Rimac is developing urban mobility ecosystem with autonomous electric cars for Zagreb

Mate Rimac, owner of Croatian carmaker Rimac Automobili, is developing a project of an urban mobility ecosystem that will be installed in Zagreb. Its value is estimated at EUR 450 million, and about EUR 200 million could be provided from the national recovery and resilience plan, which is funded by the European Union.

Croatia intends to include research and the development and production of an autonomous electric car and the accompanying infrastructure being prepared by Mate Rimac within the national recovery and resilience plan at the proposal of the Ministry of Transport, Jutarnji list reports.

Rimac plans to develop an urban mobility ecosystem integrated with public transport in Zagreb

Under the plan, Croatia will receive EUR 6.3 billion while at least 30% will be directly allocated to companies.

Rimac plans to develop an urban mobility ecosystem integrated with public transport in Zagreb. The system will include an autonomous electric car with level five autonomy, capable of moving around without human assistance, only by artificial intelligence, via cameras and sensors, according to local media.

The system will include an autonomous electric vehicle with level five autonomy, for which a prototype was made

The second part of the project includes the development and construction of infrastructure, which will be used for maintenance of the cars. The infrastructure should be part of a multimodal terminal in Zagreb. It will allow the ecosystem to connect to trams, buses and the suburban railway operated by public transport company ZET.

The testing of the entire system is planned for 2023, and serial production of the autonomous cars is expected in 2024

Development is underway of an autonomous vehicle for which the prototype has been made. The serial production of a fleet of 700 vehicles, which could replace a large number of taxi vehicles in Zagreb, will be financed by Rimac Automobili and it is planned for 2024.

Infrastructure development is planned for next year, and everything should be ready for testing in 2023

Rimac Automobili could not give more information on the project because it is waiting for the European Commission to greenlight the national plan, which is expected in the summer. The autonomous cars will be developed within the campus which the company plans to build, but also in new production facilities, according to Rimac Automobili.

Campus construction is about to begin

According to the local media, preparations for the construction of the campus are underway.

A few days ago, Rimac Automobili was the only company to hand over a binding offer at the public call for the lease of the land launched by the Town of Sveta Nedelja. The company, which has headquarters there, plans to build a campus on 200,000 square meters over the next three years.

The investment is estimated at EUR 130 million

Mayor of Sveta Nedelja Dario Zurovec said total investment in the campus for new technologies and the automotive industry will amount to more than EUR 130 million, Poslovni.hr reported.

The campus will have a production plant and research and development center, a testing laboratory, an educational complex, a restaurant, as well as accommodation for a short stay, and various facilities for employees.