Ante Cikotic said a low-carbon strategy and an energy strategy were crucial for the development of Croatia's economy, adding that the first was expected to be adopted in a few months and that work on the second had begun.
Development is based on the low-carbon strategy in order to increase domestic production and supply and end electricity imports, Cikotic said.
He said the LNG terminal on the island of Krk and the Adriatic-Ionian gas pipeline were capital projects of national, regional and European significance, adding that the government planned to develop the floating LNG terminal by 2019.
Cikotic said switching to a low-carbon economy could create between 80,000 and 100,000 jobs.
The director of the HEP power utility, Perica Jukic, said the company invested between HRK 2.5 and 3 billion in the Croatian economy annually, adding that it would invest most in hydro-electrical power plants, hiring the domestic industry.
Member of the European Parliament Davor Skrlec said the European Union wanted to remain a global clean energy leader. In the next decade, billions of euros of investment in clean energy will increase the EU's GDP, create 900,000 jobs and reduce carbon emissions by 43%, he added.
(EUR 1 = HRK 7.5)