News roundup - Thursday, 20 June

Telco T-2 no longer at risk of receivership

LJUBLJANA - Slovenian Sovereign Holding (SSH) and telco T-2 reached an agreement to engage in talks to determine the amount of T-2's debt to SSH and on its settlement. This means that T-2 is no longer at risk of receivership, which SSH initiated in April. The talks also involved Telemach Slovenija, which intends to take over T-2. The sides presented the agreement to the Ljubljana District Court, which had a receivership hearing scheduled for today that it then rescheduled to 20 August.

STA financing overhauled in draft bill

LJUBLJANA - Public financing of the Slovenian Press Agency (STA) will be overhauled under a reform bill that entered a 30-day public consultation period. Financing is currently poorly defined, but in the new bill there is a formula determining that public funding will cover the difference between the cost of performing the public service and the commercial revenue the STA earns on the market.

Slovenia draw with Serbia 1:1 in thriller finish

MUNICH, Germany - The Slovenian football team played out a 1:1 draw with Serbia in its second match at 2024 Euro. Slovenia scored first, in the 69th minute, but Serbia fought until the very end and scored through a header by Luka Jović, assisted from a corner kick, in the last seconds of the five-minute stoppage time.

Analyses show Krško safe location for new N-plant

LJUBLJANA - A number of seismic safety studies carried out over the past decades have shown that the Krško Basin in southeast Slovenia is safe for nuclear energy facilities, said Gen Energija, the company in charge of the only Slovenian nuclear power station. The company said it had worked with world-renowned institutions and experts while also commissioning national and international reviews and revisions for all the studies.

Slovenian farmers not happy about EU Nature Restoration Law

LJUBLJANA - The Chamber of Agriculture and Forestry (KGZS) regrets the recent approval of the Nature Restoration Law by the EU ministers in charge of the environment, noting that dedicated funds have not been secured for its implementation and that the new regulations bring additional restrictions to farmers. Green party Vesna meanwhile said that the law is essential for the preservation of nature.

Fmr environment minister under investigation

LJUBLJANA - Former Environment Minister Andrej Vizjak is being investigated due to the deals he made in the last months of his term in the government of Janez Janša, Necenzurirano reported. The National Bureau of Investigation is looking into suspected irregularities in granting the funding of the national Climate Change Fund to hydro power company HESS.

Report: Kindergarten deals scrutinised by corruption watchdog

LJUBLJANA - The newspaper Dnevnik reported that the Commission for the Prevention of Corruption (KPK) is scrutinising certain deals made by kindergartens in Ljubljana, including the alleged favouring of certain service providers and the related misuse of public funds. Some are related to the controversial plan to merge all Ljubljana kindergartens into a single institution.

Political views of Slovenian youth shifting right, study shows

LJUBLJANA - Findings from a new international youth study by the Friedrich Ebert Foundation and the Maribor Faculty of Arts indicate a rightward shift in the political views of young people in Slovenia, accompanied by an increase in political interest among right-leaning youths and escalating ideological polarisation. For some key political stances, a notable and previously non-existent gender gap has emerged as well.

Maribor bookshop target of anti-LGBTIQ+ violence

LJUBLJANA - A small independent bookshop in the centre of Maribor has been a target of repeated anti-LGBTIQ+ violence since it displayed a rainbow flag above its entrance in honour of Pride Month. Mariborka has reported several cases of homophobic harassment, verbal attacks and threats in recent days. Unhappy with how police handled the matter, owner Anja Zag Golob plans to initiate a formal police complaint procedure. The Maribor Police Department told the STA they would look into the allegations.

First 870 laptops to be distributed in coming days

LJUBLJANA - The first batch of the 10,000 laptops the Digital Transformation Ministry purchased last year for vulnerable groups will be delivered to users in the coming days. The ministry's data shows that 2,277 applications were filed for the laptops and 669 were approved. A further 195 will be approved in the coming days, said Digital Transformation Minister Emilija Stojmenova Duh.

Collective agreement signed at Engrotuš for higher base pay

CELJE - The management and the in-house trade union of the retailer Engrotuš signed a collective bargaining agreement under which the lowest base wages would be gradually increased and regularly adjusted to inflation. The deal comes after the in-house trade union threatened with a strike half a year ago. "Wwe have confirmed our commitment to ensure the wellbeing and satisfaction of our employees," said Dušan Mitič, the director of Engrotuš.

Consumer confidence improves in June

LJUBLJANA - Consumer confidence in Slovenia improved in June, rising by three percentage points on a monthly basis, and by ten points year-on-year, the Statistics Office said on Thursday. The index was also 10 points higher than last year's average. Two components pulled the index up on the monthly level: consumers' opinion about their current household finances and their expectations about the economic situation in the country, each going up by 5 percentage points.

Polymer products maker Roto turning 75 and expanding production to Africa

MURSKA SOBOTA - Roto, a leading European rotational moulding company, addressed the press to mark its 75th anniversary and announced the launch of production at a new subsidiary in Kenya. This will be the ninth factory within the Roto Group, which exceeded EUR 110 million in revenue last year. The family-owned company has four factories in Slovenia and subsidiaries in Croatia, Serbia, North Macedonia, Austria, Germany, and France.

Display marking 20 years of design group opens in Rog Centre

LJUBLJANA - An exhibition celebrating 20 years of the design collective Oloop will open in the Rog Centre in Ljubljana this evening. Featuring the collective's women artists and designers, the exhibition will pay tribute to the importance of textile design in community building. The collective brings together Tjaša Bavcon, Katja Burger Kovič and Jasmina Ferček, who founded the Oloop institution for contemporary textile art and design in 2003.

Severed hand case participants found guilty of fraud

LJUBLJANA - Julija Adlešič was found guilty by the Ljubljana District Court on fraud charges while Sebastien Abramov was found guilty of aiding and abetting, in the latest trial about a case involving Abramov sawing off Adlešič's hand to claim insurance money. Adlešič got a year in prison, which she may serve out through community work, while Abramov got seven months in prison.