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Coric: Party leader will decide if I'm a burden

Environment and Energy Minister Tomislav Coric of the HDZ said on Tuesday that the party leader would decide whether he was a burden to the government and that his decision regarding wind parks was positively confirmed by two courts.
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Objavljeno: 03. lipanj 2020. 11:34
 Environment and Energy Minister Tomislav Coric
 Environment and Energy Minister Tomislav Coric
 Srdjan Vrancic / CROPIX

" It is the party leader who will before anyone decide whether I am a burden to the government, I have conducted my duty in office over the past three and a half years in such a way that I am at the disposal of the party leader on a daily basis," Minister Coric said during a signing ceremony for a grant agreement for EU projects.

"At the moment when my party leader thinks that I should not to be a part of that team, I will absolutely accept and support that decision," said Coric and underlined that he is doing everything so that Croatia's energy, environment protection system and water utility sector are brought into the best possible shape

Coric said that the decision on wind parks was signed in accordance with the law following multiple consultations with institutions that protect the state's interests.

"That decision was positively upheld at two court instances and at no time did it give any preferential treatment to anyone," he underlined, noting that the decision concerned went in the direction that 14 other decisions did in the past 10 or so years. "It is not an exception. It confirmed the practice that this ministry has in general," he said.

Asked whether it was true that Prime Minister (Andrej) Plenkovic was not informed of his signature approving the controversial project of wind parks in the Dalmatian hinterland, Coric said that he did not inform the premier on a daily basis of all his signatures and decisions.

Coric underlined that based on forecasts by his ministry, there should not be any increase in fees for renewable energy next year which means that electricity prices should not increase either.

With reference to state subsidies, Coric recalled that the existing system was established before he took over the ministry and that it has existed for seven or eight years.

In 2013 and 2014, the foundations for the system were set in place. If you were to ask me whether it is justifiable in the long run, the majority of European and global economies have phased it out, he said.

Coric added that agreements then were generally based on the payment of subsidies which has resulted with is us at the moment having about 900 megawatts of installed energy generation from renewables.

Part of decisions regulating prices made by Cacic, part by Vrdoljak

Coric underscored that there is no alternative to renewable energy sources. That is the direction Croatia has to go in regardless of the fact that currently we have some projects being questioned in public.

"All projects that seem suspicious and all suspicions have to be inspected ... however I believe that it is not good for Croatia's energy, and economy after all, if we were to question the entire system of renewables," said Coric.

He added that some decisions that regulate electricity price tariffs were adopted during the term of the government led by Zoran Milanovic.

Radimir Cacic is responsible for a part of those decisions and Ivan Vrdoljak for other parts, said Coric.

Cacic and Vrdoljak, who used to be together senior officials of the HNS party, were ministers in the government led by SDP leader Milanovic.

"Coming into the ministry after Slaven Dobrovic (Bridge), I inherited those decisions. The idea of promoting renewable energy sources is good however any deviation needs to be removed," he added.

He explained that there is procedure for dismissal of the CEO of the Croatian Energy Regulatory Agency (Hera) Tomislav Jurekovic, who was one of arrestees in the wind park scandal.

Jurekovic and several other officials in Hera's management board were appointed by parliament in 2014 for a term of seven years and at the moment I do not have any information regarding his responsibility, said Coric.

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