April the 5th, 2023 - Is there going to be a considerable Croatian investment boom? According to the powers that be - Yes. An enormous 25 billion euros is currently on offer to the Republic of Croatia, and it represents an opportunity this country has never had given to it before.

As Poslovni Dnevnik writes, so far, the Republic of Croatia has by far the most money made available to it from all European Union (EU) funds - as much as 25 billion euros, which it must use by 2029. Minister of Regional Development and EU Funds Minister Sime Erlic deems this the opportunity of a generation.

''This is an exceptional opportunity for the Croatian economy and for all segments of society,'' Erlic pointed out at a recently held workshop in Karlovac, with the message that the system for the implementation of European Union funds should be improved. In the new financial perspective, "we 'e going one step further, we're going forward strongly,'' said Minister Erlic.

"This time we're ready because we don't need to build an entirely new system. We already have the people, knowledge, the development agencies. Now we are more experienced and we have to find those projects that provide the greatest added value for the wider community and those that have a strong sustainability component," he pointed out.

Erlic also assessed that the state's development cycle had been accelerated with the help of EU funds and that more than 70 percent of all public investments were financed from this source. "There's no area of this country in which some kind of project financed from EU funds hasn't been implemented," Erlic pointed out, adding that by the year 2029, a real Croatian investment boom is set to happen.

"Investments will be made in innovation and research, in business competitiveness, energy efficiency, renewable energy sources, sustainability, waste management, in the water and communal sector, and so on,'' he assured when discussing the upcoming Croatian investment boom we can all now expect.

He concluded by highlighting some of the investments in the least developed regions of the country and exploiting their potential as the biggest development challenge, including the fact that the government has reserved as much as 470 million euros for hilly and mountainous areas, and has also developed adapted programmes.

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July the 12th, 2022 - Investors seeking to build in Croatia will now have much more quick and clear answers to the questions of what they can build and where they can build it thanks to the Croatian ePlans editor (ePlanovi).

As Poslovni Dnevnik/Suzana Varosanec writes, the spatial plans of the new generation will be created through the new Croatian ePlanovi editor, and the Ministry of Spatial Planning, Construction and State Property is developing this new electronic service.

The ''translation'' of old generation plans into new generation plans will be carried out through the service, so that the new software solution and connection with the Croatian ePlans editor module will facilitate the work of professional developers and bring about the standardisation of all spatial planning documentation.

The reforms being undertaken through the ISPU project - Spatial Planning Information System and its modules represent a ''reform storm'' in this area, because it will remove the toilsome tasks faces by professional developers, and investors will ultimately know about every single location across the Republic of Croatia for which rules are in force, starting with the question of what may or may not be built and where, and all of it will be available online and be free of charge.

The Croatian ePlans editor is otherwise a web-GIS solution that can be used free of charge by expert spatial plan makers, ie those who have the approval of the Ministry to carry out professional spatial planning work.

"Through the Croatian ePlans editor, all spatial plans across the Republic of Croatia will be created and presented in a standardised way. This will enable investors entering the construction process to very easily get answers to questions such as what can or cannot be built and where, what the building should look like, which body issues special conditions and information regarding procedures for each location in Croatia, including building permits and the like, and the data will be available for free on the ISPU Geoportal,'' the Ministry stated.

The Croatian ePlans editor module will enable the much faster and simpler creation of plans, as all official sources will be made totally available to expert drafters, including digital orthophoto maps, layers from the Register of Spatial Units (borders of counties, cities, municipalities and settlements, as well as addresses), always up-to-date digital cadastral plans, other valid spatial plans, as well as all available data from the registers and records of public law bodies.

This entire system was successfully tested in the area of ​​Primorje-Gorski Kotar County, more precisely in Crikvenica, where the spatial plan of the county - the spatial plan of the town and two urban planning plans were ''translated'' from the old to the new generation.

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ZAGREB, 9 June 2022 - The Austrian hotel and tourism group Falkensteiner (FMTG) plans to invest around €300 million in Croatia in the next five years in destinations it already operates in, Zadar and Punat on the island of Krk, the group's co-owner and executive director, Otmar Michaeler, told reporters on Thursday.

The meeting with the press was organized on the occasion of the group's 65th anniversary and Michaeler underscored that Croatia, where they have been operating in tourism since the early 2000s, is one of the most important countries for their growth out of a total of seven countries in which it does business in Europe.

"After a couple of years, we are once again investing a lot in Croatia because we see the potential for our premium products, and in addition to increasing quality in all hotels from four to five stars, we are also focusing on luxury campsites and apartment resorts," said Michaeler.

Of the total amount to be invested, about €150 million is planned in Zadar in the next few years to increase the quality and product at Punta Skala, and to raise the Hotel Didaora to five stars. A big investment is also planned at Borik, where the group plans to build a green apartment resort, on which negotiations are currently being conducted with Zadar City authorities.

Plans for its second destination in Croatia, in Punat on the island of Krk, involve an investment of €65 million to turn the current car campsite into a five-star luxury campsite. It will have 250 lots, about 150 mobile homes and an abundance of sustainable and environmental offers. Work on that camp should begin in the autumn.

The Falkensteiner Michaeler Tourism Group has a total of 30 hotels in seven countries. The group experienced difficulties in business in June 2020 as a consequence of the COVID pandemic and shortage of guests. However, the company managed to bridge that year and in 2021, particularly during the summer, it generated good results in Croatia and is once again investing, with an emphasis on sustainability and digitalization.

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April the the 9th, 2022 - The Croatian longevity food tech startup Cidrani has received investments from some big Croatian IT names, including the person behind the wildly successful Photomath.

As Poslovni Dnevnik writes, the Croatian longevity food tech startup Cidrani recently presented a new investment round worth 190,000 euros within the Bird incubator, under the auspices of which it has been operating for the last year.

New investors in Cidrani are some very well-known Croatian IT and business names, including the founders of Five, Luka Abrus and Viktor Marohnic, the founder of Photomath Damir Sabor, private equity and venture capital investment expert Mirna Marovic, financial expert specialising in the IT industry and EU grants Tajana Barancic and serial entrepreneurs and business angels Maja and Jonathan Cooper.

Cidrani has imposed a unique concept of organic fermented micronutrients for the health of the digestive microbiome which, if taken as a daily ritual over a long period of time, significantly reduce inflammatory processes in the body and contribute to healthier longevity.

They want to conquer the American market

In terms of revenue, Cidrani is growing at an annual rate of eight times, and their goal is to become the top longevity company in the world. They were the first to introduce personalisation and a monthly subscription to fermented micro-beverages, and in addition to numerous private users, more than ten companies have already included their employees in the community of Cidrani enthusiasts of healthy digestion.

"This year we intend to enter all European markets and enter the large US market. We plan to participate in as many as five of the strongest food fairs, and we're launching our own scientific clinical study, which will further confirm the impact of fermented micro-beverages on general health. We're also working intensively on the development of artificial intelligence (AI), the foundation of a virtual assistant that will support our customers on the path to health and longevity,'' said co-founder Bruno Balen.

Investors Luka Abrus, Mirna Marovic, Tajana Barancic, Maja Jelisic Cooper and the co-founder of Cidrani Nika Pintar revealed at a recently held panel some of their personal and professional reasons behind why they decided to invest in Cidrani, and also talked about the general principles of investing and attracting investments.

The investment of 190,000 euros from some big Croatian IT and business names in Cidrani represents the so-called ''bridge round'' of this progressive startup, which is announcing a new investment cycle at the end of the summer, in order to conquer the US market and further develop machine learning algorithms.

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ZAGREB, 13 Nov, 2021 - The credit rating is important for the price of borrowing for the state, businesses and citizens as its upgrade lowers the risk premium, which has a favourable effect on the price of capital, Finance Minister Zdravko Marić told Hina on Saturday.

The Fitch Ratings agency yesterday upgraded Croatia's rating to BBB, the best in Croatia's history, with a positive outlook.

Marić said the rating was first of all closely related to debt price and the capital price for the state and, directly or indirectly, for the interest paid by businesses and citizens.

The Fitch rating has a positive effect on those processes, he said, but added that the upgrade should be viewed in continuity, recalling that until not so long ago the state paid a considerable amount for interest.

In 2015, the budgetary expenditure for interest was HRK 12 billion, which at that time was almost the entire budget of the education ministry, whereas now that expenditure is HRK 4.5 billion lower.

"Interest used to be 5-6% and now it is about 1% on the ten-year bond," said Marić, adding that the credit rating assessment was important both in times of low and in times of higher interest rates on capital markets.

"We are talking about reference interest rates," he said, adding that the increased money offer in recent years led to a considerable drop in reference rates, but that the total interest paid by citizens, businesses and the state was a sum of the reference rate and the rate related to a specific country and to the risk premium.

"That's where the rating strikes because Croatia can't influence the trend of reference interest rates, but it can the risk premium it pays."

Marić said Croatia had a stable growth, public finances in order, a clear prospect of entering the euro area, and political stability.

"Those are all elements which have an effect on rating improvement, which is then reflected in a better perception and reputation of a country like Croatia in the financial world, and in the end comes the effect on the risk premium," he said. That is important both when reference interests are low and when they are high, he added.

The investment rating is very important, not just for debt and capital prices but also for capital availability, Marić said.

"The moment you are in the investment zone, you are interesting to many more good investors who can invest in securities," he said, adding that international investors had restrictions and were often not allowed to invest in a country below the investment credit rating.

"That's why it's very good that that has changed for Croatia in terms of Fitch and Standard & Poor's," Marić said, adding that it was also important that Fitch had a positive outlook on Croatia. "That sort of indicates the direction the rating could take."

He praised the media focus on the credit rating, saying that it was good that people became aware of how important it was to know how to manage public money well.

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ZAGREB, 13 Nov, 2021 - Prime Minister Andrej Plenković said on Saturday Croatia's likely entry into the euro area in 2023 was a signal and message to the investment community that the government's economic and fiscal policies were correct, just as in the case of Fitch Ratings, which upgraded Croatia's credit rating.

"The key and anchor of our economic course, as a result of which the European Commission, rating agencies and international financial institutions have increasing confidence in our policy, is accession to the euro area. Further guidance for our entry, which we expect in June and membership in the euro area on 1 January 2023, gives credibility to everything we are doing. People who deal with this matter in greater detail know what it means for the economy and stability. They see this driver of the Croatian economy as the most important one," Plenković told press.

"Croatia has been given the best investment rating in its history. We never had a BBB rating and a positive outlook. This indicates what that agency assesses, following what is going on with our fiscal policy."

A decision on Croatia's euro area entry is expected next June. A positive decision will "automatically signal" to agencies that Croatia will be even more predictable, more stable, and economically and financially even stronger, he said.

Fitch's upgrade and the European Commission's significant revision upwards of Croatia's growth forecast earlier this week are not important just for borrowing on the domestic and foreign financial markets, Plenković said, adding that this kind of "credentials" and legitimacy help SMEs, banks, citizens and the whole system.

Croatia's achieving the highest credit rating in its history, despite a number of negative circumstances, shows that the government knows where it is going and what is good for Croatia, he said.

He said that in the process of achieving its goal to enter the euro area, Croatia found itself in challenging and extremely risky circumstances, including entering the European Exchange Rate Mechanism in July 2020, just five days after a parliamentary election, which he said showed a high level of trust in Croatia.

Another important element is the stability of public finances, he said, recalling that Croatia had a budget surplus before the outbreak of the pandemic and that, had there been no pandemic, Croatia's public debt would have been below 60% of GDP.

Because of the COVID crisis and last year's GDP fall, several steps back were made, but this year already Croatia has returned to the previous public debt reduction course, Plenković said.

He highlighted growths in industrial production, commodity exports, construction and tourism, as well as the abundant EU funds Croatia will have at its disposal in this decade.

He said political stability was very important, as recognised by Fitch, adding that it was the fundamental prerequisite for any economic progress.

Plenković also underlined the importance of COVID vaccination "because it's closely related to the economy and finances."

He went on to say that during his government the relevant agencies have upgraded Croatia's credit rating six times - Fitch three, Standard & Poor's twice and Moody's once.

Asked why Moody's was the only one keeping Croatia's rating in the non-investmen zone, Plenković said every agency had its own approach and that Moody's last rating occurred exactly a year ago. "We hope they will follow what the other agencies are saying."

Fitch yesterday revised its forecast of Croatia's GDP growth this year from 5.5% to 8.9% and the European Commission revised it earlier this week from 5.4% to 8.1%.

Plenković recalled that the Croatian National Bank put the forecast at 8.5%. "If there is verified confirmation of the catchphrase 'let's underpromise and overdeliver', then it was fully confirmed from several competent instances."

He said the Commission's and Fitch's forecasts for this summer's tourist season were above those of the government.

If the season's results are at about 80% of the record year 2019, he said, it means the government and all other actors made a step forward given the pandemic and the related restrictions. This was confirmed by Euronews reports about Croatia as the country with the best tourism results in the Mediterranean, he added.

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ZAGREB, 18 Sept, 2021 - Prime Minister Andrej Plenković said on Saturday the affirmation of Croatia's investment rating and forecast of a 6.5% economic growth this year were a confirmation of the government's good policy, which retained Croatia's economic and financial stability during the pandemic.

"The Standard & Poor's agency has affirmed Croatia's investment rating with a stable outlook and raised the economic growth estimate in 2021 to 6.5%! This is another confirmation that Croatia has retained economic and social stability as well as jobs during the COVID-19 pandemic with the government's measures for the private sector," the prime minister tweeted.

With a successful tourism season behind and the implementation of reforms and the National Recovery and Resilience Plan thanks to European funds, Croatia is on the path of a strong and fast recovery, he wrote.

"Another priority is to go back to the policy of public debt reduction and budgetary stability. Entry to the eurozone will contribute to the further strengthening of the credit rating," he added.

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December the 8th, 2020 - Croatian Telecom/Hrvatski Telekom (HT), the largest private investor in the digitalisation of the Republic of Croatia, has started implementing the most modern optical infrastructure in the area of ​​the city of Porec and its suburbs, and this hefty Croatian Telecom investment is sure to please many.

As Novac writes, this latest Croatian Telecom investment stands at an enormous 2.5 million kuna, and about 1,100 households in Porec's city centre will have the opportunity to enjoy gigabit speeds, and the realisation of this investment is planned to be completed in the first half of 2021.

A Croatian Telecom investment of an additional two million kuna on top of the above will enable the inclusion of vectoring and supervectoring technology, which will enable 100 Mbit / s internet speeds for 2,100 households in the areas of Varvari, Buici and Musalez by the end of 2020, CT announced.

With a superior experience of home internet connection, distance learning and enjoying entertainment such as gaming, the implementation of this project will improve the use of advanced digital products and services such as e-Citizens, e-schools, e-health, e-parking and other smart city projects being rolled out. High speeds and the availability of the Internet all over will also improve the tourist offer of this Istrian city and contribute to the further development of entrepreneurship and economic activity.

Back in September, Croatian Telecom signed a grant agreement with the Ministry of Regional Development and EU Funds and the Central Agency for Financing and Contracting of EU Programmes and Projects for a broadband infrastructure development project in the City of Porec and the municipalities of Funtana, Kastelir-Labinci. Sveti Lovrec, Tar-Vabriga, Tinjan, Visnjan, Vizinada and Vrsar.

Within this EU project, CT and its project partner, the City of Porec, will build a new generation broadband network infrastructure on the project's spatial scope, so that broadband access will be provided to 11,189 potential users (apartments, business and public users) at the identified 7,979 addresses. Access speeds of at least 100 Mbit / s symmetrically connected to the optics (ultrafast access) will be provided for 90 percent of households and business and public users.

The project implementation period runs from the 31st of January 2021 to the 30th of September 2023, and the total value of the project stands at a massive 68,596,456.66 kuna, of which grants in the amount of 27,924,952.44 kuna have been awarded.

''Croatian Telecom is continuing to invest in optical infrastructure even during these challenging times, and I'm glad that fast and quality Internet access will enable the entire community of the City of Porec to increase its economic activity and the quality of life of its citizens. At the beginning of next year, we'll will start implementing an EU project that will provide a quality optical infrastructure with its project partner, the City of Porec, in the area of ​​Porec and all of its surrounding municipalities,'' said Boris Drilo, a member of CT's Management Board for Technology and Information Technology.

''As mayor, I welcome this valuable investment that will ensure the fastest and highest quality telecommunications network for citizens and visitors to Porec with open arms. In addition, we're working on a large broadband internet project for the entire Porec region, which will provide areas with fixed optics for faster internet. As a city, we're striving to constantly work on projects that will further improve quality of life here. Along with all other investments - such as the construction of schools, kindergartens, roads, drainage - today, quality and fast internet can really help us to have the best possible everyday life and offer for guests. I'm sure that through this investment, we'll make a big step in that direction as well,'' concluded Loris Persuric, the mayor of Porec.

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As Suzana Varosanec/Poslovni Dnevnik writes on the 20th of February, 2020, HZ Infrastructure has signed a contract with Swietelsky for the reconstruction of the Zagreb West Railway Station - Savski Marof line, worth a massive 365.7 million kuna (VAT excluded), of which the majority (210 million kuna) is financed with a World Bank loan for reconstruction and development.

The implementation deadline is 27 months from the date of the conclusion of the contract, and according to World Bank Director for Croatia Elisabette Capannelli, this investment will help eliminate critical infrastructure issues, improve efficiency and safety, and achieve the financial sustainability of the Croatian railway sector.

It regards a section of the 17.8-kilometre two-lane railway line on the RH1 corridor, which is extremely important for international freight and suburban transport. It takes an average of about 160 trains per day. Once completed, trains will run at a speed of 120 km/h, railway safety and interoperability will be increased, the cost of maintaining the railway line will be reduced, and the ability to carry more passengers in daily migration will be improved.

According to the Minister of Maritime Affairs, Transport and Infrastructure, Oleg Butkovic, this is another contract that marks a huge investment cycle that has been launched in the rail sector. The President of the Board of HZ Infrastructure, Ivan Krsic, also pointed out that it is a continuation of a series of activities on modernisation and construction of railway infrastructure in the Republic of Croatia.

''Recently, we've witnessed numerous contracts signed by HZ Infrastructure, the value of which is measured in billions of kuna. The projects we're working on throughout Croatia will make the railways better, more efficient and more competitive with other types of traffic. The reconstruction of the section from Savski Marof to Zagreb West Station is a project that, when completed, will strengthen the most frequently used railway route in Croatia.

The renovation of the existing infrastructure will increase the level of safety, allow for faster train speeds, greater railway load capacity, and make suburban transport better and more attractive to passengers. At the same time, it will open up the possibility of unburdening roads from vehicles, which will ultimately contribute to a positive environmental impact,'' Krsic said.

Swietelsky has been present on the construction market in Croatia for more than twenty years now, and, according to its representative Zvonko Dunkovic, has upgraded more than 500 kilometres of tracks of the railroads managed by HZ Infrastructure. The ones which stand out are Ogulin - Split, Mrzlo Polje - Ogulin, Vrbovec - Botovo, Osijek - Beli Manastir, Vrpolje - Slavonski Samac and Zagreb Borongaj - Dugo Selo.

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An agreement on a very large and rather surprising investment in Croatia signed today in the continental Croatian town of Petrinja between the town and an Indian entrepreneur called Arvind Kapur.

As Novac writes on the 14th of February, 2020, the Indian entrepreneur, who is the owner of a pizzeria chain and the director of Capitel Group, an investment and technology company, has expressed his interest in investing around 50 million euros in growing hazelnut, walnut and chestnut plantations in Petrinja. He contacted the Croatian Chamber of Agriculture (HPK), and President Mladen Jakopovic connected him to Petrinja's Mayor.

The Indian entrepreneur has announced that it is possible that hazelnuts and other things grown in Petrinja will be bought by major European confectioners, for example, Ferrero Rocher, the manufacturer of Nutella, with whom he would make a deal. It is difficult to find reliable information about the Indian entrepreneur on the internet, except for his LinkedIn profile, but HPK President Jakopovic assures that he is a serious investor and that his business has been verified through the Indian Embassy.

In signing the agreement, the Kapur said that he hoped this investment in Croatia ''would come to fruition."

''We believe that we can offer good technologies and processes in agricultural production. We have a policy to involve local farms and farmers in our business so that they can work together to improve their agricultural production. The agricultural production we're planning to launch will be based on organic production, which will reduce the impact on climate change,'' Kapur said.

The agreement, more specifically the non-binding Memorandum of Understanding, was signed with the Indian by the Mayor of on the premises of the town's local government. 

With regard to the location, Kapur visited several possible locations in the Petrinja area, more specifically the areas of ​​Donja Bačuga, Gornja Bačuga, Jošavica and Šušnjar.

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