18.06.2018.
Grant agreements under the Call “Increasing energy efficiency and use of renewable energy sources in the manufacturing industry” were signed and awarded to the beneficiaries by Minster of Environment and Energy Tomislav Ćorić, PhD, and Director of the Environmental Protection and Energy Efficiency Fund Dubravko Ponoš.
113 project proposals were submitted to the Call launched on 10 October 2017, of which 77 met all the conditions for the award of grant funding. The initially envisaged amount was HRK114 million, but it was increased due to a large number or quality project proposals, so that the final total of the awarded grant funds amounted to 269.327.760,66 kunas. The funding was provided under the Operating Programme “Competitiveness and Cohesion” 2014 – 2020.
“After EU funding awarded to the citizens and local self-government units for the energy renovation projects, I am very pleased that numerous Croatian companies have also been successful in obtaining the incentives they will use for advancing their business operations. This will enable not only streamlining of costs, but also corporate social responsibility because caring for the environment is one of the priorities”, said Director of the Environmental Protection and Energy Efficiency Fund Dubravko Ponoš.
The purpose of this Call is to increase efficiency of energy use in the manufacturing industries by allowing the production of equal quantity of products while using less energy supplied. At the same time, the goal is to reduce the share of conventional (fossil) fuels in the overall consumption of energy by switching to renewable energy sources.
“The fact that SMEs and large companies from all over Croatia applied to this Call is encouraging”, said Minister of Environment and Energy Tomislav Ćorić, PhD, continuing: “The Republic of Croatia, as a Member State of the European Union, has adopted energy development goals that are in line with EU goals. The Energy Development Strategy of the Republic of Croatia, which is in preparation, should contribute to the competitiveness of the Croatian economy. Comprehensive implementation
of energy efficiency measures will reduce the intensity of energy consumption and the demand for energy supply, and it will allow the transition of society to a low-carbon economy”, concluded Ćorić.
President of the Management Board of Ericsson Nikola Tesla, Gordana Kovačević, thanked the experts who worked on this Call as well as the representatives of the Ministry of Environment and Energy and the Environmental Protection and Energy Efficiency Fund: “This is significant financial support for economic operators. At the same time, this is an excellent model for other institutions indicating the type of state administration we would like to have and need. On the other hand, this also sends a message to all companies that good management and serious approach of all stakeholders is the key to success.”
After the implementation of the envisaged activities that were prompted by this Call, the emissions of CO2 will be lower by 17.125 tonnes per year. In addition, the industrial sector without the food industry will reduce energy demand from non-renewable sources by 83.7 million kWh, which is 0.97 % of the overall energy consumed annually by this sector in Croatia.
