Stories
Success story: Launching Croatia’s first citizen-owned solar power plant
Community energy is key to action on the climate crisis. It can empower people, boost local economies, and reinvigorate communities. Community-led initiatives play an important role in the transition towards a 100% renewable and just energy future. Success stories of community energy projects can be found all over the world. At REScoop.eu we want to highlight these stories to further accelerate the movement towards a cleaner and democratic system. This month, we travel to Križevci (Croatia) to learn about the country’s first citizen-owned solar power plant.
A new milestone for energy democracy in Croatia
On 15 April 2025, ZEZ Sun, a new energy cooperative in Croatia, plugged in its first installation: a 200 kW power plant on the roof of the city market of Križevci, a town of 20,000 inhabitants. The new installation is set to bring its 127 members annual returns of 3%, and a portion of the profits will finance a community benefit fund to support local projects that reduce energy poverty and promote environmental initiatives.
The project has proved immensely popular. In March 2024, after the publication of an open call, ZEZ Sun raised 140,000 euros for the initial investment in just ten days. “It exceeded all our expectations and proved that Croatian citizens are ready to actively participate in the energy transition,” shared Mislav Kirac, manager of the cooperative. A few weeks ago, the project’s success was also recognised by the prestigious SozialMarie prize for social innovation.
The project’s longevity seems secured: the energy produced is sold to the grid at a fixed price thanks to a 12-year feed-in contract, and the right to rent the roof has been obtained for 25 years.
As the project’s architects celebrate their achievement, they underline that the most rewarding aspect is how this can empower future citizen initiatives: “Every challenge we overcame clears the path for other energy communities, making the energy transition more inclusive and accessible to ordinary people across Croatia,” shared Mislav.
The path to success
ZEZ Sun was set up in January 2023 by Croatian Green Energy Cooperative (ZEZ), thanks to an EU LIFE CET project, LIFE LOOP. Their goal was to unite citizens for collective, long-term, non-speculative investments in community solar initiatives.
The city of Križevci was an obvious choice for the project’s location due to long-standing, fruitful relationships between ZEZ and the municipality. Various joint sustainability initiatives had been organised over the years, eventually leading to the Križevci Solar Roofs campaigns in 2018-2019. This campaign led to the first citizen-funded solar installations on public buildings in Croatia, which sparked local enthusiasm for similar initiatives. “Those initial projects demonstrated the potential, and to take the next step, we wanted to create a more scalable model that would allow citizens to directly own and share the benefits of renewable energy infrastructure” said Zoran Kordić, ZEZ coop manager.
Local engagement was crucial for the project’s success. When the fundraising call was launched, local participation was encouraged by giving residents a 7-day head start to pledge their investment. As a result, about a third of the ZEZ Sun cooperative’s members come from the area.
ZEZ Sun’s compelling message to produce clean, locally-owned energy collectively resonated with people who wanted to take action and gain more control over their future. The cooperative emphasised three practical advantages for members beyond sustainability and independence: financial returns, keeping energy profits within the community, and long-term protection against energy price volatility. The success of the Križevci Solar Roofs campaign also encouraged citizens to take part — residents could see the benefits of citizen involvement in the energy transition.
Additional outreach included creative approaches, for example a stunt in front of the market where ZEZ Sun "sold" domestic energy in jars labelled "100% homemade energy”, generating local media interest and sparking conversations in the community.
ZEZ Sun also benefited from a supportive ecosystem. The public tender for the market’s roof issued by the local communal utility company, Komunalno poduzeće Križevci, in November 2023 included social criteria, assigning 50% of the tender score to organisations that could actively engage local citizens in the investment, playing to ZEZ Sun’s strengths. The utility also helped with technical implementation, and a local energy cooperative, KLIK, helped ZEZ Sun connect with residents. Local media also played a role, by raising awareness on the benefits of community energy.
Overcoming a myriad of obstacles
The road to community solar isn’t always easy, and ZEZ Sun also encountered a number of obstacles along the way.
Defining ZEZ Sun’s business model represented a challenge after a significant drop in electricity prices in 2024, which threatened the viability of the project. During periods of peak production, market electricity purchase prices were sometimes close to zero, and occasionally even negative: instead of being paid for the energy produced, ZEZ Sun would have to pay users for the energy. The cooperative halted preparations to focus on solutions, exploring options like long-term contracts with electricity suppliers and direct power purchase agreements with local consumers. A solution finally emerged when the energy market operator issued a public call for a feed-in tariff, which ZEZ Sun was thankfully able to secure.
Another major barrier was the regulatory framework: while energy sharing among members of energy communities is legally permitted in Croatia, it remains technically impossible to implement, forcing ZEZ Sun to depend on feed-in tariff schemes.
Finally, the project met various technical and operational issues after its installation, including noise complaints from a neighbour, which ultimately required acoustic insulation. “Even with careful planning, community energy projects require ongoing attention and problem-solving,” Mislav noted.
Looking ahead: ZEZ Sun’s plans for the future
Moving forward, ZEZ Sun is actively advocating for policy changes in Croatia, to enable energy sharing in particular, which would allow members to use electricity produced by their power plant directly, generating more tangible benefits. ZEZ Sun is also seeking to build partnerships with small businesses in the area: “We’re in discussions with SMEs to develop new projects that serve their energy needs while utilising their roof spaces. There is tremendous potential, but they often lack the capital or expertise to develop projects themselves,” said Goran Čačić, ZEZ Sun board member.
Reflecting on the past years, ZEZ Sun has many lessons to share with other emerging actors. These can be summarised in one sentence: persistence pays off, but preparation is essential. The first advice they underline is the importance of developing a solid business model to withstand market fluctuations, including financial contingency plans and multiple revenue streams. “We ultimately secured a feed-in tariff contract with HROTE, but had we anticipated the market volatility earlier, we might have avoided delays in construction,” shared Mislav.
Another lesson learned is the crucial importance of developing strong relationships with local municipalities. The long-standing collaboration with the city of Križevci proved invaluable when challenges arose. Trust was developed through years of successful projects – and led to the municipality's inclusion of social criteria in their tender process – making the project viable. The benefits of strong communities are always clearest in times of need!