This raises questions about the previous narrative that the workers would end up at the Employment Office before Christmas. Although HBJ insists on the decision to dissolve the Research and Development Department, and thus those workers, the Ministry claims that the closure has been temporarily halted while technical and organizational assessments are ongoing.
This is a consequence of what is now a public dispute between HBJ, a state-owned company, and the Ministry of Science, which, along with the Ministry of the Interior and the State Hydrometeorological Institute, recently obtained the right to use and manage this property valued at 40 million euros. At the center of the problem is the remainder of the once prestigious Institute – a large pool and the hydrodynamic testing work that was conducted there, along with the fate of 13 workers.
Special Department
When the state asked HBJ in 2022 to take over the remaining 13 workers, the company established a special Research and Development Department to retain the activity and expertise. However, due to years of underinvestment, the equipment began to deteriorate rapidly and, as stated by HBJ, became dangerous to use. HBJ emphasizes that they could not invest in infrastructure that is not their property, and the business volume of hydrodynamics decreased as the condition of the equipment worsened.
HBJ Director Ruđer Friganović reminds that they have been sending proposals for models to preserve and modernize the infrastructure to the authorities for years, but none have been accepted. They particularly emphasize the moment earlier this year when the Ministry took over part of the property, including the zones where hydrodynamic testing is conducted, on which it plans to launch new research projects that do not involve hydrodynamics or its employees in any way.
– The activity of hydrodynamic testing in the commercial market, with such a state of equipment, can be marginally positive, but it cannot generate sufficient funds for necessary investments. Therefore, HBJ cannot secure funds for investment from its own resources, and even if it could, it would still be impossible because it concerns someone else’s property. Due to a combination of these reasons, the decision was made to dissolve the organizational unit Research and Development, and consequently to terminate the employment contracts of all its employees. At this moment, there are no reasons that could lead to a reconsideration of the decision – HBJ states.
Unannounced Decision
The Ministry’s plans are ambitious. In the part of the complex that has been allocated to the Ministry, they state that investments are being made through the Center of Excellence MARBLE, the first Croatian Teaming project under the Horizon Europe program. The Ministry has secured 15 million euros for the first phase of renovation, while an additional 15 million euros has been secured through a call from the European Commission.
– The second phase of renovation within a larger strategic investment consists of establishing a Center for Advanced Technologies, as envisaged by the Government of the Republic of Croatia, and renovating the modular electronic workshop, cavitation, administrative building, and revitalizing the hydrodynamic and fast pool. The new Center will be a national institution focused on the development of applied and developmental research in the fields of maritime robotics, blue economy, digital twins, and the Internet of Things in the maritime sector, as well as renewable energy sources at sea. It will also include the development of space, quantum, and other advanced technologies and the transfer of these technologies into the economy – the Ministry explains.
