News roundup - Wednesday, 6 September

Slovenian, Croatian speakers happy with bilateral cooperation

LJUBLJANA - President of Slovenian National Assembly Urška Klakočar Zupančič hosted her Croatian counterpart Gordan Jandroković for a visit with the pair expressing satisfaction over the cooperation of their countries and underlined the importance of parliamentary cooperation. It is of utmost importance that parliaments of the two countries establish a continuous dialogue, Jandroković said, while his Slovenian counterpart said she was a great advocate of parliamentary diplomacy. Jandroković was also received by Prime Minister Robert Golob, with the pair discussing bilateral relations and the situation in the Western Balkans.

Statistics Office on defensive over GDP estimate correction

LJUBLJANA - Tomaž Smrekar, director-general of the Statistics Office, denied the allegation by some media that their calculations had been swayed by the government after the office made a substantial downward correction in the GDP growth estimate for 2022. Smrekar told reporters on Tuesday the difference between the February estimate of 5.4% growth and the reviewed estimate of 2.5% growth was not a matter of mistake, but a review based on new, aggregate annual data, which had not been available when the original estimate was made. Finance Minister Klemen Boštjančič said the methodology office would obviously have to be improved, adding that investors would have to be explained how "this difference came about". He does not expect the review to greatly affect Slovenia's borrowing costs.

Flood victims can dial 114 for various post-flood info

LJUBLJANA - A call centre was launched to help those affected by the August floods get accurate information they need in post-flood reconstruction efforts. Operators at the centre, who come from various ministries and other state administration bodies, received more than 100 calls between 8am and noon, Andrej Šter from the Foreign Ministry, who heads the call centre, told the press. Most of them were related to electricity bills, the start of the school year, specific post-flood reconstruction work, and dehumidification of flooded buildings. The centre was visited by PM Robert Golob, who noted that the centre covered all areas of the state administration.

President stresses importance of solidarity, cooperation at Three Seas summit

BUCHAREST, Romania - President Nataša Pirc Musar attended a summit of the Three Seas Initiative, stressing the importance of solidarity and strengthening cooperation and connectivity between countries for sustainable development and security. She welcomed Greece's inclusion in the initiative, as well as Moldova's request to be more closely associated with the initiative and its efforts in the reform processes with respect to its prospective EU accession. Pirc Musar also thanked for all the help Slovenia has received after the devastating floods, saying that "you have shown that solidarity is not just a word".

Foreign flood relief teams slowly wrapping up work

LJUBLJANA - Six more bridges are planned for construction in the Savinjska and Koroška regions by the foreign flood relief teams who are otherwise slowly wrapping up their work. After staying in Slovenia for a month, a 14-strong French team returned home on Tuesday for some well-deserved rest, according to Civil Protection and Disaster Relief Administration head Leon Behin. The aid that is part of the EU Civil Protection Mechanism is meant as a first response after a natural disaster.

Perutnina Ptuj increases net profit by 50% to EUR 45m last year

PTUJ - The group around the poultry producer Perutnina Ptuj generated EUR 441 million in sales revenue last year, up 30% over the year before, producing and selling more than 121,000 tonnes of meat and products, 8% more than in 2021. The group posted a net profit of EUR 45 million, up by nearly 50% year-on-year. The volume of sales was driven by an increase in sales in Serbia, Austria and Montenegro, CEO Enver Šišić said in the annual business report, released today, which notes that the group generated 74% of revenue in foreign markets. The core company's revenue was up 23% to EUR 223 million and net profit by 47% to EUR 22.7 million.

Cablex-M reports over EUR 12m in flood damage

MEŽICA - The Mežica-based Cablex-M, a company producing, marketing and servicing electrical products, has suffered an estimated flood damage of over EUR 12 million. As the company, which employing 340 people, currently works with about half of production lines running, CEO Samo Simetinger said he hoped production would be fully operational again by the end of the month. Out of the EUR 12 million in estimated damage, damage to equipment is estimated at around EUR 4 million, damage to infrastructure at around EUR 1 million and damage due to production outage at around EUR 3 million. The rest is damage to material and products.

Ministry wants to promote mass production of Slovenian modular bridge

LJUBLJANA - The Defence Ministry said it was working on the development of a Slovenian-made prefabricated bridge and if the project turns out to be successful, the end goal is to launch mass production. The aim is to design a 40 to 50 metre-long bridge with a load bearing capacity of 40 to 50 tonnes. The ministry's representative Željko Kralj said that the ministry's council of research and development had cleared the project. An open call is soon to be published to form a consortium of companies to take on this challenge.

Minister announces forum on violence as he visits care home

TREBNJE - Minister for Solidarity-based Future Simon Maljevac paid an emergency visit to the Home for Elderly Residents in Trebnje, south-east, after a case of violence there made headlines on Tuesday. He met the residents and staff, condemned violence once again, and announced that a forum on violence will be held on Monday. Human Rights Ombudsman Peter Svetina said he was appalled and concerned by the violence, and reiterated the call for zero tolerance towards violence, announcing a meeting with the relevant institutions.

Caution advised to those travelling to Greece, Turkey, Bulgaria

LJUBLJANA - The Foreign Ministry advises extra caution to Slovenian citizens travelling to Greece, Turkey or Bulgaria due to deadly flash floods that have devastated parts of these countries. Citizens who are already there are advised to heed local authorities' instructions, the ministry said, expressing Slovenia's willingness to provide aid to the countries. Severe storms triggered flooding in the three countries, killing at least ten people, including tourists.

Steel group SIJ revenue, profit down in H1 y/y

LJUBLJANA - The steel producing group SIJ generated EUR 601.5 million in sales revenue in the first half of 2023, a drop of 17.6% over the same period last year. Net profit also dropped, by 72.9% to EUR 14.2 million. The group said that the figures were hard to compare to last year's when the burden of high energy costs was carried by their buyers. Earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) reached EUR 53.7 million, while the group's EBITDA margin was 8.9%, the company said.

Suicide on slight downward trend, but prevention still needs to improve

LJUBLJANA - A total of 402 people in Slovenia committed suicide in 2022, of which 338 were men and 94 women, the National Institute of Public Health said ahead of World Suicide Prevention Day. Despite the slight downward trend in the 2013-2022 period a lot of work still needs to be done to improve suicide prevention, the health authorities added. In the past nine years, the suicide quotient fluctuated each year but on average the number of suicides has been in slight decline.

Study shows teenagers able to access alcohol easily online

LJUBLJANA - Slovenia ranks among the world's top countries in per capita alcohol consumption, and this includes its youth population. A study by the Consumers' Association has shown that teenagers can easily purchase alcohol online, which reflects the general ease of access to alcohol in the country. The association conducted a test in July which showed that not one of ten selected retailers or alcohol delivery providers requested a document to verify the buyer's age. Selling alcoholic drinks to minors is prohibited.

Slovenia concede to Canada in FIBA World Cup quarter-finals

MANILA, the Philippines - The Slovenian men's basketball team was defeated by Canada 89:100 in the quarter-finals of the FIBA World Cup, and will play in the 5th-8th classification round, facing Lithuania on Thursday. Looking for their first World Cup semi-final berth following two top-8 finishes in 2010 and 2014, Slovenia were able to keep up with the NBA-player-laden Canadian roster only in the first half. Slovenia's star Luka Dončić collected 26 points but was harassed by the strong Canadian defence, and had to leave the game midway into the final quarter after a second technical foul as he complained to the referees.

Photo exhibition brings artists' studios to life

LJUBLJANA - A new photo exhibition titled The Artist's Studio is opening in the evening at the National Gallery in Ljubljana. Featuring ninety digital reproductions of original photos, it gives visitors a peak into famous Spanish artists' studios from the end of the 19th to the mid-20th centuries. The photographs come from the photographic archives of the Spanish Cultural Heritage Institute. They are complemented by a selection of photographs showing Slovenian artists active in the period. The show runs until 26 November.

Slovenia emerge undefeated from EuroVolley group stage

VARNA, Bulgaria - The Slovenian men's volleyball team finished the preliminaries of the European Volleyball Championship with five wins in as many matches after defeating host Bulgaria on Tuesday 3:0 (29, 22, 30). In the round of 16 Slovenia will face off Turkey, who placed fourth in Pool D. Turkey's coach Alberto Giuliani is Slovenia's former coach and the one that took the team to second place in the European championships in 2019 and 2021.