Over the past twenty years, many countries have been looking for alternative procurement models in providing public sector energy efficiency (EE) projects because of high public sector debt and budget deficit. These projects have traditionally been procured and financed by the public sector. While the majority of EU funding resources will be realized in more traditional, purely grant-funded procurement models, a new Investment Plan for Europe for the programming period 2014–2020 has focused on supporting higher private sector involvement in infrastructure investments for achieving the EU Strategy 20/20/20 goals. Seeing that the fundamental purpose of investing in infrastructure is investing in providing public services, the involvement of the private sector is only possible through some alternative procurement models. In these initiatives both the public and the private sector retain their own identities and responsibilities, while their co-operation is based on clearly defined divisions of tasks and risks. The main objective of this paper is to assess the effectiveness of blending alternative procurement models with available EU funding mechanisms in EE sector by applying case study simulation. The findings will show the effectiveness of alternative options and the use of blending solutions in EE investments.

The global economy has been hit by crises in recent decades and the COVID-19 pandemic has contributed to great uncertainty in the possibility of a lasting recovery and an energy transition that will enable sustainable green growth. Budgetary constraints impede the regular delivery of public services, especially in developing countries. Energy efficiency and sustainable economic growth in Croatia can be improved with public-partnership models providing public services. However, this concept is often considered as not appropriate due to many misconceptions in public opinion. We analysed a survey of almost 1500 Croatian students with the aim of verifying the importance of formal education in the recognition of realistic aspects of PPP among the population, which represents important social capital. In comparison to other students, students who have been taught about public-private partnership models at university are more likely to recognise certain misconceptions about public-private partnerships and are more likely to think that it is possible to successfully implement such projects in Croatia. Compared with others, students in the field of energy have shown a greater tendency to apply models of public-private partnership in the energy sector, even though these concern the exploitation of natural resources where there is a traditional tendency to protect the autonomy of public governance. Compared to their male colleagues, female students are more prone to misconceptions about PPPs and are less supportive of private management of public infrastructure.

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Hrvatska se nalazi u nezavidnom gospodarskom položaju i nije atraktivna za investitore. Studenti su važan društveni kapital, a cilj je ovog rada utvrditi podržavaju li oni udruživanje javnog i privatnog sektora u upravljanju javnim dobrima te koje elemente tog udruživanja podržavaju kako bi se istražile mogućnosti smanjenja političkog rizika i, u konačnici, poticanja gospodarskog rasta Hrvatske. Analizirano je 1497 upitnika koje su ispunili studenti Sveučilišta u Zagrebu i Dubrovniku, a rezultati upućuju na pozitivnu opću percepciju ovih projekata, ali i na strah od mogućeg povećanja korupcije u društvu i prikrivene privatizacije kao posljedica njihove realizacije. Ispitanici uglavnom smatraju da privatni sektor pridonosi partnerstvu svojom konkurentnošću i inovativnošću te da bolje upravlja infrastrukturom od javnog sektora. Kao najvažnije izvore informacija o ovoj temi, studenti navode internet i televiziju. Većina studenata smatra da je ove modele moguće uspješno realizirati u inozemstvu, ali ne i u Hrvatskoj.