News roundup - Wednesday, 24 July

New electric Twingo to be produced in Slovenia

NOVO MESTO - Revoz, the Slovenian subsidiary of the French car maker Renault, will start producing a redesigned version of the electric Twingo in 2026 under a memorandum of understanding signed by PM Robert Golob, vice president for Renault brand industry Herbert Steiner and Revoz chairman Jože Bele. The value of the investment has not been disclosed but with the memorandum Renault can count on the Slovenian government to support the investment. The initial annual output will be 150,000 cars.

EU Commission calls for appropriate funding for RTV Slovenija

BRUSSELS, Belgium - The European Commission called on Slovenia in its annual rule of law report to ensure the appropriate financing of public broadcaster RTV Slovenija and to finalise measures to increase the salaries of judges and prosecutors, as the Slovenian authorities are yet to fully implemented a Constitutional Court decision. The Commission also notes that the length of court proceedings remains a challenge, particularly in cases of money laundering and corruption. The Foreign Ministry said the report indicated progress in virtually all fields. It underlined that Slovenia remained dedicated to strengthening the rule of law.

Slovenia urges Houthis to release aid workers

NEW YORK, US - Slovenia called on the Houthis at the UN Security Council meeting on the situation in Yemen on Tuesday to immediately and unconditionally release all detained humanitarian workers. Slovenian Deputy Ambassador Ondina Blokar Drobič also said the Houthis cannot talk about protecting the welfare and dignity of Palestinians in Gaza while denying equal rights to the people of Yemen in desperate need of help, pointing to the fallout from their attacks on ships in the Red Sea.

Prebilič coordinator for Greens on regional development committee

STRASBOURG, France - Vladimir Prebilič, a former mayor, was elected coordinator of the European Parliament's Committee on Regional Development for the Greens as the EU parliament's committees met for their maiden sessions on Tuesday. He will serve in the first half of the five-year term. Slovenia's nine MEPs also sit on the committees on internal affairs, budget, employment, culture, industry, environment and transport, but none of them is chair or vice chair.

New information commissioner to advocate transparency

LJUBLJANA - Jelena Virant Burnik, the new information commissioner, pledged in an interview with the STA to strive to preserve the autonomy of her office by making decisions that will always be based on expert arguments. She wants to raise awareness about the importance of personal data protection, for which more staff will be needed. She underscored the need for transparency, including in the field of artificial intelligence, which she says "is changing society at a frightening pace".

Govt overhauls Water Agency, appoints new head

LJUBLJANA - The government confirmed a reorganisation of the Water Agency, the goal being improved efficiency of this body within the Ministry of Natural Resources and Spatial Planning, which has faced major challenges in the wake of the devastating 2023 floods. Along with establishing several new departments, it transferred the agency's head Neža Kodre to the helm of the Institute for Water, primarily in charge of research work, and environmental and risk assessment, as it simultaneously accepted the resignation of Manca Čarman from Kodre's new post. Urška Kočevar was appointed the Water Agency's acting director.

RTV Slovenija management board complete again

LJUBLJANA - After the resignations of all but one management board member at RTV Slovenija, the council of the public broadcaster appointed copyright jurist Luka Rupnik acting management member, while another member, Andrej Trček, who recently resigned has agreed to stay on a while longer, making the management complete again. Natalija Gorščak was appointed acting chairwoman in June after a rift between her predecessor Zvezdan Martić and the council amid conintuing financial woes, while Franci Pavšer has stayed on as the workers' director.

NSi tables legislative changes to tackle peer violence

LJUBLJANA - The opposition New Slovenia (NSi) put forward changes to the Primary School Act to deal with peer violence at schools. They propose temporary home schooling, inclusion in socialisation programmes or even expulsion for violent students. "The authorities no longer have this violence under control," the head of the NSi deputy group, Janez Cigler Kralj, said after a recent spate of violent incidents. The party also re-tabled a legislative package aimed at the Roma.

Wealth growth in Slovenia picking up

LJUBLJANA - The global wealth report by the Boston Consulting Group shows that financial assets in Slovenia have grown at an average rate of 6% over the past two decades, below the average of Eastern Europe. However, the consultancy believes growth of wealth in Slovenia will reach 8%. While Slovenia's growth was similar to the global average in the past 20 years, it was significantly below the Eastern European average, which has been at 10%, the Boston Consulting Group said in a press release.

Unicredit Slovenia revenue up by nearly 30% in H1

LJUBLJANA - The Slovenian branch of the Italian bank Unicredit generated EUR 66 million in revenue in the first half of the year, a 27.9% increase over the same period last year. Net interest went up by 35% to EUR 54 million, services by 10.7% to EUR 14 million. It posted a net profit of EUR 22 million, 24.4% less year-on-year. Revenue in the second quarter of the year was up by 22% y/yto EUR 33 million.

Cablex-M flood reconstruction nearly complete

MEŽICA - A year after its shop floor was flooded in strong storms that hit Slovenia, the Mežica-based Cablex-M, a company producing, marketing and servicing electrical products, has mostly completed reconstruction, but its machines have been breaking down virtually every day, disrupting production. The company suffered a loss of EUR 376,000 in 2023 on EUR 58.5 million in sales revenue, after posting a net profit of EUR 3.1 million on EUR 72.7 million in revenue the year before.

Ana Gros and Benjamin Savšek to be Slovenia's flag bearers in Paris

LJUBLJANA - Ana Gros, captain of the country's national women's handball team, and canoeist Benjamin Savšek, an Olympic gold medallist, will be Slovenia's flag bearers at the opening ceremony of the Summer Olympic Games in Paris on Friday. Announcing the pick, the Slovenian Olympic Committee said it was a difficult choice, while both Gros and Savšek said they were honoured to have been chosen for the role.

Pop and rock on the Kolpa at Castle Festival

KOSTEL - Fara, a small village on the border river Kolpa in the south of the country, will host a line-up of some of the most popular Slovenian and Croatian acts for what is the country's largest outdoor pop and rock music festival between 25 and 28 July. Baby Lasagna, the Croatian pop star who came second in this year's Eurovision Song Contest, and Slovenia's Magnifico are among those headlining the Castle Festival, which is expected to attract more than 10,000 visitors.