Croatia procures electric buses with millions in funding

Five Croatian cities are receiving a total of €20 million in EU funding for the purchase of 29 electric buses. These will be distributed among Dubrovnik, Varaždin, Ludbreg, Križevci, and Krapina. According to Transport Minister Oleg Butković, many more e-buses are to follow.

The €20.17 million is EU funding from Croatia’s National Recovery and Resilience Plan. The money will be used to purchase twelve electric buses for Dubrovnik. Seven electric buses are planned for Varaždin, five for Ludbreg, three for Križevci, and two for Krapina. As Oleg Butković explains, this is only the beginning: “We have started signing agreements for 17 Croatian cities to purchase electric buses worth over €200 million, which will result in the purchase of around 150 new buses.”

Butković added that further funding rounds are set to follow, which should lead to the introduction of alternative-fuel buses (including battery-electric) in a further 11 Croatian cities.

It was recently announced that public transport operator ZET in the Croatian capital Zagreb plans to convert its bus fleet entirely to electric power within the next ten years, with the purchase of 500 electric buses.

aman-alliance.org, mmpi.gov.hr (Croatian)