Ceremony of marking the completion of works on the Zabok– Lučko main gas pipeline

Today, the Prime Minister, Andrej Plenković attended the ceremony of marking the completion of works on the large infrastructure project of the Zabok - Lučko main gas pipeline construction.


 
Along with the Prime Minister, the ceremony was attended by the prefect of Krapina-Zagorje County, Željko Kolar; the mayor of Zabok, Valentina Đurek, the representatives of local and regional authorities, media, business partners and other guests.
 
This is one of the most significant and technically most complex projects on the Croatian gas transmission system. Its implementation has enabled greater flexibility in managing the existing transmission capacities and a multiple increase in natural gas transmission capacity towards the Republic of Slovenia, thereby increasing the security of gas supply to Slovenia and other countries in the region.



The total value of the project equals approximately EUR 80 million, and it has been financed based on the decision of the Croatian Government by the funds of the Recovery and Resilience Facility within the project “ Increasing the capacity of the LNG terminal on the island of Krk and strengthening the gas infrastructure “. The project included the procurement and delivery of steel pipes, construction of the gas pipeline and supporting facilities, expert supervision, commissioning of the system, and solving the property-rights relations.

On this occasion the President of the Board of Plinacro, Ivica Arar emphasized that this is a project of great importance for the Croatian gas transmission system and regional security of supply. “This is one of the most important and technically most complex projects on the Croatian gas transmission system. With it, we increased the flexibility of managing transmission capacities and enabled an increase in gas transmission towards Slovenia.” Arar pointed out.

The complexity of the project is confirmed by the fact that the gas pipeline route partly passes under the Sava and Krapina rivers, the railway and the motorway. Almost the entire route is located within the existing corridor of main gas pipelines, which minimizes the impact on the environment. The project was completed within the planned deadlines and within the foreseen financial framework.

In addition to the already constructed Zlobin - Bosiljevo gas pipeline, the newly constructed Zabok - Lučko gas pipeline is part of the current Plinacro investment cycle, which also includes the construction of the Bosiljevo - Sisak and Sisak - Kozarac main gas pipelines. The completion of these projects will further increase the possibilities of using the LNG terminal capacity on the island of Krk, the security of gas supply for domestic users and the efficiency of the Croatian transmission system. The gas transmission capacity towards Slovenia will increase to 1.5 bcm, while towards Hungary it will increase to 3.5 bcm per year - depending on upstream pressure conditions.

Arar also mentioned that this ceremony is being held in the year in which Plinacro celebrates 25 years of operation as an independent company. Over the past quarter of a century, Plinacro has developed into one of the key pillars of the Croatian energy security - by constructing main and regional gas pipelines, a compressor station, strengthening international interconnections, connecting to the LNG terminal on the island of Krk, and integrating gas transmission and storage through 100% ownership of PSP Okoli.



"Our mission is clear - to ensure a stable, safe and sustainable transmission system, ready for the challenges of the energy transition and the future," said Arar, thanking employees, partners, institutions and associates for their contribution to the implementation of this project, as well as the development of Plinacro over the past 25 years.

He expressed special thanks to the Prime Minister of the Republic of Croatia, members of the Government, the Ministry of Economy, the Ministry of Finance and the Environmental Protection and Energy Efficiency Fund for their strong support in the implementation of Plinacro’s investment projects. "Thanks to this support, Croatia has become an important energy hub and a significant factor on the European energy map," concluded Arar.