STA, 28 April 2022 - The government has extended the validity of reduced excise duties on electricity, motor fuels, heating oil and natural gas for heating for three more months until 31 July.

The reduced excise duties on energy products first kicked in on 1 February as part of a package of measures to mitigate the impact of energy price hikes on the population and businesses.

The government later also capped the retail and wholesale prices of regular petrol and diesel fuel. It has recently also extended the cap on the prices of heating oil by another month.

Announcing a new extension of the reduced excise duties after the cabinet session on Thursday, the Finance Ministry said it was trying to help the population and businesses cope with the high oil prices by fiscal policy measures as well.

The reduced excise duties are 35.9 cents per litre of petrol, 33 cents per litre of diesel, 7.875 cents per litre of heating oil and 85.5 cents per megawatt hour of natural gas for heating.

Unless the government extends by the end of this month administered prices of most motor fuels, these are expected to go up next week.

Estimates by the newspaper Finance show petrol prices could exceed EUR 1.60 a litre on 1 May unless the government extends the price cap. Diesel could cost EUR 1.82 a litre, taking into account reduced excise.

As of February the excise duty on electricity was reduced from EUR 3.05 per MWh to EUR 1.525 per MWh for small consumers and from EUR 1.80 to EUR 0.90 per MWh for large consumers (over 10.000 MWh per year).

The reduced duty has been extended by three months, while the temporary freeze on network charges remains in force until the end of April.

Asked about a potential extension or new measures to mitigate price hikes beyond the planned periods, the Infrastructure Ministry has not provided an answer.

At the beginning of April, Prime Minister Janez Janša said the government would continue to intervene as long as necessary to contain high electricity prices, until these are reduced through a change in the European formula for the calculation of electricity prices. The funds were to come from state-owned power producers.

STA, 21 April 2022 - The government has extended the regulation of heating oil prices under which retailers' margin is capped at six cents per litre. The decree entered into force today and is valid for 30 days.

The base price to which the margin is added is calculated as a 14-day average price that takes into account prices on Mediterranean markets, the euro-dollar exchange rate and several other variables.

Heating oil price regulation was introduced in November to stem the rise of energy prices. Fuel prices remain regulated as well.

STA, 15 April 2022 - Parties that polls suggest have a chance of making it to parliament in the 24 April general election support building unit 2 of the Krško nuclear power plant (NEK 2), but most say it should be put to a referendum first. The Left says the project should be put on hold until broad public debate is held on issues involved.

Judging by their answers to the STA's questions, the parties oppose extending the lifespan of the Šoštanj coal-fired power plant (TEŠ) and only the Alenka Bratušek Party (SAB) allows for a potential extension if such a decision was taken in dialogue with the local community.

All parties also underscore the need for a just restructuring of the Šalek Valley, which is home to TEŠ and the mine supplying its coal.

While there is unity on the need to increase supply from renewable sources, the Left and some smaller non-parliamentary parties oppose building new hydro power stations on the Central Sava, citing negative impact on biodiversity and ecosystems.

On NEK 2, the Left says it should be suspended in order to conduct a broad debate on potential alternatives and issues such as storage of nuclear waste, while the final decision should be taken by citizens in a referendum.

The Freedom Movement, the party of Robert Golob, a former energy executive, urges setting out a long-term programme of nuclear energy production, examining all potential technologies and suppliers, and drawing up comprehensive investment paperwork, which should be subject to an independent audit.

"Only once we have a comprehensive picture, it's right that people take an informed decision on the matter in a referendum," the party says. In fact all centre-left opposition parties advocate holding such a referendum.

Like its coalition partners, the ruling Democratic Party (SDS) supports NEK 2, describing preparations and the launch of procedures for the project as the most important commitment delivered in the field of energy by this government (an energy permit for unit 2 has been issued under this government).

Connecting Slovenia, an alliance that also includes the ruling coalition party Concretely, sees NEK 2 as a transitional solution in a bid to increase Slovenia's self-supply and preserve lower prices. However, for a long-term sustainability Slovenia needs projects to tap on its potential in geo-thermal energy, wood biomass, wind, sun and micro hydro power plants.

Another government party, New Slovenia (NSi) supports NEK 2 and hydro-power plants as well as geothermal and solar energy, and sees hydrogen as a fuel of the future. The goal is for Slovenia to become a net electricity exporter.

The party promises financial schemes to cover investments in renewables though savings and earnings and tackling red tape so that small hydro power stations can be built on rivers and streams.

The centre-left opposition parties support NEK 2, provided "transparent financial and technological project plan, broad public and expert debate held beforehand and a consultative referendum" as the Marjan Šarec List (LMŠ) put it, warning that NEK 2 should not become another TEŠ 6 where "some government moves are not inspiring trust that this would not happen".

Given the project is supported in a referendum, the SAB would support building a modular-reactor power station. Apart from increasing production from renewable sources, they also see investment in power distribution networks and energy storage facilities as urgently needed.

In a bid to reduce dependency on exports, such investments are also supported by several other parties. The Social Democrats (SD) call for investment in all types of renewables, including in producing and extracting green gases, green hydrogen and synthetic methane. The party will also support hydro power stations on the Central Sava if the project is adopted in a strategic document.

Meanwhile, the opposition National Party (SNS) says that while they absolutely support building NEK 2, it should not be built in cooperation with Croatia, which owns half of the Krško nuclear power plant. The party also opposes wind farms, which it says have proved to be bad investment in Slovenia.

Some parties propose dates when Slovenia should phase out coal and shut down TEŠ; the Left says coal should be fully abandoned by 2030 and the SDS says TEŠ should end its operation by 2032 as the Freedom Movement says extending TEŠ's lifespan beyond 2033 would not solve challenges of safe supply with fossil fuels.

All parties support boosting investment in renewables, where the SDS would favour those which do not create additional financial burdens on the population and businesses due to support schemes. One of the key solutions they see is building a liquefied natural gas terminal as soon as possible.

The Freedom Movement finds it worth continuing to exploit the energy of the Sava if siting of new stations can be done in a socially and environmentally acceptable way. Domestic production of biofuels, synthetic fuels and hydrogen would help Slovenia reduce its reliance on exports.

The Left bets on solar, wind and geothermal energy, reducing the volume of car traffic and increasing public passenger traffic and boosting energy efficiency of households and businesses.

The Pirate Party is in favour of NEK 2 if the contractor is picked based on appropriate references, but "strongly against" any further procedures to build hydro power stations on the Central Sava.

STA, 12 April 2022 - To cope with rising energy bills, pensioners whose pension was lower than EUR 1,000 last December will receive a one-off energy voucher of EUR 150 on Tuesday.

The solidarity allowance as the aid is termed is set down in the law on emergency measures to alleviate the consequences of high energy prices, passed in February.

It will be paid out by the ZPIZ public pension fund, including to those on disability pension.

Those who became eligible for their pension on 1 January 2022 or later are not entitled to the aid.

Pensioners are, however, only one of the groups that will receive the one-off energy voucher.

Recipients of various social transfers, such as welfare, child benefit, large-family benefit or foster carers, will receive it on Thursday from the Ministry of Labour, the Family, Social Affairs and Equal Opportunities.

Pensioners on an occupational pension, which is typical for workers in arduous or hazardous jobs, received the vouchers already last Friday, paid out by the KAD state-owned fund.

STA, 8 April 2022 - The state-owned power utility HSE launched on Friday a 3.036-megawatt solar power plant in a rehabilitated and closed section of the Prapretno landfill near Hrastnik. The largest facility of the kind in the country, worth EUR 2.5 million, is expected to provide electricity for around 800 households.

A total of 6,748 photovoltaic modules installed at the former brownfield site will produce more than 3 GWh of electricity a year, and the plan is to expand it to a total installed power of 14 megawatts.

HSE said that the launch of the solar power plant in the former coal mining region was an investment in security of electricity supply that followed EU guidelines on reducing carbon emissions.

HTZ, a subsidiary of the coal mine operator Premogovnik Velenje, was hired to supply the equipment and install and launch the power plant.

The opening ceremony was attended by Prime Minister Janez Janša, who noted that Slovenia now had sustainable and green energy sources at its disposal after decades of production of electricity mainly from fossil fuel sources.

He added that the state would give back to regions where coal had been extracted for electricity production by providing funds from the Just Transition Fund.

The prime minister noted that the energy crisis in the aftermath of Russia's attack on Ukraine made the resources Slovenia had at home more valuable today than in the past, adding that Slovenia needed to continue to build small hydro and solar power plants.

HSE director general Viktor Vračar said that the new installation pursued the objective of secure and reliable electricity supply, adding that international events had forced Slovenia to strategically restructure its energy sector.

The goal is decarbonisation and reduced dependence on foreign energy, and this means investment, he said, adding that the ECB had assessed that EUR 350 billion was needed for this over the next decade.

Hrastnik Mayor Marko Funkl added that the municipality would establish this month an energy cooperative for the "transition from brown to green" that would build the largest cooperative solar power plant in the country.

The 300 KW array will be installed on the roof of a local primary school, Funkl said, adding that "energy is returning to the Zasavje region in green form."

STA, 6 April 2022 - The National Assembly has imposed a blanket ban on hydraulic fracturing or fracking as MPs voted 54 in favour and none against to pass the relevant amendments to the mining act on Wednesday.

This was the sixth attempt by the National Assembly to pass such a ban after it failed to endorse similar proposal by the opposition looking to thwart plans by UK investor Ascent Resources to extract gas by means of hydraulic fracturing in Petišovci in the north-east.

The original set of amendments put forward by the government proposed to ban only high volume hydraulic fracturing, but a full ban was added through an amendment tabled by the ruling coalition and endorsed on the committee.

The amendments also define in more detail certain concepts relating to the rehabilitation of mining sites, the regulation of special cases of extension of mining rights and concessions, the introduction of a digital mining register and the transfer spatial planning powers for municipal spatial planning in mining from the Infrastructure Ministry to the Geological Survey.

They introduce solutions for the payment of compensation for the mineral extracted during the rehabilitation of an illegal mine in cases where the mining right and the exploitation concession are terminated before the rehabilitation is carried out, and additionally for the transfer of mining rights if the concessionaire goes bankrupt.

The amendments also improve the scope of regulated professions in the mining sector, define certain offences and add a legal basis for the financing of monitoring and maintenance of permanent cave structures after the closure of coal mines, Infrastructure Ministry State Secretary Aleš Mihelič told MPs last week.

The debate focused on the ban on fracking with the opposition hailing the government's changing its mind about fracking.

The Velenje coal mine welcomed the amendment allowing the concessionaire within the mining area to extend the duration of the mining right without meeting the condition of having the right to carry out mining operations on the entire land subject to the extension of the mining right.

It said it was a step towards meeting the condition for obtaining a concession to mine coal after July 2023 - by which time they have extended the mining right and the concession relationship - or until the end of the mining operation.

"The amendment provides that such concessionaires only enter into legal transactions with landowners immediately before they start developing their land, rather than years or decades before, as in the case of the Velenje coal mine," the mine operator, Premogovnik Velenje, said.

It added that the amendment did not mean that in future landowners would not be involved in deciding what was done to their land.

STA, 5 April 2022 - A dozen Slovenian companies have developed an innovative net zero-energy house that can serve as a home and a workplace. With the smart appliances and fittings linked into a cloud it can be monitored and managed remotely.

The model Dom24 (Home24) was put on display on Tuesday at the headquarters of Marles, Slovenia's oldest and largest maker of prefabricated homes, in Limbuš near Maribor.

"Home24 is the optimal combination of energy self-sufficiency, environmentally sustainable construction and modern technological solutions," said Marles CEO Matej Vukmanič at the inauguration ceremony, which featured President Borut Pahor.

Apart from Marles, the project also includes Gorenje, Petrol, Helios, Alples, Danfoss, Robotina, Eti, Jub, Intectiv, Smartis and Špica.

The companies, each of which developed innovative solutions in its own field, have invested EUR 12 million in the project with the Economy Ministry and European Regional Development Fund chipping in a grant of EUR 5 million.

Marles official Bogdan Božac said the idea back in 2018 was to make a home in which people could spend 24 hours a day, meaning they could also work in it. "Then came the Covid-19 pandemic and showed how visionary our idea had been."

Home24 gets its power from the sun through an integrated photovoltaic plant and any excess electricity is stored in the integrated storage battery or fed into the grid. It provides a two-way connection to community energy systems and can operate efficiently on its own or as a smart community unit.

It combines environmentally-friendly building materials, superinsulation, an innovative ventilation system, highly efficient heat recovery, and special paints and coatings to control humidity. The home also includes ceiling heating and cooling and a charging station for electric vehicles.

See more about this project

STA, 2 April 2022 - Prime Minister Janez Janša has announced that the government will continue to intervene as long as necessary to contain high electricity prices. The main problem, in his view, is the European formula to calculate electricity prices that takes into account gas prices, but the formula is about to change.

"Until the formula is changed and this has not stabilised prices, we will continue to intervene," Janša said on Friday evening at a public debate in Vrhnika that wrapped up the government's visit to the southern communities of central Slovenia.

Under a legislative package passed in late January to mitigate high energy prices, electricity bills have been cut for the cost of network fees for three months until the end of April. Government data shows the measure reduced the bills by almost 40%.

Janša promised the government would continue to intervene. "We will take funds to finance the gap from the surpluses generated because Slovenian power producers are charging higher prices for electricity. Considering these are mainly state-owned companies, we will reallocate these funds," he said.

The main reason for high electricity prices on the European market is the formula, which Slovenia sought to change last year during its presidency of the Council of the EU. After several countries called for change in February this year, the European Commission decided to draw up a new formula, which is expected to come into force in May or June, he said.

"Prices will then be lower on the European market. They will not be what they were before the shock due to the war in Ukraine and the spike in energy consumption driven by the post-pandemic recovery and more money in circulation," Janša added.

The three-month freeze on electricity network charges is being challenged at the Constitutional Court by an association of small shareholders who hold stakes in electricity distribution companies.

STA, 31 March 2022 - The Slovenian government has capped the wholesale price of regular petrol and diesel two and a half weeks after regulating retail prices. The wholesale price has been set two cents below the retail price.

Wholesalers will be allowed to charge EUR 1.483 per litre of petrol and EUR 1.521 per litre of diesel, a price the government said on Thursday provided a margin that would make it possible for small retailers to secure fuel supplies.

Many small service station operators have complained that they were simply not getting fuel from wholesalers since prices were capped. Either that, or they were forced to buy fuel at a price above the maximum retail price.

Indeed, the government decree explicitly stipulates now that companies selling fuel may not stop deliveries. In the event they incur losses, they will be compensated under a scheme that will be put in place after this temporary measure expires.

Price administration was initially put in place for a month, but today's decree extends it until 30 April.

STA, 31 March 2022 - Prime Minister Janez Janša and his Croatian counterpart Andrej Plenković talked about cooperation in gas supply and the Krško nuclear power plant as they met in Zagreb on Monday. Talks will be resumed by the ministers in charge next week.

Potential for concrete cooperation will be discussed by Slovenian Infrastructure Minister Jernej Vrtovec and Croatian Economy Minister Tomislav Čorić as they meet in Zagreb next Monday.

The ministers will talk about expanding the pipeline from Lučko, a Zagreb suburb, through Zabok, north of Zagreb, to Rogatec in Slovenia. They will also discuss further cooperation on the Krško N-plant, which is owned jointly by the two countries.

"We're trying to find a common approach to supply, transport routes and the other necessary logistic. Gas, of course, is a small part of the energy we need for a normal life in Europe. Nuclear energy is also very important," said Janša.

The two countries see plenty of potential to cooperate in both energy areas when it comes to satisfying the needs of Slovenia as well as Croatia, he added.

"A large part of Europe is fully or partly dependent on energy imports from Russia, and anything that represents an alternative to these imports and dependency is a European priority at the moment," said Janša.

Slovenia would like to have enough capacities to be energy self-sufficient even in case of difficulties on the energy market. "As for our interest to lease capacities, the capacities that have been leased are leased, we're interested in additional capacities," said Janša when asked about lease of Croatian capacities.

Slovenia needs about a billion cubic metres of gas a year. The capacity of the gas pipeline from Lučko to Rogatec would be 270 million m3, which Janša said represented an important share of Slovenian gas supply.

While Slovenia is short of gas, Croatia is short of electricity. The Croatian government expressed readiness to take part in the construction of a second reactor in Krško following the model of cooperation so far.

Janša said the relevant government departments would look into potential for cooperation to jointly invest in the second reactor.

The prime ministers also talked about other bilateral issues, including the fishing regime in the Bay of Piran. Plenković said the two countries deepened their relationship in recent years and would also ease them on that point so that fishers would not be fined by Croatian or Slovenian police.

Since Slovenia started implementing the border arbitration award declared by the arbitration tribunal in June 2017 the following year Slovenian police have fined vessels entering waters awarded to Slovenia illegally, while Croatia has been fining Slovenian vessels fishing in the part of the bay it continues to claim as its own because it does not recognise the border award.

The two prime ministers also touched on the refugee crisis with Janša expressing Slovenia's readiness to accept the number of Ukrainian refugees in proportion to its size and the size of its population.

"There're no tensions, all the problems that exist, even if they have for several years, we're solving quietly and to the satisfaction of both governments and nations," said Plenković.

He thanked Slovenia for supporting Croatia in joining the EU, Schengen zone and the efforts to become a member of the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development.

"You have all the support for membership in the integrations that Slovenia is already a member of and Croatia is still a candidate country for," said Janša.

The prime ministers also talked about cooperation in trade and tourism. The volume of bilateral trade has reached EUR 5.6 billion. Plenković noted that that 1,166,000 Slovenian tourists holidayed in Croatia last year.

This was the eighth time that Janša and Plenković have met in the past two years.