SUMMARY: Joint outcalls by ZAGRB and BRLIN/Bouwer revealed substantial opportunities in the water, wastewater and waste management sectors in Croatia. Nearly €2 billion will be invested in these sectors in the coming year, with most of the money coming from EU structural/cohesion funds. Local companies often lack the international references required to qualify for these EU projects, which opens the door for participation by foreign/Canadian companies. CETA further enables this. Due to the importance of local knowledge and other factors including the language barrier, Canadian companies are advised to partner with local companies or to join consortia. An outcall by HOM Maksymiuk to the DG of the Croatian National Water Company (Hrvatske vode) and follow-up meetings during IFAT were used to prepare the ground for a small water/wastewater mission to Croatia later in the year. The mission will be organised in cooperation with WaterTAP and Hrvatske vode. In a separate initiative, ZAGRB will be presenting Canadian capabilities in the waste management subsector to leading waste management centres in Croatia, in cooperation with the founder and former President of the Croatian Waste Management Association. REPORT: Joint outcalls in Zagreb (2-3 May) and participation in the IFAT trade show (14-18 May) were used by ZAGRB and BRLIN/Bouwer to engage with key local players, gather intelligence, promote Canadian capabilities and to prepare the ground for further engagement in the water/wastewater and waste management sectors. In a preparatory meeting between HOM Maksymiuk and the TCs, he noted that the political environment in Croatia is favourable and that there is substantial goodwill towards Canada. CETA is an important instrument for promoting trade and investment; Croatia was one of the first EU members to ratify the Agreement. A strong network of personal ties between Canadians and Croatians is often a good starting point for developing business relations. The outcalls in Zagreb revealed that well over €1 billion in public procurement is scheduled in the coming year in the water and wastewater sectors, with the lion´s share allocated to the wastewater system. Tenders will be announced for 60 wastewater treatment plants this year, plus 3000 km of sewer networks and 1000 km of water supply networks. The National Waste Management Plan adopted in 2017 aims to promote the circular economy and bring Croatia in line with EU regulations. The adoption of the plan (revised to meet EU guidelines) was a prerequisite for accessing €475 million in EU funding over the next five years. The majority of funding for investments in all three sub-sectors comes from EU structural/cohesion funds. Generally speaking, Croatia is behind schedule in implementing these projects. There is a lack of local companies with the references required to meet the stringent requirements of EU-funded projects. In addition, a significant percentage of work in these sectors is construction-related. However, the construction sector is still suffering from the effects of the last financial crisis, where several companies went bankrupt. As a result, there is insufficient local capacity and MNEs such as STRABAG dominate the market. The Croatian National Water Company (Hvratske vode) is the key local player in the water sector. A joint outcall with HOM Maksymiuk to the Director-General of the company secured an offer to host Canadian companies at their HQ, where they would have the opportunity to give presentations to decision-makers. This offer was pursued by ZAGRB/Dodig, who set up a meeting during IFAT between the company and WaterTAP, which resulted in an agreement to organise a small water/wastewater missions to Croatia later in the year. The founder and former President of the Croatian Waste Management Association, a good Embassy contact, offered to facilitate introductions to the main Croatian waste management centres. This will allow ZAGRB to provide them with information on Canadian capabilities, with the eventual aim of introducing clients to local contacts. Due to the importance of local knowledge and contacts, as well as the language barrier, Canadian companies are advised to cooperate with local partners or join a consortium. The outcalls in ZAGRB included meetings with two leading local engineering / consulting companies specialised in the renewable energy and water/wastewater sectors that would be well-suited as local partners (and confirmed their interest in cooperating with Canadian companies). More than one interlocutor noted that there is a strong tendency (“part of the local business culture”) to lodge appeals against tenders i.e. both the initial specifications of tenders as well as their outcomes. This leads to substantial delays and is a risk that foreign/Canadian companies need to take into account. In all discussions (both in Zagreb and at IFAT) the TCs promoted CETA and the World Water-Tech North America Summit / Ontario Water Innovation Week in October. Detailed outcall reports are available in Trio: • Hrvatske vode (Croatian national water company) / Zoran Đuroković, Director-General and members of his team (joint outcall with HOM Maksymiuk) - Outcall #1-1AB0CY • Zadar County Waste Management Centre / Dino Perovic – Director – Outcall #1-1AB0EI • EKONERG, Institute for Energy and Environmental Protection / Zdravko Muzek, General Manager – Outcall #1-1AB0GO • HIDROPROJEKT-ING / Luka Jelic, Managing Director – Outcall #1-1AB0I3 • Croation Chamber of Commerce / Dijana Varlec, Senior Expert Advisor, Energy and Environmental Protection Department; Adriana Grzunov, Junior Expert Associate, Energy and Environmental Protection Department; Marko Cindric, Associate, Construction and Utility Services Sector – Outcall #1-1AB0JP COMMENT / FOLLOW-UP: ROs are requested to share the information in this report with select clients and to sound them out about their possible interest in the Croatian market. Please refer to the above-mentioned outcall reports for further background. ZAGRB/Dodig would be in a position to offer clients detailed information on upcoming tenders and projects and introductions to important local contacts including the Croatian National Water Company and leading waste management centres. Further information on the planned water/wastewater mission to Croatia will be provided in the coming weeks. The following regional outreach activities are planned by BRLIN/Bouwer in cooperation with Cleantech TCs in other missions in the coming months: • 27-28 August – joint outcalls in Lithuania with VLNUS/Jurkeviciene • 2-4 October – joint outcalls in the Czech Republic, participation in seminar on Canadian Cleantech in Brno, organised by PRGUE/Taxova • 18-21 October – joint outcalls in Latvia, participation in Riga Energy Days organised by RIGA/Cirule, possible visit to Tallinn / joint outcalls with TALIN/Ustav. Drafted: BRLIN/Bouwer ZAGRB/Dodig Consulted: ZAGRB/HOM Maksymiuk Approved: BRLIN/ STC MacLean