Croatia has completed construction of the Zabok–Lucko trunk gas pipeline, a project valued at around €80 million and one of the most significant recent upgrades to the country’s gas transmission network. The new infrastructure is expected to improve overall system flexibility and increase capacity for gas flows toward Slovenia and other neighboring markets.
The project was financed through the European Union’s Recovery and Resilience Facility, as part of a broader strategy tied to the expansion of the LNG terminal on Krk Island and the modernization of Croatia’s gas infrastructure. Construction works included pipe procurement, installation of the transmission line and associated facilities, system testing, and the resolution of property and land access issues along the route.
Engineers faced several technical challenges during construction, particularly in sections where the pipeline was installed beneath the Sava and Krapina rivers, as well as under railway lines and a major motorway. Much of the pipeline route was aligned with an existing gas corridor, which helped minimize additional land use and environmental disruption. The project was completed on schedule and within its planned budget.
According to the national transmission system operator Plinacro, the Zabok–Lucko section is part of a wider investment program that also includes the already completed Zlobin–Bosiljevo pipeline, as well as the Bosiljevo–Sisak and Sisak–Kozarac segments, which are still under construction. Once all planned upgrades are finished, transport capacity toward Slovenia is expected to reach around 1.5 billion cubic meters per year, while flows toward Hungary could increase to as much as 3.5 billion cubic meters annually, depending on system conditions.
Plinacro stated that the new pipeline will help accommodate higher gas volumes from the Krk LNG terminal and further strengthen Croatia’s role as a key energy transit hub in the region.
