Croatia: a city and a regional energy agency join the Energy Cities network!

Energy Cities is proud to welcome two new Croatian members: a city and a regional energy agency.

These two communities are committed at their own level to develop sustainable energy. As signatories of the Covenant of Mayors, they strive both locally and at a European scale to accelerate the energy transition.

Velika Gorica

Located 10 miles to the south of Zagreb, this city counts 64,000 inhabitants.
In 2010, the city of Velika Gorica joined the Covenant of Mayors and responsibly undertook a sustainable energy policy based on energy efficiency, sustainable construction and the use of renewable energy sources.

In parallel with the Covenant of Mayors, the city is also committed to a proactive energy policy with the aim of improving energy efficiency, reducing negative environmental impacts and raising citizens’ awareness of the efficient use of energy.

One of the city’s main efforts is to inform its partners about the need to save energy and reduce CO2 emissions.

Velika Gorica has also focused on modernising its street lighting and wants to reduce its CO2 emissions by integrating more renewable energy into its heating network.

Regional Energy Agency North

The agency was established in 2009 by the cities of Koprivnica, Varazdin and Virovitica and is located to the north of the country near the Hungarian border.

Since then, it has been involved in several European projects on various topics such as energy efficiency in buildings, e-mobility, energy planning and also financing models as part of the Infinite Solutions project with Energy Cities.

This project allowed the development of innovative financing schemes, business models, organisational structures and partnerships to accelerate the energy modernisation of their building stock.

The regional agency has introduced joint purchasing of electricity for public institutions and has become one of the largest public purchasers in Croatia. The Agency has also gathered extensive knowledge on green public procurement and became the first public institution in Croatia to successfully implement a public procurement procedure for energy efficiency innovation.

In cooperation with the city of Koprivnica, REA North has created the Living Lab Koprivnica, the first of its kind in this part of Europe, focusing on smart city solutions.

REA North is also a member of the Croatian Covenant of Mayors Club.