STA, 1 March 2021 - Musicians and event organisers are pushing for the gradual relaunch of public events and the revival of the events sector after several countries already took steps in this direction. They believe now is the time to save the summer season and the sector, and that their proposals should be included in the next stimulus package.

The Coalition of the Music Sector, Trade Union of Slovenian Musicians, the Association of Concert Organisers, the Slovenian Music and Information Centre, and the charity MiDelamoDogodke, said Monday companies and other subjects from the events industry are completely exhausted by the restrictions.

"If we lose another summer, which brings in the most revenue to the events sector with festivals and other mass events, the damage suffered by most stakeholders will be too big for the sector to ever recover again," said the five associations.

They propose that a realistic plan for a gradual relaunch of public events be made in cooperation with the National Institute for Public Health. They would like criteria for relaunching set along with potential dates that event organisers could rely on.

Given the current situation, they believe events could begin on 1 April and be held without restrictions as of 1 July in line with the vaccination plan.

They also propose a guarantee scheme following the example for Austria, Germany and the Netherlands, which plans to lift all restrictions for the events sector on 1 July. Recently, the UK also adopted a plan of gradual reopening of the sector and lifting of restrictions as of 21 June.

The news of the latter prompted many announcements of festivals hosting more than 100,000 people a day, the five organisations said.

STA, 26 February 2021 - Slovenia's draft regulation on vinegar and dilute acetic acid quality has sparked strong protests in Italy. The proposal sets down that any vinegar mixture with concentrated fruit juice or must could be labelled balsamic vinegar. The Slovenian government has said that Italy has not provided any formal comments so far.

The Austrian Press Agency (APA) has recently reported on what it describes as a battle for balsamic vinegar between Slovenia and Italy. What triggered it is the Slovenian draft, which defines balsamic vinegar as any vinegar containing concentrated or diluted fruit juice or must as an additive.

Slovenia notified the European Commission of the draft on 2 December 2020 with the standstill period ending on 3 March, the Agriculture Ministry told the STA today.

Both the economy and agriculture ministries highlighted that so far Slovenia had not received any formal comments or reservations by the Commission or member states.
"The regulation is still in the notification phase and reviews by the European Commission and all the member states are ongoing," the Agriculture Ministry added.

The same requirements for the use of the balsamic vinegar label as in the new draft are already set down under the current Slovenian regulation on vinegar and dilute acetic acid quality, which was most recently amended in 2004, the ministry noted.

In the event of formal comments on the draft made by the Commission or individual EU countries, the document will be amended accordingly, according to the ministry.

Italy protected Aceto Balsamico di Modena or Balsamic Vinegar of Modena using a protected geographical indication (PGI) in 2009. The Aceto Balsamico Tradizionale di Modena label is also protected as designation of origin (PDO), the ministry said, adding that in Slovenia balsamic vinegar was meanwhile a generic term.

The Italian Press Agency (ansa) quoted Italian Agriculture Minister Stefano Patuanelli on Thursday as saying that the Italian government will take action to protect the Modena balsamic vinegar. Using the draft, Slovenia would like to elude a system that protects the authenticity of the Italian vinegar, he added, highlighting that such protection was one of the Italian government's priorities.

The Modena consortium of balsamic vinegar producers has been critical of Slovenia's step as well, saying that the Slovenian government seeks to change the balsamic vinegar labelling into product standard.

Moreover, Slovenia's move has been criticised by the Coldiretti society of Italian farmers, which has described the attempt by the Slovenian Agriculture Ministry as a "dangerous precedent".

"The proposal regarding the Slovenian regulation on vinegar and dilute acetic acid quality does not oppose or restrict in any way the already established protected geographical indications Aceto Balsamico di Modena and the designation of origin Aceto Balsamico Tradizionale di Modena," the Slovenian ministry said.

STA, 28 February 2021 - The fitness industry has been severely affected by coronavirus restrictions with last year's loss of income estimated at 75%, said the fitness, recreation and regeneration branch of the Chamber of Commerce and Industry (GZS) on Sunday, warning about a decline in physical fitness.

Fitness centres were allowed to reopen almost two weeks ago. It is extremely important that access to guided recreational fitness activities is provided for as many people as possible as soon as possible, reads a press release.

"The state has done very little to help the sector," the GZS department said, adding that the role of the industry had been overlooked. Despite assurances from the authorities that aid intended specifically for the sector would be part of legislative stimulus packages, nothing has been done so far, the press release adds.

In 2019, the sector provided recreational activities for some 100,000 users.

"It is key such organised sports activities are no longer restricted in the future. Of course, provided all the prevention protocols are heeded," fitness centres said, warning that a decline in physical fitness recorded in 2020 will have a long-term detrimental effect on psychophysical condition of children and adults.

The results of a study on children's physical fitness published by the Ljubljana Faculty of Sport last year point to the largest drop in physical efficiency among youth since the start of such survey and the sharpest rise in the number of overweight children since 1987.

The GZS branch expects an alarming decline in physical fitness among adults as well, warning that such a crisis means a long-term burden on healthcare and reduced productivity, which further weakens the budget.

STA, 22 February 2021 - The Swedish furniture group Ikea is set to open its first store in Slovenia in Ljubljana on Thursday. To ensure a safe shopping experience in Covid times and avert long queues in front of the store, Ikea has mandated advanced bookings for in-person shopping in the first weeks following the opening. 

In the initial weeks after the opening, shoppers will be obliged to register online to visit the store. The booking will be free of charge and available from Tuesday at 9am.

The number of visitors is capped at 700 with Ikea estimating that they will spend roughly two hours on average browsing around the store.

Online shop will also come to life on Thursday. Ikea restaurant in the brick-and-mortar store will be closed due to Covid rules, but there will be take-away options, Cas Lachaert, the head of the Ljubljana store, said on Monday.

He added that Ikea will sell its standard products in Slovenia as well as those reflecting the local environment.

Great demand for Ikea family cards shows that consumers are looking forward to the opening, Lachaert said, noting that 45,000 people requested the card in the first seven days.

After the epidemiological situation improves, the Ljubljana store is expected to attract some 2 million visitors per year.

Online purchases could be picked up or delivered - apart from Ljubljana, there will be a pick-up location in Maribor as well. Additional locations could be set up in the future, according to Lachaert.

Ikea has employed 400 staff for its Ljubljana store after receiving some 7,000 job applications. The Swedish furniture giant had initially planned the opening for the end of 2020, however Covid-19 has upset the apple cart and the date has been pushed to 25 February.

The store spans over 31,000 square metres, including some 22,000 square metres of the shopping area, and stocks about 9,500 products.

STA, 19 February 2021 - Despite the ongoing ban on indoor food service, restaurants in Slovenia are allowed to serve business customers under certain conditions, a senior Economy Ministry official said Friday as he clarified government restrictions following uncertainty over what the indoor eating ban actually means.

The decree banning the provision of goods and services, including indoor dining, "restricts only commerce with consumers. Commerce with business entities is permitted," Economy Ministry State Secretary Simon Zajc told the government's daily Covid-19 briefing.

If a restaurant signs a contract with a business to provide meals for its employees, it effectively creates a bubble; as a result, the restaurant is not treated as a public space and restrictions on gatherings do not apply.

In that case the restaurant is considered an off-site cafeteria of sorts, according to Zajc.

If a restaurant signs a contract with multiple companies, it is considered a public space and the restriction on gathering applies, meaning that up to ten employees may eat indoors at the same time.

Zajc indicated the latter option had been possible since the complete ban on gatherings was lifted earlier this month.

The clarification came after media accused Economy Minister Zdravko Počivalšek of flouting the rules when he held an official function at a restaurant in eastern Slovenia earlier this month.

The event triggered a wave of criticism by restaurant owners who said it was not clear from the government decrees that this was possible; if it was, many would have done that months ago.

Some have even threatened to sue the state for loss of income.

Počivalšek has denied any wrongdoing but said the meeting had been "lawful, justified and very useful, but it was also an inconsiderate move in these difficult times."

Zajc acknowledged today that communication regarding the indoor dining restrictions was "not good enough", but added that his ministry had been trying hard to help the restaurant sector as much as possible.

"We really tried hard to mitigate this crisis for them," he said, adding that he did not want lawsuits from restaurant owners, but if any felt they had been wronged, they had the chance to prove that.

The section of restaurant owners at the Chamber of Trade Crafts and Small Business (OZS), which held a press conference at the same time as Zajc, said they were expecting official clarification from the ministry.

"If it turns out that this information is true, someone must be held accountable," said Blaž Cvar, the head of the section.

Cvar also called for a reopening of restaurants in general. "We've never received information about infections in restaurants, we are justified in making this demand."

Absent that, restaurateurs want higher furlough payments and a waiver on the mandatory holiday bonuses, which he said many companies would not be able to afford this year.

STA, 18 February 2021 - The Slovenian energy group GEN-I sold a record 127.4 terawatt hours of electricity last year to generate the highest net profit to date. At EUR 15.4 million the profit was one percent above that posted in 2019 despite revenue falling by 4% to EUR 2.1 billion.

The group, active in trade, retail and purchasing of energy products, was successful across all its divisions and has been improving its financial position further with capital growth, the group said in a regulatory filing with the Ljubljana Stock Exchange.

Earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) rose by 40% to EUR 32.07 million. Pre-tax profit increased by 6.4% to EUR 20.2 million.

The release also said that the group was keeping its net financial indebtedness low.

Addressing reporters, the company's chairman Robert Golob said GEN-I had managed to adapt well to the situation changed by coronavirus, having invested heavily into digitalisation in recent years.

During what was a highly volatile year in financial and energy markets, the group stepped up electricity trading to sell 70% more electricity for what is almost ten-fold Slovenia's entire consumption, said Golob.

They purchased and sold the bulk of electricity in international markets of Central Europe.

Despite the drop in revenue, the group remains the second largest company in Slovenia in terms of revenue.

Golob said one of the key goals last year had been boosting customer relations, hence the decision to reduce power bills of more than 180,000 existing customers by 15% at the cost of EUR 2 million in the first wave of the epidemic.

GEN-I also put 845 self-supply solar plants into use last year, for a total of more than 21,000 so far. Golob expects growth in the field to continue in the future. Out of 24 planned mid-sized and large solar plants, 10 have been put up already.

The company fully removed fossil fuels from the electricity it supplies in Slovenia starting from 1 January and the customers were offered to decide themselves which non-carbon source they want to get their electricity from.

Unless a major difference in price, initial experience shows about 60% of consumers prefer solar over nuclear. "If there's benefit with nuclear, only 10% will opt for solar," said Golob, adding that the cost dictated the choice of source more than persuasion.

STA, 17 February 2021 - Four orthopaedic surgeons and a salesperson were sentenced to jail terms ranging from ten months to three years on Wednesday in what is the largest healthcare corruption trial in Slovenia. The Ljubljana District Court also imposed fines on them, while three of the doctors will also have their unlawfully gained assets seized.

Darko Žafran, a former sales representative at medical supplier Emporio Medical, was found guilty of giving bribes and sentenced to a year and six months in prison.

The doctors were sentenced for receiving the bribes, Robert Janez Cirman to three years, Rok Vengust to two years and two months, Vane Antolič to a year and six months, and Samo Karl Fokter to ten months.

The scandal broke out in December 2013, when police carried out house searches at almost 60 addresses around Slovenia, finding large amounts of cash and even gold bars.

Emporio Medical was at the centre of it, suspected of bribing the doctors in exchange for continuing ordering medical supplies made by a particular producer.

Urška Jurkovič, Emporio Medical's former director and co-owner, was the main witness for the prosecution, while the defence team questioned her credibility.

Neither defendant pleaded guilty when prosecutor Iztok Krumpak offered them a plea bargain in exchange for lower sentences before the trial started in January 2020.

In his closing argument last week, Krumpak said it was proven beyond a reasonable doubt the defendants had committed the criminal acts for which they were on trial.

Judge Dejana Fekonja also handed down fines totalling around EUR 59,000, ranging from EUR 6,000 to EUR 20,000.

Cirman, Fokter and Vengust will also have the unlawfully gained assets seized - around EUR 53,000, EUR 6,000 and almost EUR 33,000, respectively.

Despite finding them guilty, the judge did not go along with the prosecution's demand to temporarily strip the doctors of their licences.

She argued that they had not committed the crime in connection with medical treatment. The prosecution plans to lodge an appeal.

The judge meanwhile said "the court is not naive to think today's verdicts will change anything in the field of corruption in Slovenia. But it should be clear that anyone will be sentenced who has been proved to have asked for, accepted or given bribes, whether a state secretary, doctor, technician or warehouse employee."

She said it had been proven the doctors had had a say in deciding what medical supplies will be used, citing the example of UKC Ljubljana's Orthopaedic Clinic's spine division, which chose Emporio Medical as a supplier on the initiative of Vengust as the head of the division.

Fekonja said the doctors had received the kickbacks in various ways: as a payment of subscription fees for medical journals, a payment of registration fee for conferences, a payment of Christmas parties, deposits on bank accounts or in cash, with Žafran a middleman between the doctors and Emporio Medical.

Žafran received the bribe money from the company's former co-owners And and Urška Jurkovič on his special bank account in Croatia to distribute it to the doctors.

The defence will also appeal the verdict, with Fokter's lawyer Janez Koščak saying "the judge did not dare take a different decision because the media have done an excellent job".

He said the verdict was not based on evidence but on drawing conclusions. He said the doctors had been sentenced on the basis of notes made at Emporio Medical on which none of them had any influence. "They were sentenced on the basis of some notes made by third persons and rather diabolic drawing of conclusions by the court."

Before the trial started last year, the judge split it into several smaller ones due to as many as eleven defendants. Today's handing down of the verdicts thus brings only the first trial to an end.

The Medical Chamber stressed today it had zero tolerance towards corruption. It said however it would comment only when the verdicts became final, referring to the presumption of innocence.

If the guilty verdicts become final after the appeals, the chamber's committee for legal and ethical matters will discuss each case and inform the public of its conclusions, the chamber told the STA.

STA, 12 February 2021 - The second wave of the pandemic in Slovenia has not had an impact on the country's export companies and its construction sector, IMAD, the government's macroeconomic think tank, said on Friday. It has, however, hit retail and some other services quite severely.

Revenue has dropped significantly since the second half of October, with the hospitality sector suffering the most, seeing its revenue drop by more than a half, IMAD said in the most recent issue of its regular publication.

The households' spending on personal services, entertainment, sports and other services has also decreased, owing to their inaccessibility.

The sales of motor vehicles and in retail dropped considerably, with the latter being dragged down above all by poor sales of clothing and footwear, furniture and household equipment.

But on the other hand, export-oriented companies and the construction sector have not been impacted significantly by the second wave.

Exports to EU countries, which account for about three fourths of Slovenia's total exports, as well as manufacturing, recovered to pre-crisis levels in the course of the final quarter of 2020, IMAD said.

The construction sector also saw a significant improvement, owing to an increase in the construction of residential buildings.

Moreover, confidence indicators suggest the continuation of advantageous trends in the beginning of this year. This is also supported by data on energy use and road traffic, both of which are only slightly lower than in January 2020.

STA, 11 February 2021 - Labour Minister Janez Cigler Kralj said on Thursday the minimum hourly pay for student work would be raised to EUR 5.89 gross this week. Thus he responded to criticism from the opposition Left and the Student Organisation that student pay had not been adjusted to the minimum wage raise.

Cigler Kralj said on Twitter that as soon as the minimum wage was raised (to EUR 1,024 gross) efforts had started to set the new minimum hourly pay for student work as well.

The Left noted today that the minimum hourly pay for student work had risen from EUR 4.89 to EUR 5.40 gross at the beginning of last year. Under the law, the minister is to change the minimum pay if the minimum wage changes, it said.

Based on the minimum wage raise, the minimum hourly pay for students should rise to EUR 5.89, the party noted.

The same call was made by the Student Organisation.