INTERENEF 2026. | EUROPSKA KOMISIJA

Govor Andree Čović Vidović na INTERENEF otvorenju 13. listopada 2026., Europska komisija

Poštovani organizatori, dame i gospodo, u ime Europske komisije čestitam INTERENEF-u desetu obljetnicu.

Prije deset godina deglobalizacija je bila tema akademskih rasprava. Danas je pitanje sigurnosti, gospodarstva i budućnosti Europe.

Godine 2022. naučili smo od Rusije koliko košta ovisnost o jednom izvoru energije, o jednom dobavljaču. Ove godine — koliko košta ovisnost o jednom pomorskom putu.

Jer nakon zatvaranja Hormuškog tjesnaca u veljači, Europa je samo do travnja platila 24 milijarde eura više za uvoz energije. To je cijena ovisnosti.

Odgovor Komisije nije čekati sljedeću krizu, nego smanjiti europske ovisnosti prije nego što nas ponovno sustignu njihove posljedice.

Postupno ukidamo uvoz ruskog plina. Od 1. siječnja 2027. prestaje uvoz ruskog ukapljenog plina, a do jeseni i onoga iz plinovoda. To nije obećanje, već europski zakon.

Hrvatska pokazuje vrijednost zajedničkog odgovora. Terminal na Krku, izgrađen uz 101,4 milijuna eura europskih sredstava, povećao je kapacitet na 6,1 milijardu kubičnih metara godišnje. Pridonosi opskrbi Mađarske, Slovenije i Bosne i Hercegovine. Hrvatska infrastruktura. Sigurnost cijelog jednog dijela Europe.

Ali dugoročnu sigurnost nećemo postići samo promjenom dobavljača. Treba nam više vlastite energije. Zato ubrzavamo proizvodnju energije iz obnovljivih izvora, elektrifikaciju i povezivanje europskih energetskih mreža. Za europske mreže do 2040. potrebno je 1.200 milijardi eura ulaganja.

Ali – najjeftinija i najčišća energija ona je koju – pogađate! – ne potrošimo. Zgrade troše oko 40 posto energije u Uniji, a 3/4 ih je energetski neučinkovitih. Zato europskim sredstvima obnavljamo domove, škole i bolnice. Manji računi. Manja ovisnost. Manje emisija.

Čista tranzicija nije trošak koji dodajemo konkurentnosti. Ona je ulaganje koje je omogućuje. Jer cijena energije odlučuje koliko će europska tvornica proizvoditi.

Ali ni uz dovoljno energije tvornica neće proizvoditi bez sirovina. Za baterije, motore, vjetroturbine i čipove trebamo bakar, litij i rijetke zemlje. Komisija kroz RESourceEU jača zajedničku nabavu, strateške zalihe i recikliranje. Ne možemo jednu ovisnost zamijeniti drugom. Svaka sirovina koju oporabimo u Europi znači manje uvoza.

Ista industrija danas treba još jedan resurs: računalnu snagu. Inicijativom InvestAI Komisija želi mobilizirati do 200 milijardi eura. Otvoren je natječaj za do sedam gigatvornica umjetne inteligencije, s ulaganjima većim od 30 milijardi eura. Rok je 12. studenoga.

Ali gigatvornice ne rade na ambicijama. Trebaju električnu energiju. Podatkovni centri u Uniji trošili su 68 teravatsati 2024.; do 2030. mogli bi trošiti 114 — gotovo 70 posto više. Zato trebamo čistu energiju i učinkovitije podatkovne centre. A umjetnu inteligenciju koristimo i za manju potrošnju u mrežama, tvornicama i poljoprivredi.

Europa ne bira između tehnologije i održivosti. Jedno mora ubrzati drugo.

To vrijedi i za poljoprivredu — i sigurnost hrane. Hormuzom ne prolaze samo energenti nego i približno trećina svjetske pomorske trgovine gnojivima. U travnju 2026. dušična gnojiva bila su 71 posto skuplja od prosjeka 2024.

Za poljoprivrednika to nije statistika. To je pitanje može li platiti iduću sjetvu.
Komisija je zato predstavila Akcijski plan za gnojiva, omogućila potporu pogođenim proizvođačima i predložila ranije isplate iz Zajedničke poljoprivredne politike. Potičemo i preciznu poljoprivredu, učinkovitije korištenje vode i hranjivih tvari.

Prehrambena sigurnost počinje na polju. I ovisi o tome hoće li ondje imati tko ostati.Sve te odluke vode istom pitanju: može li Europa sama proizvesti više onoga što joj je nužno — energije, tehnologije i hrane? Može. Ali samo ako zajedničke ciljeve podupre zajedničkim ulaganjima.

Zato je Komisija u srpnju 2025. predložila proračun za razdoblje 2028.–2034., vrijedan gotovo dva bilijuna eura. Irsko predsjedništvo upravo je predstavilo pregovarački okvir s predloženim rezovima. O njemu ovoga četvrtka raspravljaju čelnici na Europskom vijeću.

Ne raspravljamo samo o iznosima. Odlučujemo hoće li Europa imati sredstva za sigurniju energiju, čistu i konkurentnu industriju, tehnološku neovisnost i otpornu poljoprivredu.

Ne moramo birati između konkurentnosti i održivosti. Čista energija smanjuje ovisnost. Kružna proizvodnja čuva sirovine. Tehnologija podiže produktivnost. To nisu suprotnosti. To je europska prednost.

A naša najveća prednost? Snaga jedinstva. Nju moramo potvrditi i zajedničkim proračunom.
Europa ne smije čekati sljedeću krizu da otkrije svoju snagu. Mora je aktivirati sada. Zajedno. Bez odgađanja.

Napomena: Ovaj tekst na hrvatskom autorizirala je autorica

Biografija

Andrea Čović Vidović ima više od 15 godina iskustva u europskim poslovima, diplomaciji, komunikacijama, menadžmentu i mentorstvu. U Europskoj komisiji u Hrvatskoj od srpnja 2022. vodi medije, od veljače 2023. zamjenica je voditelja Predstavništva, a od 1. srpnja 2023. i v. d. voditeljica.

Odnose s javnošću Europskog parlamenta u Hrvatskoj vodila je od otvaranja Ureda u veljači 2013., uoči pristupanja Hrvatske EU-u. U MVEP-u je kao diplomatkinja radila na pristupnim pregovorima i predavala europske politike javnoj i državnoj upravi, a potom vodila sektore za EU u Ministarstvu financija i Ministarstvu rada, mirovinskoga sustava, obitelji i socijalne politike.

Tijekom studija surađivala je na međunarodnim kulturnim projektima Instituta za međunarodne odnose i razvoj u Zagrebu, a zatim koordinirala regionalne međunarodne ICT projekte UNIQA osiguranja.

Magistrirala je suvremene europske studije na Sveučilištu Sussex u Velikoj Britaniji te anglistiku i germanistiku na Sveučilištu u Zagrebu. Međunarodne odnose i germanistiku studirala je na Tehničkom sveučilištu u Dresdenu, a doktorsko istraživanje komparativne politike provodila na Sveučilištu u Zagrebu i na Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies u Washingtonu, D.C.

Alumna je programa DAAD (Deutscher Akademischer Austauschdienst), Fulbright (preddoktorski program) i Chevening.

Volontira u više neprofitnih organizacija. Autorica je projekata Women in the Lead (Akademija za politički razvoj) i AI in PR: Educating the Next Generation of Communicators (HUOJ), financiranog u suradnji s Veleposlanstvom SAD-a u Hrvatskoj. Bila je programska direktorica HUOJ-ove KOMferencije u Splitu 2023.

Speech by Andrea Čović Vidović, European Commission, at the opening of INTERNEF

Distinguished organisers, ladies and gentlemen,

On behalf of the European Commission, I congratulate INTERENEF on its tenth anniversary.

Ten years ago, deglobalisation was a topic for academic debate. Today, it is a matter of security, the economy and Europe’s future.

In 2022, Russia taught us the cost of depending on a single energy source, on a single supplier. This year, we have learnt the cost of depending on a single shipping route.

Following the closure of the Strait of Hormuz in February, Europe had already paid an additional €24 billion for energy imports by April. That is the price of dependence.

The Commission’s response is not to wait for the next crisis, but to reduce Europe’s dependencies before their consequences catch up with us again.

We are phasing out imports of Russian gas. Imports of Russian liquefied natural gas will end on 1 January 2027, followed by pipeline gas by the autumn. This is not a promise; it is EU law.

Croatia demonstrates the value of a joint response. The Krk terminal, built with €101.4 million in EU funding, has increased its capacity to 6.1 billion cubic metres a year. It helps supply Hungary, Slovenia, and Bosnia and Herzegovina. Croatian infrastructure. Security for an entire region of Europe.

But changing suppliers alone will not deliver long-term security. We need more energy of our own. That is why we are accelerating renewable energy generation, electrification and the interconnection of Europe’s energy grids. Europe’s grids will require €1.2 trillion in investment by 2040.

But the cheapest and cleanest energy is the energy we — you guessed it! — do not use. Buildings account for around 40 per cent of energy consumption in the Union, and three quarters of them are energy inefficient. That is why we are using EU funding to renovate homes, schools and hospitals. Lower bills. Less dependence. Fewer emissions.

The clean transition is not an extra cost weighing on competitiveness. It is an investment that makes competitiveness possible. Because the price of energy determines how much a European factory can produce.

But even with enough energy, a factory cannot produce without raw materials. For batteries, motors, wind turbines and chips, we need copper, lithium and rare earths. Through RESourceEU, the Commission is strengthening joint purchasing, strategic stockpiles and recycling. We cannot replace one dependency with another. Every raw material we recover in Europe means fewer imports.

That same industry now needs another resource: computing power. Through the InvestAI initiative, the Commission aims to mobilise up to €200 billion. A call for proposals is open for up to seven AI gigafactories, with investments exceeding €30 billion. The deadline is 12 November.

But gigafactories do not run on ambition. They need electricity. Data centres in the Union consumed 68 terawatt-hours in 2024; by 2030, they could consume 114 — almost 70 per cent more. That is why we need clean energy and more efficient data centres. And we are also using artificial intelligence to reduce energy consumption in grids, factories and agriculture.

Europe is not choosing between technology and sustainability. The two must drive each other forward.

The same applies to agriculture — and food security. It is not only energy supplies that pass through the Strait of Hormuz, but also around a third of the world’s seaborne fertiliser trade. In April 2026, nitrogen fertilisers were 71 per cent more expensive than the 2024 average.

For a farmer, this is not a statistic. It is a question of whether they can afford the next sowing season.

That is why the Commission has presented an Action Plan on Fertilisers, made support available to affected producers and proposed bringing forward payments under the Common Agricultural Policy. We are also promoting precision farming and more efficient use of water and nutrients.

Food security begins in the fields. And it depends on whether there will be people left to farm them.

All these decisions lead to the same question: can Europe produce more of what it needs itself — energy, technology and food? It can. But only if it backs common goals with common investment.

That is why, in July 2025, the Commission proposed a budget of almost €2 trillion for the period 2028–2034. The Irish Presidency has just presented a negotiating framework with proposed cuts. Leaders will discuss it at the European Council this Thursday.

We are not simply discussing amounts. We are deciding whether Europe will have the resources for more secure energy, clean and competitive industry, technological independence and resilient agriculture.

We do not have to choose between competitiveness and sustainability. Clean energy reduces dependence. Circular production conserves raw materials. Technology boosts productivity. These are not opposing goals. They are Europe’s advantage.

And our greatest advantage? The strength of unity. We must demonstrate that unity through a common budget too.

Europe must not wait for the next crisis to discover its strength. It must put that strength to work now. Together. Without delay.

Note: The Croatian version of this text has been approved by the author, this is translated by INTERENEF

Biography

Andrea Čović Vidović has over 15 years of experience in European affairs, diplomacy, communications, management and mentoring. At the European Commission in Croatia, she has been Head of Media since July 2022, Deputy Head of Representation since February 2023, and Acting Head since 1 July 2023.

She led European Parliament public relations in Croatia from the office’s opening in February 2013, before Croatia’s EU accession. At the Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs, she worked on accession negotiations and taught European policies to public and state administration. She later headed EU units in the Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Labour, Pension System, Family and Social Policy.

During her studies, she worked on international cultural projects at Zagreb’s Institute for International Relations and Development, then coordinated regional international ICT projects for UNIQA Insurance.

She holds a Master’s in Contemporary European Studies from the University of Sussex, UK, and degrees in English and German Studies from the University of Zagreb. She studied International Relations and German Studies at Dresden University of Technology and conducted comparative politics doctoral research at the University of Zagreb and at Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies in Washington, D.C.

She is an alumna of the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD), the US Fulbright pre-doctoral programme and the UK Chevening programme.

She volunteers with non-profit organisations and created Women in the Lead (Academy for Political Development) and AI in PR: Educating the Next Generation of Communicators (Croatian Public Relations Association, HUOJ), the latter funded with the US Embassy in Croatia. She was Programme Director of HUOJ’s KOMferencija in Split in 2023.