President Milanović at Slovenian-Croatian Forum: Energy is not a commodity, energy is security and independence
The President of the Republic of Croatia Zoran Milanović and the President of the Republic of Slovenia Borut Pahor participated today in the forum “Business Meets Politics – Energetika danas i sutra” [Energy Today and Tomorrow] organized by the Slovenian-Croatian Business Club and the Embassy of the Republic of Slovenia in the Republic of Croatia, where the Croatian President highlighted economic cooperation and energy, in particular, as key issues.
Energy is everything, said President Milanović, using the comparison of per capita electricity consumption (i.e. the amount of kilowatt-hours consumed annually per inhabitant) as an illustration. The President stated in this regard that Croatia consumes 3900 kilowatts per inhabitant and Slovenia almost 7000, while some other countries that are less developed than Croatia have significantly higher per capita electricity consumption. “This indicator, among other things, indicates the structure of the economy and the presence of industries, or absence thereof. There is no industry in Croatia and the data on low energy consumption, and in fact on the low needs per unit of the national income, indicates this the best,” said President Milanović.
The President expressed his confidence that the euro will be good for Croatia as a small economy within the European Union, explaining that the Croatian economy is extremely service oriented. “It is based on the sale of services with relatively decent profits and we are fighting to be competitive with quality. Croatian tourism, all too prevalent in the Croatian economy with a share of 20 percent, is getting better and better and it has a good return on capital,” said President Milanović, pointing out that the euro has suppressed some economies, citing as the worst example the Italian economy, which did not grow for twenty years.
“Energy is not a commodity. Energy is everything, security and independence. The USA and Russia, each in their own way, are not accidentally two big, indestructible states. They are indestructible because they have certain technologies and unlimited amounts of energy for their needs. China is not in that category, it is dependent on imports. That is power, the formidable power of states that you can fence off and they will live on,” said the Croatian President. He further stated that the EU has not managed to form an energy market. “This is a serious war situation, more serious than ever in our lives. Considering this, we will have to buy gas from our allies at triple the price. That is a fact. It will cost money,” he said.
President Milanović pointed out that energy is also not a commodity from the energy transition perspective. “This transition is important, it takes time and it is a process. It won’t start tomorrow, we won’t all drive electric cars and our children won’t drive electric cars either. Oil and gas are energy sources that are here and they will stay here with us for a long time. This transition will last for decades. Energy equals security, it equals strength. Therefore, without energy, we do not exist,” the President told the Forum.
“Croatia is a European economy that is dependent on how things are in Europe. It is dependent on Germany, practically dependent. These are our consumers and these are our markets – what the situation will be like for them, so it will be for us. If Hungary does not adopt the euro – and they are not for emotional reasons – the consequence may be that the forint loses 30 percent of its value against the euro in a year. When we adopt the euro in Croatia, payments will be made in euros. Hungarians will have less money to spend in Croatia. While this is a problem with Hungary, it is a small problem. If this becomes a problem with Germany, which can no longer produce due to overpriced energy because it has a high level of consumption and energy burden per income unit, the highest in Europe, that will be a problem for us. We are not the ones who can solve this problem, although we have built the LNG, which is a good thing,” President Milanović concluded.
After Presidents Milanović and Pahor addressed the participants of the Forum, esteemed Croatian and Slovenian businesspeople will participate on an expert panel to discuss the question of whether the two countries could be even more successful, resilient and sustainable in the current energy crisis by acting together. Slovenian Minister of Economic Development and Technology Matjaž Han and Croatian Minister of Economy and Sustainable Development Davor Filipović were announced as panel guests.
PHOTO: Office of the President of the Republic of Croatia / Ana Marija Katić