The value of the investment exceeds 140 million euros

Zagreb, August 22, 2024 - On Wednesday, 21 August 2024, at the exploitation field "Slatina 2," located 15 km from the town of Slatina, Enna's company Geo Power Zagocha began work on the development well Podravska Slatina GT-6 (PSGT-6). The exploration in this part of the Pannonian Basin, a geologically extremely favourable location for the exploration and exploitation of geothermal water, is entering a new phase, and the Geothermal Power Plant Zagocha (GTE Zagocha) project is becoming the most advanced geothermal project in Croatia. GTE Zagocha will generate electricity from the hot water beneath the power plant's location. The expected drilling depth is an impressive 5000 meters, and this demanding operation is being carried out by the company CROSCO.

The previous day, on 20 August, the company Geo Power Zagocha signed an Agreement for the Exploitation of Geothermal Water with the Ministry of Economy for the "Slatina 2" exploitation field for 25 years, with the possibility of extension. Signing this agreement allows the company to carry out exploitation works.

Just a year ago, the site of the future power plant was an empty field. Today, due to the demanding work carried out so far, it has become a place where advanced engineering knowledge from various highly specialized fields converges. The exploitation field "Slatina 2" is one of the geologically most exciting locations in the country today, and it is a place of innovative technology.

The planned power of the future power plant is 20MW, making it the largest ORC (Organic Rankine Cycle) power plant in the European Union, and the investment value exceeds 140 million euros. ORC technology guarantees a closed, and therefore the cleanest, electricity production system.

ENNA Group has been developing this project since 2022, and the power plant could begin operations as early as 2028. Ivana Ivančić is the director of the company Geo Power Zagocha, and Boris Vidoš is the project manager for the construction of GTE Zagocha. They lead Enna's team, that has brought the project to its current phase.

An ideal renewable energy source

Geothermal energy is an ideal renewable energy source. It enables Croatia to use its own electricity production and thereby contributes to the country's energy independence.

Its advantage over other renewable sources is that electricity production is continuous - 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, and does not depend on weather conditions such as the amount of sun or wind. This fact makes GTE ideal for balancing the power system, which is increasingly connecting unstable RES. Namely, GTEs can decrease or increase electricity production capacity almost in real-time from 100% to 30% capacity, depending on the power system's needs.

GTE is an ideal investment for the local community because it occupies a very small land area (the smallest land occupancy relative to its power output, 8 times less than solar and 3.5 times less than wind).

At the same time, GTEs are the most environmentally friendly because they do not affect the surrounding land, meaning there is no pollution and no waste to be managed.

An additional benefit for our economy is that more than 60% of the total investment amount spent on construction remains in Croatia (drilling, construction works, administration and documentation, design…).

At the local level, new jobs are being created, directly impacting the local community's demographics (15 to 20 employees per power plant, holding a university degree or a high school diploma).

After the production of electricity, and before the already used hot water cools down, it could be used once more for the local community's needs – in greenhouses, plastic tunnels, drying facilities, fish farming, heating, etc.

It should be noted that compared to other renewable energy sources, GTE provides the largest contributions to the state and local community over the longest period, as the power plant's lifespan is at least 40 years. Namely, they are allocated 5% of the revenue from the sale of electricity, as well as a fixed fee for land occupancy. The specific case of GTE Zagocha involves annual revenues of more than 500,000 euros in the case of the state and municipality and around 300,000 euros in the case of the county.