The second “deployment desk” meeting together with the consultation forum organised in Čakovec (Croatia)

Medjimurje Energy Agency Ltd. together with the Faculty of Mining, Geology and Petroleum Engineering at the University of Zagreb, organised the second "deployment desk" meeting and consultation forum on the Transnational Action Plan (with recommendations for promoting the use of shallow geothermal energy in the Danube Region) development.

The event was held in Čakovec (Croatia) on Wednesday, 9th of July 2025, starting at 10:00 AM with the main goal of involving the relevant national, regional and local stakeholders within the key project discussions connected to fostering the shallow geothermal developments in project participating countries and beyond.

For the stakeholders operating in the City of Zagreb and other distant parts of Croatia, an online participation via the ZOOM platform was also ensured.

During the nearly three-hour-long meeting and consultation forum, the Danube GeoHeCo project as well as the relevant project activities carried out in 2024 and 2025, were elaborated. In addition to that, the obligations and responsibilities of the stakeholders involved in the project’s "deployment desk-s" as well as the draft of the Transnational Action Plan with recommendations for promoting the use of shallow geothermal energy in the Danube Region were presented.

The plan is considered to be a key project outcome as it includes crucial guidelines for the broader adoption of shallow geothermal solutions. The presentation of the Transnational Action Plan covered its initial structure and the transnational challenges and solutions in the field of shallow geothermal energy usage identified so far.

After the introductory presentations, participants were engaged in the following discussions:

• current state and potential of shallow geothermal energy use at national level – key challenges and barriers, development opportunities, existing instruments and policies;

• recommendations and proposed initiatives for better promotion of shallow geothermal energy use at regional and national levels (potential credit and grant programs, tax reforms, regulatory modernization, etc.);

• potential locations for IT decision support tool testing;

• potential local and regional challenges and solutions connected to shallow geothermal energy use.

The conducted discussions and stakeholder feedback will support the further implementation of the project, particularly in the process of defining the key development proposals for wider adoption of shallow geothermal solutions and the finalization of the Transnational Action Plan, which is expected to be completed by the end of 2025. After the finalization, the Transnational Action Plan will be presented at relevant national and EU conferences and other related events or expert gathering which  will result in its the wider reach.

After the relevant discussions and networking, and as part of the site-visit, the participants visited the Solektra Ltd., a private company engaged in renewable energy production with the aim of visiting the geothermal heat pump installed in the basement of the company’s headquarters. This system is used for heating and cooling the company’s business premises and nearby apartments.

Solektra Ltd. is considered to be one of Croatia’s leading companies in the photovoltaic industry and is involved in the production of devices for the distribution and control of electrical energy. With their expert knowledge in the field of renewable energy and mentioned investment, they are also taking part in Croatian “deployment desk” contributing to relevant project outputs and results.