Zagreb July 8 2026
31st Annual "Hrvoje Požar" Award Celebrate Excellence in Croatia's Energy Sector
The 31st Annual "Hrvoje Požar" Awards Ceremony, one of Croatia's most prestigious recognitions in the field of energy, was held at the Library of the Croatian Academy of Sciences and Arts. For more than three decades, the award has recognised outstanding achievements and honoured individuals and organisations whose expertise, innovation and dedication have made a lasting contribution to the development of the country's energy sector.
This year's recipients represent a broad spectrum of the industry, reflecting the vital role of innovation, technical excellence and responsible leadership in advancing a sustainable energy future. Particularly encouraging was the recognition of several outstanding students, highlighting the strength and potential of the next generation of Croatian energy professionals.
2026 "Hrvoje Požar" Award Recipients
The Innovation in Energy Award was presented to Uprise d.o.o. for the development of STORM, an advanced software platform designed to automate the management and optimisation of energy portfolios incorporating battery storage. By combining sophisticated algorithms with advanced analytics, the platform enables more efficient use of energy resources, reduces operating costs and improves participation in energy markets, representing an important step forward in the digitalisation of the energy sector.
The Award for an Implemented Project in Energy Efficiency and Environmental Improvement was presented to HEP Toplinarstvo d.o.o. for the Revitalisation of Zagreb's District Heating Network – Phases I and II. The refurbishment of 64 kilometres of district heating pipelines has significantly reduced heat losses, water losses and greenhouse gas emissions, while substantially improving the reliability and efficiency of Zagreb's district heating system.
The Energy Promotion Award was presented to the Zelena energetska zadruga (ZEZ) in recognition of its long-standing commitment to improving public energy literacy. Through educational programmes, advisory services and citizen energy initiatives—including ZEZ Sunce and the solarisation of SOS Children's Village Lekenik-ZEZ has spent more than a decade helping citizens embrace renewable energy and actively participate in Croatia's energy transition.
The award recognising Outstanding Academic Achievement in Energy Studies was presented to Nikolina Buzić, a student at the University of Zagreb's Faculty of Electrical Engineering and Computing, for her exceptional academic performance and active professional engagement, and to Roko Bošković, a student at the Faculty of Mechanical Engineering and Naval Architecture, whose academic excellence is matched by his achievements as a member of the Croatian national rowing team.
The Award for an Outstanding Master's Thesis in Energy was presented to Ante Galić for his thesis, "Market Model of a Power Generation Plant and Green Hydrogen Production Considering Different Methods for Modelling Electrolyser and Fuel Cell Efficiency Curves", completed at the Faculty of Electrical Engineering and Computing, University of Zagreb. Addressing one of the most important challenges facing today's energy sector, the research explores the integration of renewable energy sources with green hydrogen production and offers valuable insights into the development of more sustainable and flexible electricity systems.
The Award for Outstanding Professional and Scientific Contribution to the Development of the Energy Sector was presented to Ivo Čović, an electrical engineer with more than four decades of experience in the industry. During his distinguished career, he has held senior leadership positions at HEP, Zagreb Holding and KONČAR, playing a key role in the delivery of major energy projects, the management of complex infrastructure systems and the modernisation of Croatia's energy sector. His long-standing professional achievements have left a lasting mark on the country's energy development.
This year's ceremony once again underscored the importance of fostering knowledge, innovation and excellence while celebrating the individuals and organisations whose work continues to shape a more sustainable, secure and competitive energy future for Croatia.
Photo Gallery
Zagreb, May 18 2026
The main board of the "Hrvoje Požar" Foundation, based on the Rules of Procedure on granting of the "Hrvoje Požar" Annual Award and the Rules of Procedure on the scholarship of young energy students/scholars, publishes
Competition
I. Scientific and professional workers are awarded the "Hrvoje Požar" Annual Awards in the form of a plaque and a charter for the following categories
- for significant professional and scientific activity in energy development,
- for innovations in the field of energy,
- for the realized project of rational energy management,
- for improving the quality of the environment related to energy facilities and
- for the popularization of energy.
The "Hrvoje Požar" Annual Award for significant professional and scientific activity in the development of energy, as a rule, is granted to an individual. The "Hrvoje Požar" Annual Award for other categories can be awarded to an individual, a group of experts and/or scientists who jointly performed the awarded work, or an organization - the holder of the awarded project.
Along with the proposal for granting The "Hrvoje Požar" Annual Award for significant professional and scientific activity in the development of energy, it is necessary to attach documentation on:
- recognized professional and scientific works that contribute to the development of energy, especially in our country,
- participation in the development of this field of science, that is, in the development and organization of scientific institutions and
- international scientific affirmation.
Along with the proposal for granting The "Hrvoje Požar" Annual Award for innovations in the field of energy, it is necessary to attach documentation on:
- the introduction of new technologies into the energy system or its subsystems in order to improve the quality of production, transport, delivery and use of energy and
- development of technical solutions for the purpose of increasing operational reliability and safety of energy subsystems.
Along with the proposal for granting The "Hrvoje Požar" Annual Award for the realized project of rational energy management, it is necessary to attach documentation on:
- achieving the technical-economic optimum in the use of the energy system, globally, in individual subsystems or in individual elements of the energy system.
Along with the proposal for granting The "Hrvoje Požar" Annual Award for improving the quality of the environment related to energy facilities, it is necessary to attach documentation on:
- realized energy projects that contributed to improving the quality of the environment and
- raising the level of environmental awareness.
Along with the proposal for granting The "Hrvoje Požar" Annual Award for for the popularization of energy, it is necessary to attach documentation on:
- professional and scientific works that explain the necessity of energy development for the needs of the country and
- appearances in the media, TV, radio and press, for this purpose.
A proposal for the awarding of annual awards, with a written explanation and attached documentation for a particular category, can be submitted by scientific and scientific-teaching organizations, scientific and professional societies, individual scientific and public workers, and other institutions and commercial companies. For each category, as a rule, one (1) "Hrvoje Požar" Annual Award is granted.
Proposals are submitted by sending documentation to the e-mail address hed@hed.hr. The application must specifically include the name and surname/title and address of the competitor with a telephone number.
II. Students are granted the "Hrvoje Požar" Annual Award, in the form of a charter and a monetary amount for the following categories:
- for notable success in their studies so far for students studying energy and energy studies in the final year of undergraduate and graduate university studies and
- for a particularly notable graduate thesis in the field of energy to students who graduated between the last two HED competitions.
III. Students who wish to compete for the Annual “Hrvoje Požar” Award from point II of this Competition are required to fill out the application form https://tally.so/r/ODb517 and attach all necessary documentation to the application.
IV. Individuals can only win the "Hrvoje Požar" Annual Award from individual categories from Part I of this Competition once, and students can only win one of the "Hrvoje Požar" Student Annual Awards from point II. of this Competition.
V. The competition is open from May 18 to June 18, 2026.
The decision of the Main Board on the results of the Competition will be published in daily newspapers and professional publications and on the HED website: www.hed.hr.
Croatian Energy Society