September 27, 2022 – At today’s press conference held in Poreč, the start of the implementation of the Good Energy – Solar Energy for Energy Transition (SEET) project was announced, which will ensure the installation of 1 MW of solar PV systems on public facilities in the area of the Region of Istria, Cres, Čakovec, Zaprešić and Ivanić-Grad by the spring of 2024. The President of the Region of Istria Boris Miletić, Deputy Ambassador of the Kingdom of Norway to the Republic of Croatia Homma Latif, Director of the Istrian Regional Energy Agency Valter Poropat, and Manager of the Green Energy Cooperative Zoran Kordić presented the project at the conference.
With a total value of EUR 1.4 million, the project was awarded the right to 85% of the funding (EUR 1.1 million) by means of grants financed by Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway through the Financial Mechanism of the European Economic Area (EEA) 2014-2021 by the decision of the Croatian Ministry of Regional Development and EU Funds as part of the Energy and Climate Change program.
The manager of the project is the Region of Istria, while the partners are the City of Poreč-Parenzo, the City of Pula-Pola, the City of Cres, the City of Čakovec, the City of Zaprešić, the City of Ivanić-Grad, the Istrian Regional Energy Agency (IRENA), the Green Energy Cooperative (ZEZ), and two bilateral partners from Norway, Greenstaat Energy AS and Stiftelsen Seed Forum Norway.
President of the Region of Istria Boris Miletić thanked Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway for the allocated funds, adding that this project is a good example of following the EU directives arising from the Green Deal.
“Our humanity is facing the challenges of climate change. We see what is happening on our planet, that the extremes are getting bigger and more frequent. For this reason, the leaders of many countries are focusing on the green transition. Man’s way of treating natural resources in the last 200 years was insufficiently rational, and I would say irresponsible, and that is why we are facing the consequences of such treatment today. We have a visible energy crisis, and if we want to influence our planet and preserve it for future generations, we must turn to renewable energy sources”, said Miletić. He also added that the Region of Istria has initiated the procedure for amending and supplementing the spatial plan, which will include the construction of solar PV systems in the area of Istria.
Deputy Ambassador Homma Latif expressed satisfaction that Norway is participating in the project because “it covers a very important need for our entire society, which is an energy program that shows that there is great interest in green forms of energy, which come from renewable energy sources.”
“We know that water resources are decreasing on our planet, that precipitation is decreasing, that large glaciers are melting, and all these climate changes oblige us to take urgent action,” said the deputy ambassador.
The project includes the realization of 22 solar PV systems with a total power of 1 MW on public facilities in the Region of Istria and partnering cities, creating a diverse portfolio of solar PV systems, depending on the type, needs and location of the individual facility. This will be used to develop the recommendations for optimizing future investments in solar PV systems at public facilities in Croatia.
The new solar capacities in the Region of Istria and partnering cities will also be in the service of more active involvement of citizens in the transition to renewable energy. Through events and activities within public facilities with newly installed solar PV systems, citizens will learn about investing in solar PV systems for households. Additionally, the project will offer informal education to popularize the professions related to solar PV systems installation and help the development of new solar capacities in the future.
