How a Croatian SME is powering Europe’s logistics future
Jadroagent, Croatia’s oldest shipping and freight forwarding company, is also a rare business model: a publicly listed enterprise with employee roots. Founded in 1947 and restructured after former Yugoslavia’s dissolution through a worker-led buyout, the company is a homegrown SME that has thrived through resilience, community, and innovation.
"The privatisation of Jadroagent happened in 1992, when employees bought 100% of the company’s shares," says Mario Štefanić, CEO of Jadroagent. "That model has proven to be successful—now already 33 years later."
A logistics upgrade for a growing region
The newly built logistics centre in Kukuljanovo, just 15 kilometres inland from Rijeka’s port, spans 7,000 m². It combines high-bay dry storage with modern, climate-controlled chambers that support the growing demand for fresh produce and temperature-sensitive goods across Central and Southeast Europe.
"This is certainly one of the most modern warehouses in Rijeka, if not in Croatia," says Nenad Janjić, director of Jadroagent Logistika DOO, a subsidiary created to manage the logistics center.
"We divide it into a high-bay, so-called dry warehouse, and a conditioned warehouse for goods which require a certain temperature regime."
Rijeka is more than just a city on the Adriatic, it’s Croatia’s largest seaport and a designated port of special economic interest. Strategically located at the crossroads of Central and Southeast Europe, it plays a critical role in facilitating EU trade flows from the Mediterranean inland. The need for modern logistics infrastructure in this region is urgent, as Croatia currently lags behind most EU countries in terms of available storage and transport capacity.
Jadroagent’s investment directly addresses this gap. With demand rising and a new container terminal in Rijeka set to open in 2026, the logistics centre is helping future-proof the region’s economic infrastructure.
Rooted in the community
Mihaela Sušanj Meić, Assistant Forwarding Director, joined Jadroagent in early 2025, just as the logistics centre was opening its doors. She was drawn to the company’s cooperative ethos and the chance to be part of an enterprise with long-term value.
"That sense of belonging and usefulness to the place in which you live and work is, in my opinion, absolutely priceless," Mihaela says. "By participating in that wider community, my quality of life improved."
"In addition, this is a clear example of how an investment was made solely because of the needs of this coastal region, whose development will continue with the port of Rijeka, and the rest of the geographical area in which we are located."
Smart financing for inclusive growth
What made this investment possible wasn’t just internal drive. The logistics centre is a case study in how blended financing can unlock growth for small and medium-sized enterprises with big ambitions.
The €13.5 million project was part-financed by the Council of Europe Development Bank (CEB), Privredna Banka Zagreb, and HBOR (Croatian Bank for Reconstruction and Development). HBOR’s contribution was made under the National Recovery and Resilience Plan (NRRP), supported by NextGenerationEU, the European Union’s post-COVID stimulus package.
This layered financing allowed to mobilise funds quickly and responsibly while keeping the project locally grounded.
The CEB’s involvement under its partnership with HBOR reflects a strategic alignment: to promote employment, regional cohesion, and infrastructure resilience. HBOR is one of the Bank’s more prominent and trusted partners in Croatia and the wider region. Having financed over €1 billion in loans to HBOR over the past two decades, the CEB has supported more than €2 billion in social inclusion investments across Croatia.
"At the CEB, we believe that strong infrastructure is not just about physical assets—it’s about the long-term social value it creates," says Makedonka Mateska, Senior Country Manager.
"Jadroagent’s investment shows how private initiative, when supported by the right financing tools, can deliver lasting impact for regions, people, and supply chains alike. We’re proud to back projects that don’t just move goods, but help shape resilient, future-facing economies built on shared ownership and long-term vision."
For many Micro-, Small, and Medium-sized Enterprises (MSMEs), access to long-term, affordable capital is one of the biggest barriers to growth. Public banks and multilateral institutions play a critical role in de-risking these investments and making them viable.
"This may have been one of the largest investments in the history of Jadroagent, since 1947," Štefanić adds. "Given how the centre started, I believe we will very soon move on to the second phase."
The combined support from CEB, HBOR, and NextGenerationEU ensured that Jadroagent could modernise without compromising its ownership model or social mission.
"As development banks seek to foster economic transformation in Europe, Jadroagent’s story illustrates how financing institutions can work in synergy to amplify local entrepreneurship and generate both direct and indirect benefits for regional development, value chains, and employment," says Merve Akinci, CEB’s Senior Technical Advisor for MSMEs.
More sustainable logistics for Europe
As Croatia gears up to open a new container terminal in Rijeka in 2026, Jadroagent’s new facility comes just in time. The country currently lacks enough storage space to match growing port capacity – a major bottleneck for national competitiveness.
By addressing that gap, the Kukuljanovo centre is helping position Croatia as a prominent player in the EU’s logistics chain. And Jadroagent isn’t stopping here. A second phase is already in the pipeline, including rooftop solar panels that will reduce electricity costs by up to 70% in summer months.
As global supply chains become more complex and climate-conscious, investments like this one do more than increase storage; they strengthen economic resilience. The ability to store goods safely, reduce spoilage, and control energy costs is essential for long-term competitiveness. With its eye on the green transition, Jadroagent is not only meeting current demand, but preparing for a future where logistics must also be sustainable.