The Clean energy for EU islands secretariat has published two new technical assistance reports supporting the island of Korčula, Croatia, in progressing its clean energy transition. The reports focus on decarbonising public buildings and assessing the feasibility of solar carport infrastructure, two complementary pathways to reduce emissions and increase local renewable energy production.
The first report, Public Building Decarbonisation Roadmap – Island of Korčula, provides a comprehensive strategy for improving the energy performance of public buildings across the island. Based on energy certificates, audits, and consumption data from 15 buildings, the analysis reveals significant variation in heating energy demand, ranging from approximately 56 to 253.5 kWh/m² per year, with an average of around 116.6 kWh/m².
Two buildings, the city administration (Gradska Uprava Grad) and a kindergarten (Dječji vrtić Korčula), were examined in greater depth to identify targeted improvements. The report outlines a set of measures to enhance efficiency and sustainability, including upgrading heating systems, improving thermal insulation, and installing energy-efficient lighting. If implemented, these measures could deliver energy savings of over 242,000 kWh, reducing consumption by more than 75% and generating estimated annual financial savings of around €37,700.
Beyond technical recommendations, the roadmap also outlines a structured pathway for implementation, emphasising the importance of enabling policies, a supportive regulatory framework, and adequate financing mechanisms to achieve a long-term impact.
Complementing this building-focused approach, the second report, Solar Carports for the Municipality of Korčula, explores the technical and economic feasibility of a photovoltaic (PV) carport installation. The proposed project, located near the town of Korčula, consists of a 203.1 kWp solar power plant integrated into a parking structure.
The report outlines the system design in detail, including module orientation, structural configuration, and grid connection, as well as the use of string inverters and transformers to connect to the medium-voltage grid.
In addition to the engineering aspects, the study provides a robust economic assessment. This includes modelling electricity market prices using Croatian day-ahead market data, estimating potential revenues from solar generation, and carrying out sensitivity analyses to account for market fluctuations. The report also examines the potential added value of integrating battery storage, offering further flexibility and optimisation of the system under different operational scenarios.
Together, these two reports demonstrate how islands can combine energy efficiency measures with renewable energy deployment to accelerate decarbonisation at the local level. By addressing both demand-side improvements in public infrastructure and supply-side investments in solar energy, the initiatives provide a holistic framework for sustainable energy planning on Korčula.