On the occasion of 22 March, the World Water Day, we would like to remind you of a long and rich Croatia's tradition of using the power of water in electricity production. Hrvatska elektroprivreda has as many as four hundred-year-old 'ladies' – Jaruga, Miljacka, Ozalj and Kraljevac hydropower plants.
Water is Croatia's wealth. Water has inspired numerous Croatian inventors, engineers, builders and entrepreneurs. Faust Vrančić constructed a water wheel in the early 17th centry, today considered a forerunner of modern hydropower plant turbine wheel.
In the late 19th century, on 28 August 1895 to be more precise, Krka hydropower plant was put into operation. It was one of only a few hydropower plants in the world which marked the victory of the Tesla's polyphase alternating system over direct current. This historically important power plant was operational only until 1914, when it was disassembled as the Austria-Hungary Monarchy needed copper for war.
However, in the early 20th century, several other hydropower plants were also constructed in Croatia, some of which are still operational. Hrvatska elektroprivreda has as many as four hundred-year-old 'ladies' in its system – Jaruga, Miljacka, Ozalj and Kraljevac hydropower plants.
All of them produce green energy. They reflect HEP's management of hydropower plant generation in line with the nature and other economic branches. Although rather small by capacity and production volume, they as well as other 22 HEP's hydropower plants rank Croatia above the EU average by RES share in the overall energy consumption, which facilitates our achievement of climate-related goals.
