Croatia has joined the International Alliance for the Production of Coal-Free Energy (Powering Past Coal Alliance) and joined countries whose future energy system will not depend on coal, the Ministry of Economy and Sustainable Development announced.
The only active coal-fired power plant in Croatia is located in Plomin Bay, has a total capacity of 210 MW, and serves to balance the electricity supply system. The competitiveness of the thermal power plant itself, which has a license to operate until 2040, will certainly change in the future due to the Greenhouse Gas Emissions Trading System (EU ETS) to which Plomin II currently delivers more than a million emission units per year. Plomin contributes almost six percent to the total emissions of the Republic of Croatia.
Commenting on Croatia’s entry into the Alliance for Coal-Free Energy Production, Minister of Economy and Sustainable Development Tomislav Ćorić stressed that the overall economic and social transition will stimulate a greater need for electricity, so we must plan well for this transition to bring new renewable capacities.
“We are creating conditions for the cessation of the use of coal in the production of electricity and we can say with certainty that this will happen before the expiration of the license for the operation of Plomin II. The dynamics of the inclusion of renewable energy sources will depend on the development of modern electricity infrastructure through the application of new technologies and especially the development of energy storage facilities” said Ćorić.
According to existing strategic documents, in order to achieve the national goal of the Republic of Croatia of 36.6 percent in the share of renewable energy sources in final consumption by 2030, it is necessary to connect over 2,500 MW of new renewable energy plants to the electricity system. In addition to large projects, it is equally important to open the possibility of active involvement of all citizens and entrepreneurs in the system of distributed production and use of energy from renewable sources, and adjustments of the system will go in that direction. Due to all the above, Croatia is today on the way to achieving the preconditions for the cessation of the use of coal as a fuel and it is certain that this will be achieved in the near future, the Ministry points out.
