BAKU, Azerbaijan, March 14. Croatia and Azerbaijan are discussing cooperation in the sphere of demining, Minister of Economy and Sustainable Development of the Republic of Croatia Damir Habijan said in an exclusive interview with Trend, as he attended Azerbaijan-Croatia business forum in Baku.
“We have held a business forum and the 3rd Joint Commission between the Government of the Republic of Azerbaijan and the Government of the Republic of Croatia for Promotion of Economic Cooperation. 31 companies from Croatia came with this delegation. We talked about demining process, because, unfortunately, Croatia, has experience in that field due to the war in 1990s. DOK-ING company from Croatia has some kind of connections. And I hope that as a result of this business forum and the joint commission, we will be signing some contracts in the future,” said the minister.
Habijan pointed out that the Croatian side is holding talks with Azerbaijan’s Ministry of Culture on possible cooperation in rebuilding the cultural heritage in Azerbaijan’s liberated lands.
“Croatia, unfortunately, also has experience in this sphere due to the earthquake that hit Zagreb and Sisak four years ago. So, our companies are specialized in rebuilding cultural heritage,” he noted.
The minister went on to add that the sides signed the protocol of the 3rd Joint Commission for Promotion of Economic Cooperation.
“I think that this joint commission was very productive. I hope that it will be the base for future contracts and future business results between Azerbaijan and Croatia,” noted Habijan.
Green energy cooperation
Croatia and Azerbaijan have great potential to cooperate in the green energy sphere, Habijan said.
He noted that the European Union aims to become the first climate neutral continent by 2050 and it is also the obligation of Croatia.
“We aim to install 2500 megawatts of renewable energy sources by 2028. Aside from the solar and wind energy, it also includes geothermal energy. We have allocated 75 million euros to research of geothermal potential in Republic of Croatia. So, I think there is a great potential for cooperation in this sphere between Azerbaijan and Croatia,” said the minister.
Habijan believes that there is also big potential for cooperation in hydrogen energy development.
“I think the potential is very big. The pipelines planned to be constructed from Croatia towards Hungary and Slovenia are also adapted for hydrogen transportation. We have hydrogen energy development strategy by 2050,” he added.
As for the upcoming COP29 to be held in Baku this November, the minister expressed confidence that the Croatian side will be a part of the event.
“Because the green transition and the renewable energy sources are really important for Croatia as a part of European Union. So, we are dedicated to that aim and due to that, we will absolutely be the part of COP29 and we're looking forward to that,” noted Habijan.
The minister went on to add that Croatia is open for cooperation in every sphere.
"There is a big ground for cooperation. We're talking about a lot of spheres, including economy, infrastructure, health, education and also tourism. At this moment, we don't have direct flights between Azerbaijan and Croatia. Meanwhile, representatives of Podravka, a food processing and pharmaceutical company from Croatia are here in Baku and I'm looking forward for the future contracts," he said.
Emphasizing very good and friendly cooperation between the two countries, Habijan noted that there is a need to enhance, to improve these relations.
"The Azerbaijan-Croatia business forum held in Baku was a great opportunity to strengthen our relations, especially when we talk about business and economy. We need to diversify the economic cooperation," he added.
Gas infrastructure expansion
Croatia has allocated about 459 million euros to its building pipeline infrastructure towards Hungary and Slovenia, Damir Habijan said.
“In 2021, we opened an LNG terminal on the Island of Krk. At this point, we are extending its capacity from 2.9 to 6.1 billion cubic meters of natural gas. We have also allocated about 459 million euros to building pipeline infrastructure, one towards to Hungary and one towards to Slovenia. When coming to the Ionian Adriatic Pipeline (IAP), it's a shorter way to Hungary and Slovakia and also to Slovenia for Azerbaijani gas,” he said.
Habijan pointed out that Croatia is supporting also the Trans Adriatic Pipeline (TAP) and the Trans Anatolian Natural Gas Pipeline (TANAP).
“We expect to finish building the gas pipeline towards Slovenia and Hungary by 2026. We also want to build a southern interconnection to Bosnia and Herzegovina. We have allocated a huge amount of funds to expand the capacity of our LNG terminal and to build our pipeline infrastructure,” the minister added.
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