Croatian Environment and Energy Minister Tomislav Coric said on Wednesday that if Slovenia proposed to Croatia partnership in the construction of a new block of the jointly-owned Krsko nuclear power plant, Croatia should consider it.

Speaking to reporters after a session of the inner cabinet, Coric said that at a recent meeting of the inter-state commission on Krsko data were presented on the plant’s output and performance, which, he said, is impressive.

Depending on hydrometeorological conditions, Croatia imports between 35% and 50% of electricity, even though in time new power plants would help reduce the imports. It should therefore be interested in every new megawatt of electricity, Coric said, adding that the country’s energy strategy was oriented towards promotion of renewable energy sources.

If the Slovenian side proposes partnership in the construction of a new block at the Krsko nuclear power plant, Croatia should consider it, Coric believes.

“I don’t know how Slovenia intends to do it but I believe that next year it will raise that issue. Such projects are generally extremely demanding, we are talking about billions of euros, and considering that fact, they are usually based on partnership,” he said.

The functioning of the Krsko power plant has been regulated in the last few decades by an inter-state agreement, Coric said, stressing that the Croatian side was represented in Krsko by the Croatian Power Company (HEP).

“I believe that such a project and participation in it, if it happens, would require the involvement of both the state and HEP,” he said.