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This summary is provided by the STA:
Spanish FM announces support for Slovenia's EU presidency
LJUBLJANA - Spanish Foreign Minister Arancha Gonzalez Laya pledged her country's support for Slovenia's presidency of the EU Council in the second half of the year as she met her counterpart Anže Logar as part of an official visit to Slovenia. "Spain will work together with Slovenia for the presidency to be as successful as possible," Gonzalez Laya said in addressing a joint press conference. The pair also discussed resilience of the EU and migrations, which are among the presidency's priorities. Gonzalez Laya also meet Speaker Igor Zorčič, PM Janez Janša and President Borut Pahor.
Settlement agreed with General Electric over TEŠ6
LJUBLJANA - Slovenia's energy group HSE and its subsidiary TEŠ announced they had reached a EUR 261 million out-of-court settlement with the US group General Electric as legal successor to French Alstom over the infamous TEŠ6 generator project, the cost of which ballooned from EUR 654 million to EUR 1.4 billion amid allegations of corruption. HSE said that EUR 131 million had already been transferred to the TEŠ account following the settlement's signing on Wednesday.
Coronavirus case count declines but concern about new variants
LJUBLJANA - Slovenia saw its average daily increase in coronavirus infections over the past seven days drop to 705 after another 860 people tested positive on Wednesday. However, officials briefing reporters on the situation today expressed concern in view of the spread of the new, highly-virulent variants as an additional 155 cases of the UK strain had been confirmed in Slovenia in the past week, along with a further eight cases of the South African mutation. Meanwhile, the situation in hospitals improved further with 453 Covid-19 patients hospitalised this morning. Ten died yesterday.
Slovenia not considering suspending AstraZeneca vaccine
LJUBLJANA - Slovenia is currently not considering halting the use of the AstraZeneca vaccine, Bojana Beović, the head of the country's vaccination advisory group, told the STA after several EU countries have suspended vaccination with it as a precaution following reports of problems with blood clots. Since this vaccine will be used for education workers, the SVIZ trade union of teachers called on the National Institute of Public Health (NIJZ) to take a stand on the matter immediately. Should there be any doubts, SVIZ believes a rethink will be needed on potential suspension of vaccination with AstraZeneca.
Committee unanimously supports children's house bill
LJUBLJANA - The parliamentary Justice Committee endorsed unanimously a bill on the protection of children in criminal procedures and setting up the country's first Barnahus for child victims of sexual abuse. The government-sponsored bill aims to protect children that are involved in criminal procedures either as victims, witnesses or underage perpetrators and has been enjoying cross-party support so far.
SDS's Patria damages suit dismissed in retrial
MARIBOR - The newspaper Delo reported that the Maribor Higher Court had dismissed a damages claim by the ruling Slovenian Democratic Party (SDS) against the state over the Patria defence corruption trial a second time in a retrial. The court told the paper the judgement had become final on 5 January. The SDS claimed over EUR 886,000 in pecuniary damages and interest for the impact the subsequently quashed sentencing of its leader, incumbent PM Janez Janša, had on the party's outcome in the general elections in 2011 and 2014.
Govt appoints acting head of money laundering watchdog
LJUBLJANA - The government appointed Damjan Žugelj acting director of the Office for Money Laundering Prevention. He will take over on 15 March from Ivan Kopina, who resigned earlier this month after serving as acting director for nearly a year. Žugelj, who has previously served as director of the Securities Market Agency, was appointed for the period until a full-fledged director is appointed but no longer than six months. The government also proposed to parliament to appoint Anka Čadež the director of the Securities Market Agency for a period of six years.
Reconciliation study centre gets new director
LJUBLJANA - The government endorsed the appointment of Tomaž Ivešić as the new director of the Study Centre for National Reconciliation, following the resignation of Andreja Valič Zver, who had led the centre since its inception in 2008. Ivešić was appointed for a five-year term starting on 1 April. Ivešić has been the interim head of the centre since last October when Valič Zver stepped down following allegations of mismanagement.
Estimated cost of Koper rail downgraded by 7% to EUR 1.126bn
LJUBLJANA - 2TDK, the state-owned company managing the project of the new railway line between the port of Koper and the Divača hub, has downgraded the estimated costs of the project by almost 7% to EUR 1.126 billion. The previous investment programme from January 2019, which was not upgraded, the estimated costs were EUR 1.194 billion, the company said in a press release.
SSH moves to take over Terme Olimija
LJUBLJANA - Slovenia Sovereign Holding (SSH), the manager of state assets, published a letter of intent for the takeover of spa operator Terme Olimija, a move that comes as yet another step in the plan to create the State Hospitality Fund. Terme Olimija, which operates resorts in Podčetrtek and in Croatia's Tuhelj, has a total of 705,799 shares, with the SSH completing the acquisition of a 20.9% stake in the company on Tuesday, crossing the takeover threshold.
Italian group Safilo to close Slovenia plant
ORMOŽ - The Italian group Safilo announced it would close its eyewear production plant in the Slovenian town of Ormož in June to adjust production capacities to meet changing demand. A total of 557 workers will lose jobs. The development, which took both trade unions and the municipality of Ormož by surprise, comes after Safilo has already closed two plants in Italy. The group said the Covid crisis had further aggravated the situation that had been already challenging prior to the pandemic.
Govt adopts building energy efficiency improvement strategy
LJUBLJANA - The government adopted a strategy for improvement of energy efficiency of buildings until 2050 that, among other things, defines decarbonisation approaches and policies of the National Housing Fund. The strategy will promote sustainable refurbishment of old buildings and new construction that would reach almost zero emissions, the Government Communication Office said. The document is tied to the EU goal of cutting greenhouse gas emissions by 80-95% by 2050 in comparison with 1990.
Intereuropa group's net profit drops 15% to EUR 3.6m
KOPER - The logistics group Intereuropa saw its sales revenue drop by 6% year-on-year to EUR 150.7m in 2020, while net profit was down by 15% to EUR 3.6 million, shows the unaudited annual report. Earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation were down 12% to EUR 12.3 million, while the group's net debt dropped by EUR 10 million to stand at EUR 44.4 million at the end of 2020 for an EBITDA ratio of 3.6.
EUR 30m in loans available to SMEs for development projects
LJUBLJANA - Loans in the total amount of EUR 30 million have been made available to small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) as part of a loan guarantee scheme provided by the SID Banka export and development bank for projects intended for research, technological development and innovation. Loans will be available through the Delavska Hranilnica bank, which has been selected through a call for applications published in February, SID Banka announced.
Tourism statistics: Tourist farms suffered least in 2020
LJUBLJANA - Slovenia's tourism sector took a significant hit last year due to the global pandemic, with nearly all providers seeing their figures plummet, as the number of tourists halved compared to 2019. The only exception were tourist farms, where the number of nights was roughly the same, at some 250,000, data from the Statistics Office show. There was, however, a significant change in the structure of tourists, as foreign tourists accounted for only 25% of all guests.
Baroque painter Bergant on display at National Gallery
LJUBLJANA - An exhibition of works by Fortunat Bergant, one of the main Slovenian Baroque painters, opened at the National Gallery, showcasing around 40 of his works, as well as works by his contemporaries and artists of the generation after them. It comes 70 years after Bergant's last comprehensive show and marks 300 years since his birth. Bergant (1721-1769) is one of the main Slovenian Baroque artists alongside Valentin Metzinger, Franc Jelovšek and Anton Cebej.
Exhibition on Slovenian sport technology on show in Bistra
BISTRA - An exhibition on Slovenian sport technology is on display at the Technical Museum of Slovenia (TMS) in Bistra, presenting until the end of the year a review of the creations by Slovenian makers of equipment for sports on land, in the air and water. The producers showcased in the exhibition that spans from the inter-war period until today include Alpina, Mont, Športoprema Ljubljana, Planika, Toper, Rašica, Akrapovič, Goltes, Dedra, Slatnar, Dali and others.
Report: Slovenian lorry driver gets 15 years in UK for drug smuggling
CANTERBURY, UK - A court in the English town of Canterbury sentenced at the end of February a Slovenian lorry driver caught smuggling drugs last April to 15 years in prison, media have reported. A 50-year-old man from Koper was reportedly arrested in Dover in England on 26 April after 81 kilos of cocaine and three kilos of heroin were found in his truck, loaded with frozen pizzas. The English police have assessed that the illegal cargo was worth around EUR 7.5 million.
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