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Davor Šimekač
Episode · #210

RITAM POSLA Davor Žmegač

Guest Davor ŠimekačHosted by Lidija KiseljakMay 3, 2026
About this episode
What you'll hear in this conversation

Few companies embody the tension between national strategic interests and brutal market realities quite like Petrokemija. For years, the Croatian fertilizer giant teetered on the brink, a state-owned enterprise accumulating losses, its future uncertain. Then, in 2018, a dramatic privatization and recapitalization injected 450 million kuna into the struggling company, pulling it back from the edge. Davor Šimekač, who was already on the management board during those difficult years and now serves as its president, recounts the complex turnaround. He explains why such an old, large-scale industrial plant – which, he points out, "cannot be built anywhere in Europe today" – is not just important for its region, but for Croatia's food security and wider economy. Listeners will hear how a critical industry was saved, the surprising multiplier effect it has on other Croatian businesses, and the long-term vision required to bring a 52-year-old plant up to European standards.

Insights from the conversation
What to take from this episode
01
Petrokemija was on the brink of collapse, with EU rules preventing state aid, but the management board, including Davor Šimekač, saw a path. He insists that "all actors at the end of the day had the will to do something." When an industry is truly on the ropes, the shared will to save it matters more than any single plan.
02
Such a large, complex industrial plant, spanning 200 hectares with intricate technology and environmental challenges, "cannot be built anywhere in Europe today," Šimekač points out. The strategic value of an old factory often lies not in its modernity, but in the sheer impossibility of replacing it.
03
When COVID-19 brought global supply chains to a halt, Petrokemija ensured Croatia's planting season proceeded normally, supplying "top-quality mineral fertilizers on time." The true test of a strategic industry isn't its balance sheet in peacetime, but its ability to sustain the nation when borders close.
04
The 450 million kuna recapitalization was directly deposited, a sum so significant that Petrokemija's finance director was "in shock," exclaiming, "Davor, we have half a billion on the account!" For a company fighting daily for liquidity, the arrival of real capital is less a transaction and more an event that signals a new chapter.
05
The argument that Croatia doesn't need Petrokemija because other EU countries produce fertilizers is "completely wrong," Šimekač insists, pointing to Germany's continued auto industry despite France having one. Rejecting the notion that everything can be imported, he argues that the "intra-economy" often overlooks the strategic imperative for domestic production of critical goods like food inputs.
06
Beyond its 1,300 direct employees, Petrokemija supports an estimated 15,000 to 20,000 indirect jobs, acting as a critical partner for HŽ Cargo and the majority owner of Luka Šibenik, where 80% of the port's business is Petrokemija cargo. The survival of a major industrial player isn't just about its own P&L; it's about the entire ecosystem of suppliers, transporters, and service providers it sustains.
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