Accolade Group continues its international expansion. The Group recently expanded its portfolio with Croatia, its seventh European country. North of the city of Zagreb, Accolade has obtained a building permit for its first industrial hall of approximately 50,000 sqm. In parallel with this project, the group is working on other sites in the Balkans.
"The market for modern industrial infrastructure in Croatia started to develop only a few years ago. At the moment there are only a few modern industrial parks. Yet this is a country with great potential, which this year became part of the eurozone and the Schengen area. In addition, Croatia has a broad base of experienced and technically educated skilled labour, and its dense motorway network and several major ports are a great advantage. This investment is therefore in line with our strategic objective to expand into regions that offer strong demand and where we see potential for further growth. As in other countries, we want to uncover interesting locations and develop their untapped potential," said Milan Kratina, CEO of Accolade.
The project is located in the Donja Bistra area north of Zagreb, close to the highway with access to Austria, Slovenia, Hungary, northern Italy and east through the Serbian city of Belgrade to Istanbul. It is also a major industrial centre close to the national manufacturer of Rimac electric sports cars. A strong demand for modern industrial space is therefore expected here. The use of the industrial park will be suitable for all three key segments - light manufacturing, logistics and e-commerce.
The new hall will be built to the strict parameters of a modern, sustainable building and will aim to achieve one of the highest levels of BREEAM sustainability certification. Buildings in these categories typically have excellent thermal insulation, photovoltaic power plants, modern LED lighting or dimmable blinds, and the surrounding area is equipped with retention tanks, bug and lizard boxes, or charging stations for electric bikes and electric cars. The whole of Croatia is located in a seismically active area, so the construction will be more complex than other projects.
In addition to Zagreb, other strategically important locations in Croatia include the port of Rijeka, Varaždin near the border with Slovenia and Hungary, Split in central Dalmatia and Osijek in eastern Croatia. Winning the first building permit should be a stepping stone for Accolade to gradually develop in other regions across the country. Accolade has built a stable team in Croatia and is preparing to open a new office in Zagreb.
