CroEnergo conference

CroEnergo conference was held at Plitvice Lakes, organized by SixSigma and co-organized by the Croatian Academic Community and Lika-Senj County, under the sponsorhip of the Ministry of Economy and Sustainable Development, the Ministry of Regional Development and European Union Funds and the Croatian Hydrogen Association. . Topics discussed at the conference were energy development in Croatia and the vision of Croatian smart cities, especially in the context of the European Green Continent. Participants were greeted by the Prefect of Lika-Senj County, Mr. Ernest Petry who pointed out that Lika-Senj County has above-average resources for accelerated energy transition and that with the already existing use of hydro potential with the additional use of wind, solar and biomass energy, preconditions for energy sustainability can be created. State Secretary of the Ministry of Regional Development and EU Funds Mr. Šime Erlić pointed out that with more than 30% of Cohesion Policy funds, the green transition of the economy and society as a whole will be strongly supported, that cities will play an important role and that smart governance and investment can contribute to the transition.

That the renewable energy, especially electricity, is the main path and strategy of Croatia is considered by the State Secretary of the Ministry of Economy and Sustainable Development, Mr. Ivo Milatić, who stressed that he is convinced that this goal is achievable, that Croatia must produce and export electricity and further stressed that the Ministry is ready to support any good quality and innovative idea in the direction of renewable energy sources.

At the conference, decision makers and industry exchanged their experiences, and in this context, innovative energy solutions of successful Croatian companies were presented. Mr. Filip Koprčina founded his company Energy Shift Europe, a platform based on blockchain technology for the ownership of solar farms. Through this platform, citizens can jointly invest and / or co-own solar farms, so in this way the company democratizes the ownership of renewable energy. The company is on track to make a $ 10 million investment in solar farms by the end of 2022. Mr. Filip Koprčina, founder and director of Energy Shift Europe, is listed on the Forbes list of “30 under 30”, the best entrepreneurs in Europe under 30. The second company was presented by Mr. Tomislav Uroda, director and owner of iCAT. The company develops innovative, energy efficient and environmentally friendly projects in the maritime sector, applying technologically advanced and cost-effective solutions. Electric propulsion and solar power plant are key words when speaking in catamarans developed by iCAT, which have been sailing on the island of Mljet for years. The last company to present its innovation was IndeLoop (until recently Dok-Ing Energo) with a presentation by the director Mrs. Danica Maljković. IndeLoop is a company that focuses on the circular economy and creates new valuable energy sources from waste, such as hydrogen. In this way, they dispose of large amounts of waste in an environmentally friendly way, reduce pollution and landfill needs, also reduce the dangers arising from waste disposal, and in addition create new valuable forms of energy for direct use.

The plenary presentation was given by the State Secretary of the Ministry of Economy and Sustainable Development, Mr. Ivo Milatić, while prof. emer. dr. sc. Frano Barbir, President of the Croatian Hydrogen Association, gave a lecture on the energy system of the future based on renewable energy sources and the role of hydrogen in this system.