Croatia puts €30 million on the table for farm and food-plant solar and batteries - first in, first paid, from 9 November
Croatia's Ministry of Environmental Protection and Green Transition has opened a €30 million Modernisation Fund call (MF-2026-6-1) for solar and batteries at farms and agri-food processors. Small firms can get up to 65% of solar costs and 50% of battery costs back. Applications go in by registered post from 9 November 2026 at 10:00, and money goes first come, first served.
If you run a farm, a dairy, a mill or a food plant in Croatia, mark 9 November.
The Environmental Protection and Energy Efficiency Fund (FZOEU) posted the call on 8 October 2026. The pot is €30 million: €20 million for micro and small firms, €10 million for medium and large ones. The smallest grant is €5,000 per project. The biggest is €5 million per applicant.
How much back? It depends on your size.
- Solar: 65% for micro and small firms, 55% for medium, 45% for large.
- Battery: 50% for micro and small, 40% for medium, 30% for large.
There is a ceiling on what counts as a cost. Solar up to 1 MWp counts at no more than €1,100 per kWp. Above 1 MWp, €890 per kWp. Batteries count at no more than €750 per kWh. Spend more than that and the extra is yours.
Worked example, our arithmetic from the call's caps: a small cold store puts in 100 kWp of solar and a 100 kWh battery, and the quote is at or above the caps. Solar counts at €110,000, so 65% is €71,500. The battery counts at €75,000, so 50% is €37,500. That is up to €109,000 back on that job. If your quote is cheaper, the grant is a percentage of the cheaper number.
Now the rules that trip people up.
The battery only comes with solar. No solar, no battery money.
The solar is for your own use. Its yearly output stays under what your site used over 12 straight months, picked from your meter data since 2021. Panels can be up to 50% bigger than your grid import connection, no more.
Do not start work before you apply. The call says activities do not begin before the application goes in. Sign the build early and you can lose the grant.
Show your share. If you pay your part from your own money, you need a bank statement showing at least 30% of the project value.
Analogy: this is a queue at the bakery when the oven only holds so many loaves. The bread is good. The people with their paperwork ready at 10:00 on 9 November get served first. Late in the queue may mean an empty shelf.
Good: Real percentages, real caps, a real date, and batteries included. For a small food business, 65% back on solar and 50% on a battery is a big cut in the upfront cost.
Bad: First come, first served by registered post rewards whoever is ready, not whoever has the best project. Big firms get much less back.
Ugly: We will not guess how fast €30 million goes. The household battery grant was oversubscribed. Plan as if this one will be too.
Soft next step: pull 12 months of meter data now, get your connection power from your bill, and have a designer size solar under both limits before 9 November. Then a short consult at Sovryn Energy /consult if you want that worked through for your site.
Source: FZOEU notice, 08.10.2026 - Objavljen Poziv za dodjelu sredstava Modernizacijskog fonda "Korištenje OIE u sektoru primarne poljoprivredne proizvodnje i prerade poljoprivrednih proizvoda" (MF-2026-6-1). Primary for €30m, eligible applicants, €5m per applicant cap, 9 Nov 2026 10:00 to 31 Jan 2027 12:00, registered post. Call document MF-2026-6-1. Primary for €20m/€10m split, €5,000 minimum, aid intensities (65/55/45% solar, 50/40/30% battery), cost caps (€1,100/kWp to 1 MWp, €890/kWp above, €750/kWh battery), own-use and 50% connection rules, no work before applying, 30% own-funds proof.