Gov't proposes hydrocarbons exploration and exploitation bill

The government sent to parliament on Thursday a bill on hydrocarbons exploration and exploitation to facilitate the obtaining of concessions and improve legal security and flexibility in oil and gas investment projects.

The passage of such a law is a novelty in Croatian legislation because oil and gas exploration and exploitation is regulated by the Mining Act.

The government believes a new law is necessary because of the increasing interest among foreign investors.

Economy Minister Ivan Vrdoljak said the most important aspect of the bill was the introduction of a single procedure for issuing a permit, signing a contract and directly obtaining a concession.

The final decision on the concession will be made by the government.

The bill envisages the establishment of a hydrocarbons agency. The Economy Ministry should adopt a decision to set up a national company whose core activity would be the exploration and exploitation of mineral raw materials.

Vrdoljak said the new law would give Croatia an opportunity to exploit its resources in accordance with the highest business and ecological standards.

He said the law would enable an investor to use state or private land with a simple procedure to solve property rights relations, and stipulate that the investor had the obligation to respect environmental, health and safety standards as well as clean up the mining area.

(Hina)



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