatia wanted to boost its cooperation with China, especially in infrastructure development. He said that Chinese participation in the upgrade of railway infrastructure, in which Croatia plans to invest 3 billion euro over the next 12 years, would be in Croatia's interest.

Plenković said that Croatian seaports could also be interesting to Chinese companies. Asked if this meant that a lowland railway between Rijeka and Zagreb could be built, he said that this was one of the options that would strengthen Croatia's position on Europe's infrastructure map.

Norinco International CEO Wang Yitong said that the project was supported by both the Croatian and the Chinese government. He recalled that the project agreement had been signed a year ago.

Late last year, Norinco International purchased a 76% stake in the Senj-based Energija Projekt company for 32 million euro, acquiring the rights to build and manage a wind farm near Senj.

For more on the cooperation between Croatia and China, click here.

ZAGREB, March 14, 2018 - Lithuania's Achema Group said on Wednesday it completed the acquisition of a 42 MW wind farm in Croatia and an 18 MW wind farm in the Czech Republic, the group said in a statement on its website.

A new wind farm opens on the Dalmatian coast.