Croatia to Get Floating Terminal in 2018

This does not mean we are abandoning the land terminal, but at this moment we believe we can ensure market stability with a floating terminal, said Panenić, adding that the Government would offer 10 to 25 percent of HEP shares to a partner who could turn the company into a major regional player.

Croatia intends to complete the construction of a floating LNG terminal in the northern Adriatic in 2018, with an initial capacity of about two billion cubic meters of gas per year, said Minister of Economy Tomislav Panenić in an interview with Reuters.

– This does not mean we are abandoning the land terminal, but at this moment we believe we can ensure market stability with a floating terminal, Panenić said in an interview published on Tuesday.

Initial plans included, as Reuters recalls, a land terminal with a capacity of about six billion cubic meters of gas aimed at supplying countries in Central and Eastern Europe. Foreign investors, including some from the U.S., have shown interest in the terminal on the island of Krk, and discussions about financial details are expected to accelerate in the coming months. Panenić says that the energy sector is one of the most important for stimulating investments in Croatia, whose economy grew by 1.6 percent last year after six years of recession.

– We hope that better utilization of EU funds for development and reforms aimed at facilitating investments will lead to economic growth of at least 2 percent this year, says Panenić.

He added that in the next 12 months, Croatia intends to complete changes to the law to simplify and expedite investment procedures and reduce costs.

Panenić also stated that HEP plans investments of about 3.6 billion kuna for the modernization of facilities and increasing electricity production capacity from hydroelectric plants. He emphasized that the Government could issue between 10 and 25 percent of the company’s shares “if we find the right partner who could turn HEP into a major regional player.”

He also mentioned that the Government wants to renew talks with Hungary’s MOL regarding INA.

– I cannot guarantee that this will happen before summer, but the Government is working on its negotiating position. We want to primarily focus on investments and improving INA’s operations, says Panenić.

Reuters reminds that Croatia, which owns about 45 percent of INA shares, and MOL, which has a stake of nearly 50 percent, have disagreed for years on issues of management rights and investments in INA.