Senczuk: There are about 2000 stores in Croatia ready for acquisitions

Ina plans to invest in consumer services, and gas stations with other services contribute to a stable cash flow. However, one of the most important things is, as stated by CEO Zsuzsanna Ortutay at the panel on challenges in 2026 at the 17th Day of Big Plans organized by Lider, the renewal of the Rijeka refinery, which should be fully operational next year. She reminded that the pandemic slowed down this project, but all the equipment is set up, and some necessary processes remain to be completed before putting the refinery into full operation.

She recalled that Ina started its green transition a few years ago – along with solar energy, it is also pursuing a green hydrogen facility. However, plans need to be adjusted as, for example, the biogas project has unfortunately been sidelined because the state did not give a positive opinion on the investment of 40 million euros. She did not want to say much about it, except that she is disappointed, but emphasized that they will not stop there.

– I believe it is in Croatia’s interest, not just Ina’s, to continue down this path – she said.

Michal Senczuk, CEO of Studenac, stated that retail is a daily part of people’s lives, i.e., consumers. Today, it is the largest employer in Croatia. It is a sector that is one of the most dynamic and exposed due to inflation in Europe.

– Purchasing power is constantly declining, which affects sales volume. Let us remember the situation when there was a boycott of retail chains this year. They had to adapt. We rely on loyalty. A third of our business is related to tourism, which is an additional challenge. We must remain reliable for tourists, but also provide services to the local population. This shows the pressure that retail is under – said Senczuk.

For the next year, he predicted, with caution as we do not know what awaits us, inflation between three and 3.5 percent. Regarding acquisitions, he noted that alongside organic growth, Studenac is very focused on mergers, mentioning that there are about 2000 stores in Croatia potentially ready for acquisitions. The company is currently in negotiations regarding takeovers, but he said that is all he can say at that moment.

Ivan Čulo, CEO of Croatian Post, reminded that over the past eight years, the company has invested not only in infrastructure but also in restructuring and creating logistics capacities.

– We now have three thousand fewer workers, meaning there are nine thousand, and there is much more work. Five years ago, we distributed 35 thousand packages daily, today it is one hundred thousand. We based salary growth on productivity growth and eliminated idle time. We invested 150 million euros without EU funds – said Čulo.

He added that online traffic is increasing, which is an opportunity for HP. They plan to maintain 1600 post offices, which they will also offer to banks to open their counters for the local population.

– We are looking for new revenue models by consolidating all trucks into one company so that they can be rented out to other companies during the day, in addition to at night. We also plan projects related to the digitization of mail shipments, payment transactions, and I believe we can offer a lot to the market – said Čulo.

Adrian Ježina, CEO of Telemach, stated that his company is preparing for adjustments brought by technology, primarily ubiquitous artificial intelligence (AI), but not only that. He lamented the overregulation of the EU regarding AI, even though no AI company comes from the EU.

– The change in technology is ideal for keeping pace with the world. By applying AI, the productivity of the average employee can be increased – said Ježina, adding that it is crucial for companies’ resilience to be able to change very quickly.