ZAGREB, 7 Dec, 2021 - The state secretary at the Ministry of Economy and Sustainable Development, Ivo Milatić, said on Tuesday that in addition to HRK 390 million set aside for the energy renovation of family housing, as much money would also be allocated to companies for the same purpose.

HRK 400 million will be allocated from the national recovery and resilience plan to companies which failed to get funding in the tender process because there wasn't enough money, Milatić said in response to the question from MP Tomislav Okroša of the ruling Croatian Democratic Union (HDZ) during debate on the final text of the renewable energy bill.

Okroša said that 8,850 applications had been received as part of the call for the energy renovation of housing and the construction of systems for the use of renewable energy sources, while only HRK 390 million was available. He wondered if this call would be issued again and whether this amount would suffice.

Milatić expressed hope that the amount would suffice, "and if not, calls will continue from the new financial perspective and the Environmental Protection Fund," and that all this investment would result in the installation of "a serious amount of solar panels" by the end of 2022.

He dismissed the claim by Zvane Brumnić (Social Democrats group) that the bill had been changed between the two readings indicating that investors would turn an enormous profit at the expense of citizens.

"I don't know where you found this. I categorically deny that private companies will make an enormous profit, that's out of the question," Milatić said.

He said that the bill promoted the use of renewable energy sources and aimed to increase the share of renewable energy in the heating and cooling sector by 1.1 percentage points as the annual average calculated for the period until 2025.

This bill seeks to ensure that there is at least 36.6 per cent of renewable energy in final energy consumption by 2030, the state secretary said.

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ZAGREB, 11 Sept, 2021 - The green transition must be just and Croatia's biggest challenges are transport and the energy renovation of buildings, heard a panel on the challenges and opportunities provided by the European Green Deal, held in Fažana on Saturday.

"There is no green transition without a just social transition," said Lidija Pavić-Rogošić, a member of the European Economic and Social Committee.

The Commission has proposed the establishment of a new social climate fund to help citizens invest in energy efficiency, new heating and cooling systems, and cleaner mobility. The Commission is proposing up to €1.4 billion for Croatia for the 2025-2032 period.

Pavić-Rogošić called for including relevant stakeholders in defining policies and for adopting solutions that met the needs of the local population.

Hana Huzjak of the European Commission Representation in Croatia said the Fit For 55 targets could be met if every individual contributed.

The Fit For 55 legislative package envisages reducing greenhouse gas emissions in the EU by 55% by 2030 from those in the 1990s, the end goal being to make Europe the first climate neutral continent by 2050.

Thanks to many hydroelectric power plants and the development of wind parks, Croatia is above the EU average in electricity production from renewables, said Dražen Jakšić, head of the Hrvoje Požar Institute, adding that transport and the energy renovation of buildings were Croatia's biggest green transition challenges.

The participants in the panel were agreed that it was necessary to educate and inform citizens about how to get involved in the green transition.

Funding for the energy renovation of buildings may be obtained via the Environmental Protection and Energy Efficiency Fund, said Tin Bašić, editor of the Zgradonačelnik.hr. platform, adding that it was necessary to educate people that by investing in their building, they would save in the long term and have lower utility bills.

In the EU, buildings account for 40% of energy consumption and 36% of greenhouse gas emissions.

Besides having a positive effect on the environment, the energy renovation of buildings is expected to reduce the risk of energy poverty. In 2018, 17.5% of Croatian citizens could not pay their utilities in time, while the EU average was 6.6%.

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ZAGREB, 9 Sept 2021 - Croatia's Environmental Protection and Energy Efficiency Fund continues co-funding the energy renovation of family houses, and HRK 300 million has been allocated for the public call that will be advertised by the Fund in mid-September, the Fund says in a press release issued on Thursday.

The fund's director, Siniša Kukić, was quoted as saying that the government had decided to extend the family houses energy renovation scheme, and therefore this year, the allocation for this purpose was increased by an additional 100 million kuna, compared to the last year's allocation for this scheme.

"The interest in grants under this scheme is still significant," Kukuć says.

Last year, the authorities approved the grants for the energy renovation of 3,100 houses.

Under this scheme, houses large up to 600 square meters, or properties with up to three housing units can apply for non-repayable grants.

The maximum amount of the non-repayable grant is HRK 204,000.

A further 100 million kuna has also been set aside for energy renovation grants for quake-damaged houses

(€1 = HRK 7.476883)

ZAGREB, 16 July  (Hina) - The government will continue to co-finance the energy renovation of family homes even though the renovation programme ended last year, while the new one, which will cover the 2021-2030 period, is being prepared, the government decided at a cabinet meeting on Friday.

The government adopted a proposal to extend financing for the programme of energy renovation of family homes for the 2014-2020 period.

Funding for the energy renovation of family homes for this and next year, in the total amount of HRK 400 million, has been secured from the Environment Protection and Energy Efficiency Fund and from the distribution of proceeds from the sale of emission units, with HRK 300 million earmarked to co-finance the energy renovation of family homes that were not damaged in last year's earthquakes and HRK 100 million to co-finance the energy renovation of family homes that were damaged in the earthquakes.

The Environment Protection and Energy Efficiency Fund last month issued a call for applications for family home owners, with co-financing amounting to HRK 171 million, and for citizens at risk of energy poverty, with the total co-financing amount of HRK 32 million.

The call was closed on 1 September 2020 after applications far exceeded the planned amount of HRK 203 million. A total of 7,394 applications were received, of which 3,100 were approved, for which HRK 210.9 million was ensured. On the other hand, 1,200 applications did not meet the set criteria while more than half the applications were rejected because funding was insufficient.

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ZAGREB, June 25, 2020 - Construction and Physical Planning Minister Predrag Stromar said in Varazdin on Thursday that the provision of HRK 203 million for the energy renovation of family houses was one of the most important projects concerning housing and citizens' quality of life.

"We have renovated many hospitals, kindergartens, schools and other public buildings and in addition to the socially-subsidised housing construction and housing loans, this is one of the most important projects concerning housing and citizens' quality of life," said Stromar after the continuation of the energy renovation of family houses was announced.

Stromar recalled that the last time applications for grants from the Environment and Energy Efficiency Fund were invited for energy renovation was in 2015.

"We have secured HRK 203 million for our citizens to renovate their houses in such a way to consume much less energy and emit much less CO2 into the air," Stromar said, noting that applications for grants would be received by September 1.