Vice Oršulić remains at the helm of HEP for another six months, public competition awaited for over a year

Exactly one year ago, in December last year, Vice Oršulić was temporarily appointed as the president of the Management Board of HEP for six months, after the long-time president of the Management Board of HEP Frane Barbarić resigned due to illegal construction on the island of Hvar and the ‘gas for a cent’ affair. After the first extension in June this year, last week at the session of the Government of the Republic of Croatia, Oršulić’s position at HEP was extended again, and as stated, ‘until the appointment of the president and members of the Management Board through a public competition, for a period of no longer than six months.’

For members of the Management Board of HEP, the appointment of Ivica Vukoje and Ante Elez has been proposed, while the Supervisory Board has proposed the current members Anton Kovačev, Jelena Zrinski Berger, Mladen Zeljko, and Lukša Lulić, also for six months.

However, since the public competition was not announced in December last year when the HDZ’s Damir Habijan was at the head of the relevant Ministry of Economy, nor in June this year after Ante Šušnjar from the Homeland Movement party, also a member of the HEP Assembly, took over as Minister of Economy, Oršulić’s temporary mandate was extended at the last minute (as reported by Forbes), it is expected that the Ministry of Economy should announce the competition as soon as possible.

How much longer will the announcement of the public competition for the leadership position of one of the largest and most important companies in Croatia be delayed, what are the reasons for the delay, how long will the temporary Management Board remain at the helm of HEP, and what will be the criteria for the management positions at HEP, we asked the relevant ministry and will publish their response as soon as it arrives.

Until then, unofficially, we learn that the Prime Minister of the Republic of Croatia Andrej Plenković has lost confidence in the leaders of state companies such as HEP, INA, and HROTE, so he has been trying to maintain control through short-term appointments since 2018. Therefore, it is now quite clear that to be elected to the Management Board or Supervisory Board, one must be completely loyal, and such people are becoming fewer, perhaps there are none left.

– Even if that changes and Plenković finds some unquestioning obedient people, the energy sector is currently held by the Homeland Movement, and he would have to make significant compromises in personnel policy. He would rather wait for them to fly out in some corner – believes a source from Lider who wished to remain anonymous.