Since ancient times, before the strategic importance of oil was identified, which is the subject of interest of this final paper, oil has been present in people’s lives. The growth of oil consumption and dependence on oil led to strengthening the power and influence of countries with enormous amounts of oil in their possessions. With the birth of organizations like the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries, whose members own approximately 40% of the world’s oil reserves, the conflicts and tensions of the 1970s escalated into events we today know as oil shocks. With the move away from the 20th century, whose prime resource was named oil, dependence on oil is still strongly present. The COVID-19 pandemic shook the world along with the oil market. For the first time in history, since the beginning of oil trade, oil has achieved a negative value on the world market. No one could have predicted that just two years after the record low price, with the outbreak of a new war on the territory of Ukraine, oil prices would approach those recorded in 2008. Croatia, a member of the European Union and a country that participates and operates in the international oil market, also faces all market challenges. The introduction of the embargo on Russian oil and the new policies of the European Union aimed at eliminating dependence on fossil fuels and implementing the energy transition is the challenges that Croatia is facing in 2022 and which will affect its future growth and development.