A total of seven offers were filed in the first licensing round forhydrocarbons exploration and production in Croatia's eastern Slavonia region, the country's economy ministry said.
The tender was called in July. The bidding deadline expired on February 18.
The offers target all six blocks on offer, ranging in area between 2,100 and2,600 square kilometers, in the Drava and Sava valleys and eastern Slavonia, the ministry said in a statement issued on Wednesday.
An expert committee will now evaluate the bids with the results expected by April 18 at the latest.
Production sharing contracts will be signed after an environmental impact study for the project, which is currently being drafted, is completed, the country's economy minister Ivan Vrdoljak said.
The exploration and production licences will be awarded for a maximum of 30 years. The total exploration period is five years, extendable twice in six-month increments.
Last month, Croatia awarded 10 licences for oil and gas exploration and production in the Adriatic Sea after getting bids from six candidates for 15 of the 29 blocks on offer.
The on- and offshore oil and gas tenders -alongside participation in the Ionian Adriatic Pipeline project and the planned construction of a liquefied natural gas terminal on the Adriatic island of Krk, are part of efforts to develop Croatia into a regional energy hub.
According to the latest data available on the website of Croatia's energy regulatory agency, HERA, a total of 28.7 billion kWh of gas were delivered to the market in 2013 with domestic production contributing 13.1 billion kWh.