Špehar: We Want Croatia to Be Carbon Dioxide Neutral by 2055

The State Secretary in the Ministry of Economy Vedran Špehar stated that the national goal of our country is to achieve at least 42.5 percent share of renewable energy sources in final gross energy consumption by 2030, and to be carbon dioxide neutral by 2055.

– It is an ambitious goal. However, that does not mean we are not more ambitious. This is the goal for 2030, and we have ultimately decided that we want to be neutral regarding CO2 by 2055. Our goal is one hundred percent, and for that, a network is needed – said Špehar during the discussion on amendments to the Law on Renewable Energy Sources and High-Efficiency Cogeneration.

In doing so, he responded to HDZ’s Ljubomir Kolarek, who praised the ambitious goal of achieving at least 42.5 percent share of renewable energy sources in final gross energy consumption compared to the previous goal of 36.6 percent. He was also interested in whether HEP would technically support this ambition in terms of equipping and investing in the system to be able to monitor, receive, and then further distribute all of this.

Špehar explained that this requires significant investments and that HEP, which is the operator of the transmission and distribution system, will have to follow this development.

The State Secretary, presenting the amendments to the law, stated that a new self-supply model is being introduced, net metering is being abolished, and net settlement is being transitioned to. Thus, according to the new model, end customers will pay a fee for using the network for all electricity taken from the grid, while at the same time, they are guaranteed a purchase price for the surplus electricity they supply to the grid. This price, he explained, is linked to the price for electricity supply.

He noted that by February of this year, a total of 572 megawatts of installations had been installed in the self-supply system and among customers with their own production, which is one and a half times our share in the Krško nuclear power plant.

– These figures show that the previous incentive system has yielded significant results and achieved the set goals – he said. He also added that, in accordance with EU regulations, the value-added tax on solar power plants has been abolished, which has significantly reduced costs for individuals who have opted for self-supply.

Špehar reminded that Croatia received a two-year postponement for the application of EU legislative provisions that no longer allow customers in self-supply to have subsidies through non-payment of network fees and other charges when taking electricity from the grid, and through amendments to the law, a new system of consumption of one’s own renewable energy and self-supply is being established, starting from January 1, 2026.

He also stated that for existing users, the system does not change except in terms of the duration of net metering, which is limited to ten years.

The ruling party supported the proposed law during a brief discussion, while Most’s Zvonimir Troskot believes that ‘the green transition is not a green transition but a green deception.’ He assessed that the goal of being a CO2 neutral country by 2055 can only be achieved ‘if we abolish photosynthesis.’

– The green transition is a lie, and it would be better to focus on a prudent approach that will ensure, above all, energy supply and, most importantly, energy security – Troskot concluded.