• EIB Group backed Croatian social and economic growth and infrastructure with EUR 507m in 2018 alone; EIB lending in Croatia since 2001 passed EUR 6 billion mark
  • European investment Fund invested EUR 63 million in Croatian SMEs and mid-caps;
  • EIB financing in Croatia reached 0.98% of the national GDP

The European Investment Bank (EIB) Group backed economic and social growth and the development of vital infrastructure in Croatia in 2018 with EUR 507m. The transport, energy and social sectors and composite infrastructure were among the key drivers of the EIB Group’s activities in Croatia. For the same period, the European Investment Fund (EIF) invested EUR 63 million in 262 Croatian small- and medium-enterprises and mid-caps sustaining 3372 jobs in the process.

These activities raised the number of jobs sustained from EIB backed projects in Croatia, between 2009 and 2018 alone, to 227,287.

EIB Vice-President Dario Scannapieco said: “The EIB Group is proud to have continued to serve the Croatian citizens and Croatian economy throughout 2018. We have invested over half a billion of Euros in vital infrastructure, energy, new jobs for Croatian citizens, SMEs and mid-caps. We would not be able to do that without the support from our colleagues and partners in the Croatian Government, HBOR and our dedicated EIB team both in Luxembourg and Zagreb. I am looking forward to 2019 and yet another great year of partnership and growth for Croatia.”

EFSI related investment close to 1 billion

In 2018 EIB signed EUR 196.5m of new investments under the European Fund for Strategic Investments (EFSI), a EUR 21 billion guarantee programme introduced by the Investment Plan for Europe (Juncker Plan). This has brought the total amount of investments related to EFSI approvals in Croatia close to one billion euro (EUR 997.6 million).

European Commission and the EIB launched the Juncker Plan in 2015 to help attract public and private investments into projects by taking on a higher risk than is usual for EIB lending activity.

EIB investments in Croatia reached EUR 444 million

EIB lending in Croatia reached EUR 444 m through six projects implemented throughout the country including investments in services sector and tourism infrastructure, green energy projects in Zagreb, composite infrastructure and a leading Croatian innovator – Rimac Automobili.

The loan will allow Rimac to further develop its electric driving technologies and support their transformation into a technology solutions provider for electric vehicles and an industrial-scale producer of components for the global automotive sector.

In 2018 Croatia received EUR 300 million from the EIB in the second, and final, portion of a EUR 600 million loan designed to speed up the implementation and ensure the success of Cohesion Policy projects in the country. 

Croatia is currently using the EIB loan for its national contributions in EU-funded projects, with the option to use financing to pre-finance projects. The loan will increase the number of EU-funded projects implemented throughout the country to improve economic and social cohesion and promote the sustainable development of Croatia.

EIB advisory services continue to provide valuable assistance – from SME support to high-speed trains

The European Investment Bank’s advisory services continued to provide advisory assistance to its Croatian counterparts. The European Investment Advisory Hub (EIAH) has received 28 consultancy requests in Croatia.  

The Hub provides strategic investment planning for Ministry of Regional Development and EU Funds, and works on Investment platform for smart cities and islands in Croatia. Together with the Croatian Bank for Reconstruction and Development (HBOR) it has a Memorandum of Understanding on advisory services in Croatia,

At the same time, EIAH provided valuable support to KBC Rijeka (a major Croatian clinical centre and a university hospital) to develop its strategic investment planning document.

Other advisory services actively engaged in Croatia include Joint Assistance to Support Projects in European Regions (JASPERS); in 2018 alone JASPERS supported EUR 700 million worth of projects in Croatia and continues to provide support for effective use of structural funds.

Croatia contributes to the EIB

In 2018 European Investment Bank received a EUR 500,000 contribution for its Economic Resilience Initiative (ERI) from the Republic of Croatia it supports ERI job creation and infrastructure investments in Bosnia and Herzegovina and/or other Western Balkan countries. 

ERI supports countries in the EU’s Southern Neighborhood and Western Balkans to tackle migration and other challenges by stimulating investments in jobs creation and services like energy, transport, water, sanitation and education.  In doing so, the EIB initiative increases economic and social resilience of target countries and helps them to better deal with future crises and shocks, while maintaining stronger growth.