The Croatian Competition Authority (AZTN) has carried out a review of key indicators and publicly available information related to the construction sector in Croatia for the period 2024-2025. The aim is to enhance understanding of sectoral circumstances and identify areas that warrant intensified analytical monitoring, especially concerning public procurement procedures.

This review is primarily based on secondary, publicly available sources, including data from the Financial Agency's InfoBIZ and the State Bureau of Statistics, along with a preliminary insight into selected information from the Electronic Public Procurement Bulletin (EOJN). It is important to note that this review is not a formal sector inquiry and does not represent findings in individual cases. The findings are informative and serve as a basis for monitoring trends and potential risks to competition in this sector.

The review encompasses activities in the construction sector (F - NKD 2025) at the national level, using a classification framework for collecting and presenting indicators. In 2024, the construction sector accounted for just under nine percent of total revenues and employed about twelve percent of all workers in Croatia. The growth of assets and revenues for entrepreneurs in 2024 slightly slowed compared to 2023.

In terms of the structure of completed works in 2024, non-residential buildings represented the largest individual type of construction by value (33.7 percent), while the majority of revenue was recorded in infrastructure works (over 41 percent), including transport infrastructure (26.7 percent) and pipelines, communication, and energy lines (14.5 percent).

The analysis particularly focused on 32 large entrepreneurs categorized according to accounting regulations. Collectively, they employed 7,307 workers in 2024 (six percent of all construction workers), held over two billion euros in assets (12.1 percent of total construction assets), and generated 2.55 billion euros in total revenues (18.1 percent of total revenues).

Among these, four entities primarily provide construction services for their own needs (Croatian Roads Ltd., Croatian Highways Ltd., BINA-Istra Ltd., and Railway Construction Ltd.). According to publicly available data from the court register, the sole founder of Croatian Roads Ltd. and Croatian Highways Ltd. is the Republic of Croatia; the sole founder of Railway Construction Ltd. is HŽ Infrastruktura Ltd., also solely owned by the Republic of Croatia; and in BINA-Istra Ltd., one of the shareholders is Croatian Highways Ltd.

On a broader level, the calculated indicative concentration indicators based on shares of total revenues show that the Herfindahl-Hirschman Index (HHI) is 54. The CR5 concentration ratio is 12.1, indicating that the top five largest entrepreneurs account for 12.1 percent of total revenues, while the CR10 ratio is 17.7, showing that the top ten largest entrepreneurs account for 17.7 percent of total revenues. These indicators suggest that total revenues in the sector are distributed among a larger number of entrepreneurs.

Furthermore, the concentration indicators for large entrepreneurs in the construction sector show an HHI of 517. The CR5 ratio is 39.7, indicating that the top five largest in this category account for 39.7 percent of total revenues, while the CR10 ratio is 58.2, showing that the top ten largest account for 58.2 percent of total revenues. This indicates a more pronounced concentration compared to the overall sector, particularly among entrepreneurs participating as bidders in public procurement processes for large infrastructure projects.

The concentration indicator HHI for medium-sized entrepreneurs is 69, with a CR5 of 8.6 and a CR10 of 14.8, indicating that in this segment, individual shares of entrepreneurs based on total revenues are distributed among a large number of entrepreneurs.

These indicators reflect the structure within the observed scope and do not prejudge possible assessments of relevant markets in individual cases.

In terms of related activities and vertical integration, four entrepreneurs produce cement in Croatia, operating a total of five factories, including Nexe, Holcim, Calucem, and Cemex Croatia. Most of these producers also own concrete plants.

Regarding vertical integration, it has been observed that some entrepreneurs whose primary activity is construction are also linked to complementary activities (e.g., quarries, concrete plants, and/or asphalt bases). According to data from the Croatian Asphalt Association, as of December 2025, there were a total of 56 asphalt bases opened in Croatia.

AZTN has emphasized the importance of analytical monitoring of public procurement, as it has noted increased risks for prohibited agreements in this area. The authority has conducted a comparative analysis of practices from other national competition authorities in the construction sector, highlighting the risks of collusion among entrepreneurs in public procurement.

In conclusion, based on the conducted review and analysis of basic and indicative indicators of sector structure, it can be concluded that a large number of entrepreneurs operate in the market, and total revenues of entrepreneurs, observed at the sector level and segmented by large and medium entrepreneurs, are distributed among a larger number of entrepreneurs. AZTN will continue to monitor the construction sector and take necessary actions in case of suspected violations of competition law, with particular attention to combating prohibited agreements in public procurement processes.