The Slovenia Times 139

Education special: Postgraduate courses on the rise

The Slovenia Times, Slovenian magazine in English Language, volume 8, number 139, EUR 4,80

April 2011

Automotive special The engine of Slovenia’s economy

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CONTENTS 3

April 2011 Business Partners

POLITICS 6 7

The secrets of Slovenian arms trade A journal of Slovene in Japan

10 12

ECONOMY

13 14

Is Agrokor planning a hostile takeover of Mercator?

Interview: Mohammed Ali Al Qaed, chief executive of Bahrain’s eGovernment authority Real estate exhibitions in retrospect Pension reform saga continues unresolved

FDI 17 18 22

Interview: Christof Droste Good practice example: Boxmark Leather When art meets innovation

Automotive Special 23 26 28 30 31 32 34

Overview of Slovenia’s automotive sector Car parts made in Slovenia Going green Foreign investors in automotive sector Interview: Albéric Chopelin, Peugeot Slovenija Top executive cars in Slovenia Slovenia’s favourite cars

Najmanjša dovoljena velikost logotipa je 25 mm.

Education special 35 37 38 39 42

Overview of education sector Interview: Joseph Mifsud, EMUNI Postgraduate courses are on the rise Interview: Marta Kos, Gustav Käser training company Research at Slovenia’s universities may have impact beyond its borders

44 46 48 51 52

LIFESTYLE Experince: Pampering at Salia Talaso Centre Slovenians as car buyers Dine with style: JB Restaurant Column: Andja Marić The capital’s magnificen botanic gardens

CULTURE

53 54

T I P O G R A F I J A & I LU ST R A C I J A

Avtorja: Domen Fras Maja B. Jančič

Naročnik: Skai Center d.o.o., Šmartinska 154, Ljubljana

Projekt: Celostna grafična podoba Kristalna palača

Faza: Projekt za izvedbo

Datum: Oktober 2008

SLOVENSKA CESTA 5, SI–1000 LJUBLJANA +386 1 426 80 57 /8 E: mail@aparat.org T/F:

The sound of perhistory The Event Guide

SPORTS 60 60

Ski season review Interview: Eddie the Eagle

62

Every picture tells a story April 2011

Vsebina: Barvni Logotip angleška različica

PANORAMA Caught Red Handed!

Zoran Thaler stepped down as a member of the European Parliament on after The Sunday Times accused him of corruption. Thaler (SD/ S&D) was recorded by Sunday Times reporters posing as lobbyists accepting the promise of EUR 100,000 a year in exchange for tabling amendments in the European Parliament.

A video posted on Youtube, which shows Thaler filmed with a concealed camera on two occasions, suggests Thaler had tabled an amendment on behalf of the faux lobbyists, a step he describes on the video as “a good start”. Thaler is one of three MEPs - among more than 60 approached by the false lobbyists - who accepted the offer. The European Parliament has said it will launch a full inquiry while the Slovenian National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) has confirmed it has already started an investigation. Thaler’s fellow Slovenian MEPs condemned his actions, using words such as “inadmissible” and “unethical”. Some were quick to point out they had never received similar offers.

Thaler will be replaced by Mojca Kleva, who is working at the European Parliament as liaison with the Slovenian parliament. Zoran Thaler was Slovenia’s foreign minister between 1995 and 1997, having previously served as MP. After 12 years of business career he returned to politics by running in the 2009 elections to the European Parliament. Although not a member of the Social Democrats (SD), he topped the SD ticket.

Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin visited Slovenia in what was billed as a new chapter in bilateral relations. Energy was in the focus as an accord on a joint venture with Geoplin in charge of building the Slovenian section of the South Stream gas pipeline was signed. The South Stream, would pump Russian gas through the Caspian Sea and the Balkans on to Italy and Austria, would improve reliability of supply as well as energy security. The agreement sets down that each partner will hold a 50% stake in the company, but it does not determine the final route of the pipeline through Slovenia, which will be decided based on a comprehensive feasibility study by Gazprom. Apart from energy Pahor and Putin discussed ways of boosting bilateral trade beyond the current level of EUR 1.2bn a year. Pahor stressed in particular the prospects of Slovenian construction companies bidding for deals in Russia, including for facilities for the Winter Olympics in Sochi in 2014. The pair also discussed international issues, in particular the situation in Libya, with Pahor reiterating Slovenia’s support for UN Security Council resolution 1973 on Libya. But he urged the council to define clear political goals on Libya going forward. A total of six agreements were signed on the occasion, including a memorandum on the establishment of scientific and cultural centres, a memorandum of understanding between the agriculture ministries and an agreement on cooperation between Slovenia and the Ulyanovsk region.

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Small businesses went on a campaign of civil disobedience by making withdrawals at ATMs en masse, in what they said was merely the first step. The Chamber of Trade Crafts and Small Business (OZS), which associates 52,000 small businesses in Slovenia, staged the campaign to protest against what it says is the government’s failure to act on OZS demands aimed at improving conditions for business. “This is about telling the government that the situation is alarming and that action must be taken in the field of the economy,” OZS vice-president Jani Ulaga said.

The government again urged the OZS to suspend the campaign, saying it had fulfilled the bulk of the demands made by small businesses. Recent measures by the government include legislation aimed at tackling payment defaults and stepping up protection for small creditors. The OZS said the withdrawals would continue over the while in a few days entrepreneurs would head to banks to make withdrawals. But after the meeting with PM Pahor on 16 March, entrepreneurs called off the campaign. According to Pahor, the government had already met most of the demands and would adopt further legislation to help small business. Chairman of the Chamber of Trade Crafts and Small Business (OZS) Stefan Pavlinjek said it was a “historic day for small businesses”.

“We want laws which are coordinated with the EU and put small business first to create favourable conditions for doing business,” Pavlinjek pointed out. He said Pahor had assured them that the issues which remain open would be tackled.

Editor-in-chief Jaka Terpinc editor@sloveniatimes.com

Marketing/Advertising

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Irena Kržan irena.krzan@sloveniatimes.com

Assistant editor Claire Read Sub-editor Terry Troy Jackson, s.p.

Art director Maja Kaplan (design@domus.si) Front page by Jaka Terpinc

The Slovenia Times

A Short Disobedience Campaign

All Along the Pipeline

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source: STA, Slovenian Press Agency

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4

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UNDER THE PRESS 5 Diplomacy

Strategic Partners PM Borut Pahor and French President Nicolas Sarkozy signed in Paris a strategic partnership agreement aimed at enhancing political, economic and other ties between the countries. The partnership agreement involves political cooperation, cooperation in the economy, innovation and in competitiveness, joint efforts in energy and environment, as well as in education, research, information society an culture. “I will do something I am not used to. I would like to say how important the signing of the strategic partnership with Slovenia is for France,” Sarkozy said. Pahor added that the document is “definitely opening a new chapter in bilateral relations while providing a new framework for closer cooperation within the eurozone and the EU”.

A meeting with French counterpart Francois Fillon meanwhile focused on the prospects of billions-worth of French investments in Slovenia. Pahor explained he had highlighted to his colleague the possibilities where France could make competitive bids, but do so under the same conditions as every one else interested in planned large investments, all of which will be subjected to international tenders. The French are believed to be interested in several billions-worth of investments in the Slovenian railway system.

Moreover, energy giant Areva is interested in the construction of a second reactor at the Krsko Nuclear Power Plant (NEK). While arguing that trade had made good progress, Fillon noted that “new prospects” in economic cooperation were emerging.

War on Terror

Environment

The Guantanamo Guests

A Battle Won, Hostility Remains

The government on created the legal basis for Slovenia to accept detainees from the US prison in Guantanamo. “The reception of innocent people from Guantanamo, who were brutally tortured, is a humanitarian issue,” PM Pahor said after the government adopted changes to the foreigners act. The changes redefine national interest in granting foreigners residence permit, allowing five-year temporary residence permits to be handed to foreigners whose residence is in the national interest due to cultural, scientific, economic or political reasons. Pahor had discussed the issue during recent talks in Washington with Obama and US Vice President Joe Biden, but plans to accept Guantanamo inmates continue to be met with apprehension by the opposition.

Lafarge Cement stopped incinerating waste following an Administrative Court decision to revoke the company’s environmental permit and prohibit the Frenchowned cement maker from burning waste until the first instance authority decides on the matter again.

The loss of environmental permit is a victory of sorts for Eko krog, a local environmental group that has been fighting tooth-and-nail to prevent Lafarge from burning waste.

In a sign of how tense the situation in the region has become, Lafarge discovered earlier that month that someone had shot several bullets through the window of the administrative building over night. The company as well as the French Embassy condemned the incident.

Politicians

Political Likes Top 5 politicians by Dnevnik’s Vox Populi 1 Danilo Türk (President of the Republic) 2 Janez Potočnik (EU Commissioner for the Environment) 3 Radovan Žerjav (SLS - People’s Party president) 4 Ljubica Jelušič (Defence Minister) 5 Karel Erjavec (DeSuS - Penisoner’s Party president) Top 5 politicians by Facebook Likes 1 Zmago Jelinčič (SNS - National Party president) - 24452 2 Katarina Kresal (LDS - Liberal Democrats president) - 6225 3 Zoranj Janković (Ljubljana Mayor)- 5788 4 Janez Janša (SDS - Democrats president) - 5220 5 Danilo Turk (President of the Republic) - 4992

We are disturbed by the fact that you will have to work to death to enjoy your pension for a month or two.

Pensioner’s party Karel Erjavec on the proposed reform, with the retirement age moved ahead to 65 years.

Then all of Europe is stupid, because it does as we do.

Labour Mininster Ivan Svetlik responding to a pension reform protest

A photo of Joseph Goebbels next to a picture of SDS MP Grims and his family. Published

by Social Democrat PR representative and photographer Denis Sarkić’s Facebook profile and then reproduced by Mladina.

Through the years of independence, we have become accustomed to many things done by Slovenian journalists and so-called opinion leaders. No deficiency has been too small, no clumsiness too insignificant not to raise a wave of criticism, mockery and offense. Now they have hit bottom.

A statement by the Jože Pučnik Institute published on the SDS website, commenting on comparison of Goebbels with Grims

When Janez Janša, Branko Grims and other SDS representatives daily accuse left wing parties of being the worst kind of descendants of the communist regime, nobody says is it is unacceptable, indecent or proclaims it to be hate speech. Of course not. Why not? Because they are afraid of Janša and Grims. That’s why Janša is allowed everything. He can criticise or lie, but they will treat him with respect. Even when he is caught telling a colossal and filthy lie.

The liberal Mladina editor-in-chief Grega Repovž on double standards in Slovenian journalism In the allegedly humorous section “Rolanje po Sceni”, which is co-sponsored by the Ministry of Culture, they regularly mock the physical attributes of politicians and reporters.

They make fun of baldness, limps, speech and body weight.

Chauvinistically, they take on female politicians and journalists. They make fun of the murder attempt of a former reporter, victims of post-war killings and the journalists who research them. Despite all of this being hate speech – a legal offense – the judiciary does not react.

The pro-SDS Reporter magazine editor-in-chief Igor Kršinar on Mladina’s political humour.

A WORD FROM THE EDITOR

POLITICS

Doing the Right Thing

Arms Trade

By Maja Dragović

It is not headline grabbing news to say that Slovenia is facing grave problems that need short-term and long-term resolutions but it is peculiar that the SDS leader, Janez Janša, is choosing to instead focus his attention on developments from 30 years ago. The specific incident in question? A 1979 bombing carried out by two Yugoslav agents in Austria. According to the SDS, President Danilo Türk has lied about his knowledge of this event.

Frankly, who cares? Gregor Golobič of Zares actually did lie about something much more current and relevant but he is still going strong as a politician. SDS is already ahead of the current administration in the opinion polls – not least because the government seems to be going out of its way to help Janša’s party get back to governing the country. So there is really no need for Janša to compromise himself by digging into documents that nobody cares about.

Talking of inappropriate timing, proposals to randomly test government officials for drug use are beyond ridiculous. Maybe it is easier to deal with frivolous issues rather than serious problems, but the entire Slovenian political elite seems to have gone bonkers.

Do ministers in Slovenia now see themselves as athletes? If this rule, God forbid, were passed by parliament, would it mean that if a minister were found to have been under the influence of drugs while voting for a certain law, that law would be subject to disqualification?

A minister is certainly subject to disqualification when caught up in accepting a bribe. The now- former MEP Zoran Thaler is a case in point. It wasn’t just that the guy was caught on tape willing to participate in an unlawful deal. It was the way he dealt with it afterwards.

Protesting your innocence while questioning the legality of the ways in which respected British paper The Sunday Times acquires its publishing material – worth remembering the paper had proof that Thaler is corrupt – shows just how delusional some politicians are.

And how could Thaler possibly think that anyone would believe his suggestion that he was leading the fake lobbyists on because he was doing an investigation of his own? Well, the fact remains that The Sunday Times has proof he was accepting a bribe, while Thaler has nothing on his side but his word... of honour if you like. I am afraid, Mr Thaler, that the British paper’s work is what is called investigative journalism. Perfectly legal and necessary I would say. And you are not the victim – you are the culprit.

To be fair, Thaler did the honourable thing and resigned 24 hours after The Sunday Times broke the story. But what was striking was that there was an almost collective surprise that he resigned so quickly! It just shows how used we are here in Slovenia to the idea that politicians are virtually untouchable, even when they have been shown to have been involved in wrongdoing.

Staying with the story, I can’t help but once again bite at the hand that feeds me – the Slovenian media. I recently read an article in a respected Slovenian daily which detailed a rumour that Franc Križanič’s former consultant Drago Isajlović is exercising immense influence over the work of the Capital Assets Management Agency of the Republic of Slovenia. This is a worrying assertion and yet the media seems to be doing little to investigate it further. Contrast this with the recent work of The Sunday Times in investigating corruption in the European Parliament. In Britain, the media hears a rumour, investigates it, and reports the results of that investigation. In Slovenia, it seems, we only do the reporting side – not the investigation.

With yet another embarrassing episode behind us, Borut Pahor’s government is increasingly reminiscent of an administration from the land of The Sunday Times – John Major’s Conservative government, right before Labour won the 1997 election by a landslide. Affairs – or, as the British media would say, instances of “sleaze” – seem to be happening more enough every month now, and that means the election mountain which Pahor and his coalition partners have to climb is becoming ever-higher. maja.dragovic@sloveniatimes.com

The Fog of The Defence Business

Photo: BOBO

6

The arms trade has long been a controversial matter in Slovenia. It all began back in the early nineties when the country supplied weapons to the then war torn Bosnia and Croatia. Two decades later allegations about illegal conduct during this period rage on, and they have recently been joined by concerns about a government deal with a Finnish company. Will the truth about arms trading ever be revealed?

By Tjaša Pureber

W

hen Yugoslav ia collapsed and war ensued, it surely would have been tough to predict that twenty years later there would still be concerns about the way Slovenia acted in trading weapons. And yet here we are, two decades later, and the controversy rages on.

The latest turn in this never-ending tale is an accusation uncovered by Austrian journalist Richard Schneider. In his book Tatort Hypo Alpe Adria, Schneider reports Marin Tomulić’s suggestion that former PM, now leader of the opposition Janez Janša took bribes during the transportation of weapons soon after Slovenian independence.

The allegation carries some weight since Tomulić is an alleged Croatian intermediary in arms trading. Furthermore, he is not the only one making such claims against Janša, currently the leader

of the biggest right-wing opposition party but minister of defence when Slovenia gained independence. An anonymous witness recently came forward on television show Views of Slovenia (Pogledi Slovenije) to report that Janša took money for illegal arms trading that allegedly took place alongside official and documented trade.

Follow the money

Efforts to confirm such allegations have been ongoing and largely futile. Part of the problem is the secretive nature of defence deals – even the legal ones.

Newspaper Finance reports that Janša admitted selling weapons to Croatia and Bosnia in a report he prepared for his successor as Defence Minister, Jelko Kacin.

This document suggests Janša was operating with 7 million German marks (approximately 14 million Euros). Janša has argued that all

POLITICS 7 trade was legal and that the recipients of weapons typically paid not with money but with wellneeded oil. He also says that for every transit of weaponry to the Croatian state papers were signed – papers he says should still be in the Ministry of Defence archives.

Tomulić and others suggest that the real attention should be turned towards Slovenian port Luka Koper. It is here that they claim illegal arms trade took place. According to Tomulić, Janez Janša received USD 200,000 for every ship full of arms that sailed through Luka Koper. The opposition leader strongly denies all accusations, saying he was never present at Luka Koper when those ships allegedly came in and that such claims are “pure fiction”. He does add, however, that secret services have discovered some cases of such illegal trading.

Investigation after investigation, results unknown

Janša says that the truth about the situation could be confirmed by opening up the results of a 1993 investigation. Its conclusions were never made public and it still carries a top secret classification but Janša says it includes all documentation about the arms transit that took place. The Prime Minister who ordered the investigation, Janez Drnovšek, always claimed that it revealed no evidence that illegal arms trading ever happened. And no other investigation has proved otherwise. But sceptics point out that it is in every politician’s best interest not to fully reveal the truth about arms trading in Slovenia. They also argue that the investigations have only ever focused on the official trade of weapons.

Second affair: Patria

Janez Janša’s troubles over weaponry go beyond the early nineties, however. As Prime Minister from 2004 to 2008 he is also linked to the so-called Patria Affair. It has its roots back in 2006 when Slovenia decided to buy 135 light armour vehicles from company Rotis. A couple of months later, accusations about bribes started to emerge.

Finnish company Patria allegedly paid bribes to get the arms deal with Slovenia, or at least this is what a Finnish journalist claimed in a television show in which Janez Janša was connected to the bribes.

Some political analysts argue it was the controversy over the Patria affair which led Janša to lose in the 2008 elections.

Lately the story has gained new twists. In late February, the trial against former defence minister

Karl Erjavec, who signed the deal with Patria, and former chief commander of the Slovenian army Albin Gutman started. They are accused of operating in a reckless manner and therefore losing the state almost EUR 17 million. Erjavec is claiming that the trial is entirely political and is expecting full

acquittal. The end of the trial is expected in late March or early April.

Given the recent financial situation of the state – along with negative public sentiment about the entire arms deal – Prime Minister Borut Pahor considered rewriting the deal so that the state would not be obliged to buy the entire

arranged shipment of vehicles.

Now they have decided to pursue nullity of the deal with Patria. It is yet unclear whether they will succeed or whether this will become just one aspect of the neverending arms trading controversy to which Slovenia has grown so accustomed.

Japan earthquake

Chronology of Disaster Dancer Matej Sagmeister hails from Slovenia but, for the past twenty years, it is Japan that he has called home. Last month, as the country confronted a horrendous natural disaster, Sagmeister experienced a wide and fast-changing range of emotions – fear, pride, and ultimately an overwhelming love for both the land in which he was born and the land he now regards as his home.

Friday, 11 March 2011 A sunny morning. The thought of meeting my former dance teacher brings joy to my heart.

The deal is that I will pick Barbara up at the airport and bring her to Tokyo. I arrive on time and after some Slovenian hugging and kissing we rush back to Tokyo.

Lunch. Barbara, tired from the long flight, orders a beer. Dessert follows and with it a shake.

Our eyes meet, we smile and look around, but the ground starts shaking tremendously. I don’t panic – over the past twenty years I’ve come to know the tectonic plates in Japan – but as the shaking increases, I feel my knees go wobbly. We go outside but the ground is trembling really badly and it is hard to keep balance.

Even the bravest are scared and mumbling loudly.

After five minutes the earthquake thrust ceases. We both take another five minutes to calm down.

At half six, I drop Barbara off at the Shinjuku Hyatt Hotel. I say goodbye and head home... but never get there. Traffic is gridlocked, the train service shut, people are walking home.

I wind up back at my dance studio – finally arriving there at twenty past three in the morning.

I put together a makeshift bed out of the yoga pillows and console myself with the thought that my

wife has been able to contact my parents in Slovenia. At least they won’t worry too much.

Saturday 12 March 2011 After a cup of coffee I dash home to see how things are there.

In my computer room some stuff has fallen on the floor. In the bedroom the book shelf has collapsed.

No further damage.

At 4 pm I turn on the TV. Shock.

Shock at the earthquake. Shock at the resulting tsunami. Shock at the awful damage left in their wake.

Monday 14 March 2011 The non-stop news coverage of the problems at the Fukushima nuclear power plant means I don’t feel like going to work. My love for dancing is gone, replaced with worry about other stuff. I decide to stay at home and follow developments on the internet.

I wind up staying at home for the next few days.

Thursday 17 March 2011 I go to work for the first time since the disaster. Worries about radioactivity mean I am suspicious of everything I see. Sunbeams seem different, clouds are not the normal colour, I no longer like the wind, and I don’t even dare to think of rain. I’m irritated by the dust covering the car, everything I inhale I want to get out.

And yet people are still calm, normal; biking, jogging and

walking around with babies, couples embracing... despite the fact that the news on Tuesday said increased radiation levels have been detected in the air and to not go out. Are their heads catching other frequencies? I’m taken over by this virtue of resilience and I forget all about radioactivity.

Friday 18 March 2011 Wonderful sunshine, the birds are singing, I’m sitting by the open window and I’m calm. I haven’t read the news. I know I’m going to work today. It’s not that I have to – somehow I want to. Yesterday I conquered the fear of radiation. It can’t be seen nor heard, all seems normal, why sit at home? People need to be helped, good humour raised.

Everything is clear in my head now. I’m not leaving Japan. I was drawn here, to these people, into this culture. There are only two flags that really mean a lot to me today. The Yugoslavian one with the five pointed star and the plain Japanese one with all the power of the sun. The source of energy, love, warmth.

The fear from this disaster is no stronger than the will to build a better tomorrow, for the generation that’s coming, for youth, for all of us in this world. Love is stronger, love is all we’ve got, and all we can give.

And so we go on.

April 2011

8

Economy

FACTS AND FIGURES

source: STA, Slovenian Press Agency

Unemployment Highest in Over a Decade Unemployment in Slovenia has risen to its highest rate in over a decade.

Figures for January showed that there are now 115,132 people out of work – 12.3 percent of the total workforce and 12 percent of men and 12.7 of women. The Statistics Office says the dramatic increase is explained by the troubles in the construction industry. A number of firms in the sector have gone bankrupt in recent months.

Cautious growth in hiring is expected in all regions of Slovenia in the second quarter of the year, however. A survey by temping agency Manpower has shown that manufacturing and electricity, gas and water supply are likely to offer the most job opportunities. Of the employers who responded to the survey, most said they predicted growth in employment in the second quarter of the year.

As many as 77 percent of employers surveyed do

not plan any changes in staff numbers in the second quarter, which according to Manpower shows that the labour market in Slovenia is stable.

A decline in employment is expected, however, in the financial and business services sector, insurance and real estate.

On a more positive note, Eurostat has revealed that Slovenia had the highest employment rate for mothers in the EU in 2009. The employment rate for women aged 25 to 54 with one child in Slovenia was 84.8 percent and 89.1 percent for women with two children. The European Union averages stood at 71.3 percent and 69.2 percent respectively.

The average rate for women with three children shows an even bigger gap, with the EU average being only 54.7 percent, while the rate in Slovenia was as much as 79.3 percent.

The EU-wide employment rate for women without children was 75.8 percent while in Slovenia it stood at 78.5 percent.

Worrying figures (number of unemployed in ‘000) 120

110

100

90

Jan 10

May 10

Sep 10

Jan 11

Finance

Finance

Solar energy

Finance

Licenses for New Hypo Management

Central Bank’s Surplus Down 63%

Bisol to Supply French Giant GDF Suez

Slovenia Issues 15Year Bond

The Central Bank of Slovenia has issued licences to the new management of the Slovenian branch of Hypo Alpe Adria Bank. The licences were issued more than a month after the bank’s supervisors dismissed its entire management and appointed replacements. Alexander Picker was appointed as Chairman of the Management Board and Matej Falatov as board member on 9 February. The day before, seven bank and Hypo Leasing managers were dismissed and escorted from the bank in the company of Slovenian and Austrian security guards.

The Slovenia Times

The Central Bank of Slovenia saw its surplus fall by 63 percent in 2010.

The Bank concluded the year with a surplus of EUR 38.2m. Net interest revenues, its main source of income, stood at EUR 102.6m, down 12 percent on 2009. Realised revenues, valuation expenditures and provisions totalled EUR 61.5m in deficit.

They were EUR 17.2m in the red the year before. Realised revenues stood at EUR 31.2m (EUR 62.8m in 2009), valuation expenditure was at EUR 59.1m (EUR 15.2m in 2009), and provisions at EUR 33.6m (EUR 64.9m in 2009). Provisions and other revenues amounted to EUR 25.8m net in 2010, which compares to EUR 26.8m in 2009. The figures, aligned with accounting standards of the European System of Central Banks, were confirmed by the bank’s board of directors last month.

Slovenian photovoltaic modules producer Bisol has signed a deal to supply its units to the French energy company GDF Suez.The contract, reportedly worth millions, was signed during Prime Minister Borut Pahor’s official visit to Pars last month. “GDF Suez entering the pho-

tovoltaic market and the contract are of exceptional importance for the development of the photovoltaic industry in France,” representatives of Bisol told the press after the signing, which also featured Pahor and French Minister of Industry, Energy and the Digital Economy Eric Besson. Representatives of GDF Suez also stressed the importance of the contract for them and added they were happy with the quality of the product as well as the price.

Slovenia carried out a EUR 1.5bn 15-year benchmark bond issue last month after issuing a tenyear benchmark bond in the same amount in January. The coupon rate of the latest bond is 5.125 percent, the Finance Ministry said. The banks Credit Agricole, ING, Societe Generale and Unicredit banka Slovenija were selected to manage the issue, the ministry said in a press release. The issue was 130 basis points above the benchmark mid-swap rate, which means a margin of 188 basis points above the German state bond, the benchmark in the euro zone. Orders topping EUR 3.6bn were registered in less than two hours the order book was open. A total of 165 investors participated in the issue.

9 Home appliances

Mobile phones

Awards

Gorenje in for Major Overhaul

Smart Phones Sales Surge

Slovenian Companies Win Design Awards

Food and drinks

Ljubljanske Mlekarne’s Profits Plunge

Slovenia’s biggest dairy has announced an increase in net sales but a significant decrease in profits.

Ljubljanske Mlekarne says its net sales amounted to EUR 147.2m for 2010, slightly more than in the year before. Net profit meanwhile dropped from EUR 5.8m to EUR 1.8m. “2010 was the hardest year in the last four years, especially the second half, when the folding of many companies and layoffs additionally weakened the purchasing power,” chief executive Cvetana Rijavec says. She pointed to a serious shortage of milk – not only in Slovenia but across the EU – as the main problem.

Logistics

Motorway Ownership Transferred to DARS DARS, Slovenia’s state-owned motorway company, is to receive a EUR 2.3bn cash injection. The state will provide the capital by transferring ownership of the motorways to the company. The move, endorsed at last month’s general assembly of DARS, is in line with legislation that was implemented late last year. Under the new legislation, the company will fully assume financing of the construction and maintenance of motorways. To allow it to perform this role the state has granted DARS a 50 year concession to operate Slovenia’s motorways.

The move is part of a strategy to ensure that financing of motorways no longer leads to public debt.

Labour

Average Gross Pay Down The average rate of pay in Slovenia fell in January, new figures from the Statistics Office show. Average gross pay stood at EUR 1,496.35, which is 2.5 percent lower than in December 2010 but 3.3 percent more than in the same period last year. Average net monthly earnings were EUR 971.83 or 1.7 percent less than in December and 3.7 percent more than in January 2010. The highest level of gross pay was in the financial and insurance sector (EUR 2,157.67), while the lowest wages were paid out in administrative and support service activities (EUR 964.14).

Three of Slovenia’s best-known companies have had their products selected for the 2011 red dot design award. Home appliance group Gorenje, sports equipment maker Elan and telecommunications gear company Iskratel will receive their awards in July. The Slovenian companies were among a total of 1,700 from 60 countries that entered 4,433 products in this year’s red dot design competition. The award ceremony will take place on 4 July in Essen, the seat of Design Zentrum Nordrhein Westfalen.

Food and drinks

Finance

Majority Stake in Žito Up for Sale

NKBM Happy with 2010

A 50.51 stake in bread and pasta maker Žito is up for sale. The announcement came just before the company released its 2010 results which show the group generated a net profit of EUR 2.5m in 2010, a rise of 53.5 percent on the year before. The owners of the combined majority stake, which include the state-run KAD and SOD funds, published a call for non-binding bids for their stakes last month. KAD and SOD are selling a combined 27 percent stake while other sellers – financial firm KD Kapital and investment funds KD ID, KD Galileo and KD Rastko – are selling a combined 23.5 percent.Bidding on the stakes is open until 15 April.

Energy

ACER Launched in Ljubljana

The management and supervisors of Slovenia’s second largest bank have declared themselves happy with the bank’s performance in 2010. The team at NKBM say they are satisfied with the respective EUR 11.4m and EUR 9.4m net profit for the NKBM group and the core bank. Profit before provisions and impairments stood at EUR 101m, a seven percent increase on 2009.

Also rising were the bank’s total assets, by 1.4 percent to EUR 5.9bn.

NKBM, which is scheduled to be listed on Warsaw Stock Exchange in April, says it is confident it can expand its operations in the future.

NKBM Group profits dwindle net profits, in ‘000 000 EUR

Source: NKBM Group

Household appliances maker Gorenje, one of the biggest Slovenian firms, is to overhaul its corporate governance structure.

Chief executive Franjo Bobinac says that a secondary listing is being mulled over since the company cannot “held hostage by the Slovenian financial market”. He also says is not ruling out relocating abroad to escape Slovenia’s uncompetitive business environment. Gorenje returned to profit last year, posting a group net profit of EUR 20m for 2010 compared to a loss of EUR 12.2m the year before.

Data from Slovenia’s leading mobile operators suggests that sales of smart phones in the country are surging and will soon overtake those of feature phones. Mobitel says smart phones already account for nearly 50 percent of all phones sold, whereas at Simobil the share increased from 21 percent in the last quarter of 2009 to 40 percent in the final quarter of last year. The most popular operating system is Android following

by Nokia’s Symbian system.

20

15

10

2008

2009

2010

Law

Legislation to Tackle Payment Default Passed A new agency to ensure the work of national energy regulators is in line with EU regulations has been launched in Slovenia. The Agency for Cooperation of Energy Regulators (ACER) was launched at a high-profile ceremony in Ljubljana last month. European Energy Commissioner Guenther Oettinger hailed the creation of the agency as a historic milestone in Europe’s single energy market. ACER has been established as part of the EU’s third energy package. The package aims to encourage cooperation between national regulators and complement the work of national regulatory authorities at the European level.

The Slovenian Parliament has passed legislation designed to tackle the problem of payment defaults.

A bill to prevent late payments, and changes to the VAT act and the public procurement act dealing with defaults, were confirmed by the coalition last month. The government put forward the package in response to grievances voiced by small businesses, which have been hit hardest by growing defaults on payments with the onset of the economic and financial crisis. The bill on preventing late payments sets a general payment term of 60 days, 120 days in exceptional cases.

Public institutions will continue to be bound to paying invoices in 30 days.

April 2011

10 ECONOMY

Retail

Slovenian Xenophobia or Croatian Hostility?

After struggling beverage group Pivovarna Laško received a bid from Agrokor for its stake in grocer Mercator, the Croatian firm and the risks its bid entails have remained the centre of attention during March. Reports that Agrokor would mount a hostile takeover of Mercator triggered a wave of protectionism in Slovenia. Domestic suppliers in particular have been concerned that, since Agrokor owns some well-known food brands, they will lose shelf space in what is a key retailer for them. Politicians have also joined the wave of disapproval.

By Maja Dragović

Fear for Slovene produce

Dejan Židan, Minister for Agriculture, is one of those who fervently objects to the sale of Mercator to Agrokor. His argument is that Agrokor’s policy to Slovenian food producers – which together employ almost 10,000 people – has traditionally verged on hostile. In addition, he points out that

Agrokor is not a commercial but a production enterprise, and as such it is natural that it would want to get its own products to foreign markets, putting Slovenian products at a disadvantage.

Former Minister of the Economy Matej Lahovnik says that he publicly objected to Agrokor’s acquisition while he was still a minister.

Comparion between Agrokor and Mercator

Mercator’s shares on the rise

(in EUR ‘000 000)

(in EUR per share)

Lahovnik concedes that Pivovarna Laško must sell its shares but says Agrokor is a controversial, heavily indebted buyer that is issuing high-risk bonds and with this takeover it wants to rehabilitate itself. “It looks like a sick tiger wants to eat a healthy tiger so that he can become powerful again,” he says. He suggests that Source: LJSE

L

aško is selling its 23.24 percent stake in grocer Mercator in a bid to reduce a mountain of debt – which allegedly stands at EUR 400m – caused by a failed management buyout under the former board. But the potential sale to Agrokor has set off alarm bells in political and business circles across Slovenia.

200

Agrokor Assets

Mercator 3.426

2.554

793

782

Loans and finance lease

1.513

1.096

Obligations to suppliers

1.094

535

Inventories and receivables

983

492

Annual turnover

3.572

2.715

207

91

Own capital

Anual operating profit

175

150 Source: Finance and RTVSLO

The Slovenia Times

1 Mar 2011

24 Mar 2011

ECONOMY 11 Pivovarna Laško should be selling its stake through an international call for bids and that it would make sense if the “conditions also precluded the stake being bought

by Mercator’s direct rivals”.

A nd r ija n a St a r i n a Kosem, former economy ministry state s e c r e t a r y, ag r e e s w it h L ahovnik’s assessment. She believes Agrokor’s interest is an attempt to address its financial situation and warns that all Slovenian products would be removed from the shelves since the Croatian firm has a range of its own products that it would certainly want to push.

Joining the wave of scepticism has been daily Dnevnik. According to the paper, documents show that Agrokor is actually planning to buy the whole of Mercator, and then siphon the money from the leading Slovenian grocer to pay its debts.

Appeasing suspicion

Unsurprisingly, Agrokor has been going out of its way to convince Slovenians that it has good intentions with buying a stake in Mercator. The company’s board member Ivan Crnjac has emphasised that the sole aim is to achieve the success of Slovenian suppliers and establish a partnership with minority shareholders. Both companies represent a success story, he argues, and the purchase would open up many opportunities for the joint company – opportunities from which both Slovenia and Croatia would benefit. Addressing accusations that Agrokor is looking to sort out its financial problems via the acquisition, Crnjac has argued that Agrokor is a financially sound company.

The plot has recently thickened with reports that Croatian grocery chain Konzum, a part of the Agrokor group, has made an offer of commercial cooperation to Pivovarna Laško. Inevitably, analysts have suggested this is part of Agrokor’s effort to buy Laško’s stake in Mercator. To sweeten the deal, Agrokor is also reportedly ready to increase its bid for Mercator to EUR 230 per share – it’s currently EUR 206 – and show greater openness to Slovenian suppliers. A number of Slovenian products are already said to have found their way on Konzum’s shelves, while the offer to Laško would include a contract for the purchase of a large quantity of beer, according to the Finance newspaper.

The Croatian group seems keen to appease Slovenian politicians as well. Word has it that the company is prepared to offer the state a minority stake in Mercator as well as one seat on the company’s board.

Twist

Interest i ngly, Mercator expressed interest in acquiring Konzum – just a week after reports that Agrokor was planning a hostile takeover of the Slovenian firm. Mercator believes the tie-up would allow both groups to focus on their core activities: Mercator on retail and Agrokor on agriculture and food processing. At the same time, Mercator would strengthen its partnership with Agrokor’s manufacturing and food processing businesses.

Given Mercator’s precarious financial position, the move has very much been interpreted as a defensive one. But it adds another level of intrigue to the story.

And there have since been further twists. Last month, Robert Sega tendered his resignation as chief financial officer of Pivovarna Laško. The move is said to have been connected to his opposition of selling Laško’s stake in Mercator to Agrokor. Sega is said to have called for Laško to be given more time to decide on who the Mercator share should be sold to. Ironically, it may now have just that.

Shortly after Sega’s resignation, a consortium of banks – including state-owned NLB – approved a EUR 13m bridging loan to Pivovarna Laško.

Outcome

In any case, after such fierce national opposition to the sale, few believe it will ever happen.

Former Economy Minister Andrej Vizjak says it is perfectly legitimate for Slovenia not to allow the merger between the two giants.

Lahovnik agrees, stressing that it

In Croatia Agrokor is the market leader and Mercator the second largest retailer In Serbia, Mercator is second and Agrokor third In Bosnia-Herzegovina Agrokor is the market leader and Mercator third In Slovenia and Montenegro, Mercator is the market leader while Agrokor is not present with retail activities is questionable whether Agrokor would even get permission to buy Mercator, provided that the regulator does its job properly. Meanwhile, newspaper Finance does not think the latest attempt to sell retailer Mercator will succeed, or that the company will ever be sold. It does warn, however, that with each interruption of the sale procedure for any company Slovenia is seen as less of a reliable partner among foreign investors.

Amid all the speculation, Mercator has reported that its net profits surged 44 percent to EUR 30.4m in 2010. That makes it a highly attractive investment opportunity – now it just needs to find a highly attractive investor. For the moment, it appears that Agrokor isn’t it.

Konzum has allegedly made an offer of commercial cooperation to Pivovarna Laško.

To sweeten the deal, Agrokor is reportedly ready to increase its bid for Mercator to EUR 230 per share – it’s currently EUR 206 – and show greater openness to Slovenian suppliers.

A number of Slovenian products are already said to have found their way on Konzum’s shelves, while the offer to Laško would include a contract for the purchase of a large quantity of beer, according to the Finance newspaper.

April 2011

12 ECONOMY

Interview: Mohammed Ali Al Qaed

Everywhere and for Everyone At last month’s Bled Forum, a special award was presented to the chief executive of Bahrain’s eGovernment authority. Mohammed Ali Al Qaed was recognised for his efforts to reduce the digital gap and direct the community to the use of electronic services. The country now has a considerable number of eServices, making life easier for business and citizens. According to Ali Al Qaed, establishing such services has involved careful and hard work. But he says the outcome was worth the effort and that other countries would do well to learn from Bahrain’s experiences.

Mohammed Ali Al Qaed with Blaž Golob, Chairman and President of Bled Forum on Europe Association and Director of Centre for eGovernance Development (CeGD)

When was Bahrain’s eGovernment Authority established?

The eGovernment Authority (eGA) was founded in 2007. It was formed because of the need to bridge the gap between the technical and business requirements of the Kingdom of Bahrain.

What sorts of government services are now available electronically?

We currently have a total of 203 government eServices available.

These services vary in nature from information enquiry services to transactional services such as enquiries on flight details, booking appointments and paying electricity and water bills online.

How easy was it to develop these services? The eGA had to work with ministries and other government instances in order to establish the services – surely that was challenging?

Th is is t he quest ion I a m most commonly asked as most countries find it very difficult to integrate the system and to

work hand-in-hand with all the ministries.

At the eGA, we created working groups for each project with representatives from each of the ministries and involved them in the project from the very beginning.

The difficulty lies with the maturity levels and readiness of the ministries, as some are better than others. In order to shrink the gap in skills, we highlighted the challenges in each ministry in light of human resources, financial shortages and IT skills and tackled each of these categories to the best of our capabilities. We rewarded those ministries that overcame these challenges through the introduction of an Excellence Award which honours leading ministries and individuals in the field of ICT. Did you base your work on that in other countries or go about establishing everything from scratch?

During the early stages of the Authority, we aimed to learn from advanced countries such as

What has the eGA’s work meant for Bahrain as a country and for its citizens?

It has placed Bahrain on the international ICT map and having a good ICT infrastructure has made the country a hub for doing business. It has also speeded up operations for any business enquiries and made the lives of Bahraini citizens easier and better. This is all a reflection of our motto: “Towards a Better Life”.

The Bled Forum puts a lot of emphasis on improving e-government in the western Balkans. How can governments in that region be persuaded to move things forward in terms of improving e-services?

Any country needs to have a string leadership that has influence in all ministries, because eGovernment is an intra-government project and everyone needs to work together with a single ob-

jective. The leadership or governing body should also be flexible and not follow the bureaucratic structure as this will not allow work to progress. The dynamism of both people and ideology will allow for a successful programme in a well integrated environment; a programme for all.

I would also recommend the introduction of the “Capacity Building” project. This specialised training and development programme is offered to citizens and government employees. It bridges the fundamental skills gap between ministries and educates citizens on basic internet activities.

Last but not least, without a well structured awareness campaign and a well-thought-out branding of services none of the success will be measured nor acclaimed.

We at the eGovernment Authority aim to reach out of all citizens and to diversity our services to attract everyone. We use various media to do this – from our national portal to Facebook, YouTube, blogs and the like. We are everywhere and for everyone, this is what makes us who we are today.

Photo: Peter Irman

Photo: Peter Irman

Malaysia, Singapore and the United Kingdom. We arranged study visits and learned from their best practices which were then integrated and made better suited to our needs within Bahrain.

ECONOMY 13

MIPIM 2011

Logistic Force At the MIPIM property show in Cannes this year, the Slovenian strategy was clear – making the most of the country’s excellent geostrategic position.

By Mateja Novak

T

he benefits of Slovenia’s geographical position are historical and numerous. The country’s location means it has been the crossroads of land routes between both the East and the West and the North and the South for centuries. It’s situated on a natural passage leading from central Europe to the Mediterranean and toward the East. And with its port of Luka Koper, the country offers the shortest connection to the Mediterranean, the Middle East and the countries in the Far East.

Land connections are strong too: this is a country that borders Italy on the west, Croatia on the south and east, Hungary on the northeast, and Austria on the north.

Moreover, Slovenia and its capital Ljubljana lie at the crossroads of two major trans-European corridors, namely corridor V. TEN-T (east-west direction) and corridor X. TEN-T (north-south direction).

If all that weren’t enough, Slovenia is also at the crossroads of four European macro regions: the Al-

pine region, the Adriatic, Central Europe, and South East Europe.

As such, the country is of interest to partners in Italy, Austria, Hungary and Croatia.

Joint appearance

With so many geostrategic benefits, it is little wonder that Slovenia proved of significant interest to many of the infrastructure and logistics decision-makers attending MIPIM this year. The country made sure that it had important individuals on hand at the event – the world’s largest real estate conference – to persuade interested parties of the virtues of Slovenia.

Distinguished guests included the minister for transport Dr Patrick Vlačič; Ljubljana’s mayor Zoran Janković; Port of Koper chief executive Dr Gregor Veselko; Slovenian Railways chief executive Goran Brankovič; and Ljubljana airport’s president of the board Zmago Skobir.

Much of the focus was on Slovenia’s logistics potential – jointly

presented, for the first time, by the Public Agency of the Republic of Slovenia for Entrepreneurship and Foreign Investments (JAPTI) and the Municipality of Ljubljana.

There is no shortage of investment opportunities in this field: the new rail line between Koper and Divača; third pier at Port of Koper; and Aeropolis Ljubljana project next to the capital’s airport are just some that caught the attention of the exhibition’s participants.

The stand itself also quickly captured the attention of those at the event. Its cleverly-picked bright orange colour scheme, representing traffic, drew much interest. The storyline, masterfully designed by Ljubljana’s vice-mayor and architect Professor Janez Koželj, meant you could walk along Slovenia’s strategic locations

through the stand and you could pick your projects either along corridor X or corridor V.

First hand information

The Slovenia Times was also there and organised a roundtable discussion which enabled attendees to find out about upcoming projects in more detail from those in the know. It was also an opportunity to learn about strategic plans for the country. And once the roundtable wrapped up participants were able to talk further to the transport minister and others, while sipping fine Slovenian wine. All in all, it was another very successful MIPIM for Slovenia – a small country, perhaps, but one whose geostrategic position will always be strong.

Proprio 2011

Quality Remains 75 exhibitors from Slovenia and the region gathered in Ljubljana last month for the second Proprio international real estate fair.

T

he event opened with a round table discussion organised by The Slovenia Times. Entitled Response of Slovenian Real Estate Investors to Changed Market Conditions, the discussion panellists included some of the major investors and decision makers in Slovenia: Miran Gajšek, chief planner at the Municipality of Ljubljana; Jože Marmal, chief executive of BTC; Mitja Majnik, chief executive of IMOS; Miha Jarc, chief executive of Mijaks; and Zoran Madon, chief executive of Metropolis.

They discussed four projects that have successfully bypassed the crisis in the housing market.

Marmal said that in difficult times it is particularly necessary to have

good planning and strategy, and for success it is also important to have long-term financial resources. He also said that builders must also adapt to current market conditions, citing as an example the construction of BTC’s skyscraper Crystal Palace where builders lowered their prices by 30 percent.

According to Gajšek, the crisis has had no impact on the newly adopted spatial plan of Ljubljana. He said, however, that for the situation in the real estate sector to improve it was crucial to have good planning, good location and a combination of publicprivate partnerships, such as the Šmartinska project.

Majnik explained that quality build apartments in good

Big names: Miran Gajšek, chief planner at the Municipality of Ljubljana; Jože Marmal, chief executive of BTC; Mitja Majnik, chief executive of IMOS; Miha Jarc, chief executive of Mijaks; and Zoran Madon, chief executive of Metropolis

locations have not been too affected by the crisis. He expects that demand for apartments and business premises in Tobačna City, being developed by IMOS, will increase as construction progresses.

Similarly, Metropolis is witnessing a big demand for apartments and business premises in its Situla development, located near bus and train stations in Ljubljana.

Mijaks is also successfully deal-

ing with the crisis, according to Jarc. The company recently started selling its luxury homes in Ljubljana’s Murgle and is not short of potential buyers. He added that in order to be successful in real estate, it is important to adapt to the market and follow market developments. He pointed out that the crisis also has a lot of positive aspects since it has separated quality companies and projects from the rest.

April 2011

14 ECONOMY

Pension reform

Not Retired Yet On March 24 2010, Slovenia’s Labour, Family and Social Affairs Minister presented proposals to reform the country’s pension system. Twelve months later – and after tweaks, full scale revisions, and completely new drafts – the reforms have still not passed.

Instead, they have fuelled a year-long quarrel between the trade unions and the government; a debate with passionate and forceful arguments on both sides. Now the matter is to be put to the public in a referendum.

Is the issue of pension reform in Slovenia about to be settled once and for all?

By Claire Read

S

lovenian Prime Minister Borut Pahor knew that pension reform was never going to be an easy sell. Last year – after Labour, Family and Social Affairs Minister Ivan Svetlik presented the government’s plans for reform – Pahor conceded that pushing for the changes was “political suicide”. But, he added solemnly, “we are going ahead because there’s no alternative”.

Pahor might have anticipated a tough fight but it is unclear

whether he was also expecting a lengthy one. That’s what he has got, though. Twelve months after Svetlik announced plans for reform, they still have not been implemented.

It is not for wont of trying.

In the past twelve months, the Prime Minister and Svetlik have dedicated significant time and effort to emphasising why they believe reform is crucial. They cite spiralling public debt; point

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Waiting for an outcome: it looks likely pension reform’s destiny will be decided in a referendum

to the aging society; argue that without a change the pension system will not be financially sustainable past 2020; press the point that the outdated current arrangement is harming Sloven ia’s compet it iveness. They have made revisions to their proposals in the hope of appeasing those who are opposed to change – while the original plan was to raise the retirement age to 65 for both men and women the proposal now is to allow men to retire at 60 so long as they have 43 years of service and women at 58 with 41 years of service.

Heavyweight support

And the government’s case has heavyweight backing. The European Commission has warned that pension expenditure is so

high as to place Slovenia’s entire public finances at risk. The head of the International Monetary Fund has argued that without pension reform Slovenia’s economic growth will slow due to growing government expenditure and the increased costs of borrowing. The Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) has said that making people work longer is the only way governments can keep pension systems in existence without cutting other benefits.

The problem for Pahor and his ministers is that the case against reform is also being made strongly. When Svetlik first announced his plans, the head of the country’s biggest trade union confederation vowed to take the matter to a referendum, arguing that the proMale

Standard retirement across EU

Female Source: www.msp.gov.mt

65

The Slovenia Times

www.kliping.si

United Kingdom

Sweden

Finland

Portugal

Austria

The Netherlands

Luxembourg

Italy

Ireland

France

Spain

Greece

Germany

0

Belgium

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ECONOMY 15 ed in this goal. In May, the matter will be put to the public.

The government had been hoping it wouldn’t come to that. They took the matter to the Constitutional Court, arguing that if the vote rejected the government’s reform the state would become incapable of providing pensions – something which is guaranteed in the constitution. But the court unanimously rejected the argument, leaving Pahor and his colleagues wondering how to convince the public that this unpopular change is necessary.

A tough task

posals “provably hurt the majority of the Slovenian working class”.

After a year of campaigning – and a month of collecting signatures – Dušan Semolič has now succeed-

“We face the extremely difficult task of convincing citizens who are not yet convinced that the new pension and disability insurance bill is necessary and useful, and of highlighting the dangers of the existing system,” Svetlik.

The opinion polls suggest it will indeed be an uphill battle. Last month, 56 percent of those questioned by daily free newspaper Žurnal24 said they plan to vote no on the referendum. Only 31.1 percent said they would back the reform.

A paradox

However, there was one figure which may give the government

cause for cautious optimism: 61.2 percent of those surveyed believe that Slovenia does need pension reform. The problem, it seems, is not with the principle of the proposals but with the content of them.

The government might also take comfort in the opinions of those who brought about the referendum in the first place – the Constitutional Court judges. When giving his opinion on the legality of the vote, Constitutional Court President Ernest Petrič noted that: “The current social, economic and financial system make me believe that reforms, including of the pension system, are necessary and urgent.” The sentiment was echoed by fellow judge Etelka KorpičHorvat: “With respect to demographic trends it is only logical to conclude... that if we live longer, we must also work longer.”

Both the government and the trade unions are already preparing to work longer on the debate over pension reform. With an eye on the referendum, they are bringing their arguments to the public.

The outcome of their campaigns of course won’t be known until May, but whichever way the vote goes it is tough to imagine it bringing an end to the matter. This debate is far from retiring.

When Svetlik first announced his plans, the head of the country’s biggest trade union confederation vowed to take the matter to a referendum, arguing that the proposals “provably hurt the majority of the Slovenian working class”. After a year of campaigning – and a month of collecting signatures – Dušan Semolič has now succeeded in this goal.

REAL VIENNA – where

the real estate industry meets

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WWW.REALVIENNA.COM April 2011

16 FOREIGN DIRECT INVESTMENT

NEWS IN BRIEF

source: STA, Slovenian Press Agency

Sports equipment

JAPTI

International markets

International trade

PwC to Help Find New Owner for Elan

Boosting Ties via Portal

Joining Forces for Deals in Russia

Strengthening Ties

The Slovenian Public Agency for Entrepreneurship and Foreign Investments (JAPTI) has signed a cooperation agreement with the Russian-Balkans information agency RusBalkanInform. RusBalkanInform manages the website www.tradeportal.si and, following the deal, a special section for Slovenia has been launched featuring daily news on the Slovenian economy. Slovenian companies are now being invited to register on the site to promote themselves and their products, or to seek partners. The multi-language web portal currently connects over 2.4m companies in 12 countries, offering new sales channels, making it easier to search for potential partners, and reducing advertising costs.

Business representatives have joined together to form a new SlovenianRussian business council. The new body, which brings together companies already doing business in Russia and those still seeking to enter its market, was created just hours before a visit to Slovenia by Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin. The council will be headed by Janez Škrabec, boss of engineering company Riko which has been doing business in Russia for over 20 years. Aleš Cantarutti, who heads the competitiveness department at the Chamber of Commerce and Industry (GZS), has been appointed secretary general. A similar council is expected to be set up in Russia this month, and the two councils are to cooperate.

Maritime industry

Splošna Plovba Increased Profit in 2010 One of Slovenia’s largest maritime shipping groups has reported a significant increase in revenues. Splošna plovba, which is in majority ownership of German shipowner Peter Doehle, says it generated EUR 168.9m in revenues last year, which is 25 percent more than in 2009. The group’s net profit was up by EUR 11m to EUR 35.3m, according to unaudited results that the firm published in February.

International trade

Manufacturing

Retail

China as a business opportunity

Arcont Reports Profit

Revenues Up for Spar Slovenija

The Confucius Institute at the University of Ljubljana’s economics faculty is to organise an educational workshop to help explore business opportunities in China. The workshop is intended for businesspeople and owners of small and medium sized enterprises who are looking to expand their business internationally. It will offer practical and professional knowledge from a variety of speakers, providing participants with inside knowledge on business practices in China. The workshop consists of four modules and it will take place from 30 March to 10 May (four hours per week) at the Confucius Institute in Ljubljana.

Arcont has posted a 17 percent increase in sales. The mobile containers maker made EUR 42.8m of sales in 2010. Net profit stood at EUR 1m, a four-fold increase over the year before. The company says it sold over 10,000 mobile containers last year and is already ramping up production to meet growing demand in Western Europe. The firm, which currently has 551 employees, plans to create 124 new jobs this year.

Its strategy calls for an increase in export by one percent to 98 percent and penetration of new markets such as Haiti and Nigeria. Arcont is the largest manufacturer of mobile containers in Europe. Its sole owner is the Vienna-based Containex.

Spar Slovenija, part of Dutch-based grocery chain Spar, has announced a growth in revenues. The firm says it generated EUR 695m in sales revenues last year, an increase of 2.3 percent over 2009. General manager Igor Mervič reports that the increase in sales means Spar managed to increase its market share in 2010 despite the grocery market in Slovenia being flat. While refusing to provide details of its profit for 2010, Mervič says profitability was below the European average. Spar Slovenija currently operates 82 shops in Slovenia and has 4,224 staff. With around 20 percent of the Slovenian market, it is the secondlargest retailer in the country.

JAPTI (Public Agency for Entrepreneurship and Foreign Investment) is a business facilitator providing free information and advising services for foreign investors: • • • •

Information on business opportunities, legislation, taxes and incentive Information on industrial sites and local suppliers Links with industry and local authorities Arranging visiting programmes to the most suitable locations The Slovenia Times

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Slovenian and Czech business executives have agreed to strengthen business ties between the two countries. The commitment was made at a meeting in Prague last month, part of President Danilo Türk’s visit to the Czech Republic. Czech Minister of Industry and Trade Martin Kocourek says cooperation will be particularly increased in the car industry but could be boosted in many other areas as well, including energy, transport, biotechnology and IT. Slovenian economy minister Darja Radić, meanwhile, sees the greatest opportunities for cooperation in manufacturing, especially in the car, tool and mechanical industries.

Trade

January Exports and Imports Up January saw both exports and imports grow in Slovenia, new data from the National Statistics Office shows. Exports were up 24.9 percent year-on-year, with imports 25 percent higher than in January 2010. The export-import ratio stood at 95.8 percent, the trade gap narrowing from EUR 226.7m in January to EUR 67.5m. Export amounted to EUR 1.52bn, while imports reached EUR 1.59bn.

Import and export (in EUR ‘000)

Source: SURS

The Ljubljana office of PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) has been chosen as the financial adviser in the privatisation of Elan.

The decision was taken last month by a commission comprising representatives from the supervisory board, management and owners of Slovenia’s sports good manufacturer. PWC will help the state restructuring firm PDP find ways of reducing its existing 66 percent stake in Elan. The potential investor would enter Elan by means of a capital injection and so PDP will keep a minor share in the company for a while longer. Elan chairman Robert Ferko is anticipating an injection of EUR 10m, which Elan would invest in expansion, new projects, and development of new products.

Slovenia Czech trade (in EUR ‘000) 50

Source: SURS

FDI

1800 Import

1600 Export

1400 1200 1000

D 08

D 09

D 10

Division for FDI Verovškova 60 1000 Ljubljana Slovenia tel.: +386 1 5891 870 fax: +386 1 5891 877 e-mail: fdi@japti.si www.investslovenia.org

FOREIGN DIRECT INVESTMENT 17

Interview: Christof Droste

An Important Association The managing director of one of Slovenia’s most successful automobile companies is taking on a new role.

Christof Droste, head of car lighting manufacturer Hella Saturnus, has become president of the foreign managers section within the Managers Association of Slovenia. In his new role he hopes to help Slovenia benefit from the knowledge of its foreign business bosses, as well as to support local managers.

Why have you decided to put yourself forward for the role of president of the foreign managers section of the Managers Association of Slovenia?

I have always felt social responsibility, not only for the company I work for but also for the business environment in general. I want to support bringing people together to push Slovenia forward, be it in the context of foreign direct investment (FDI) or domestic companies.

What are your priorities in your new role as president of the foreign section?

Primarily to get more members for the section - we currently have 35 members. We have around 300 foreign managers in Slovenia and so that means there’s a lot of potential for our organisation.

I also want to look at sources of information. In my opinion one of the biggest challenges facing foreign managers is getting information. Slovenian is a difficult language and since a lot of foreign managers come from Western countries they find it hard to learn. That means they need information channels beyond the domestic, Slovene-language media. Some exist – The Slovenia Times, for instance – but there need to be more frequent updates of information.

In the longer run, I would like the foreign sector to be less isolated; for it to be brought together with local managers.

How does your Association differ from other groups such as the Chambers of Commerce?

The Managers Association of Slovenia is different from all other such organisations – they’re focused either on nationality, sector, or branch. Our Association is like an umbrella; it brings together all nationalities, businesses. I believe it’s important to have this umbrella but of course that doesn’t mean that other associations are not important.

You originally come from Germany. What is your experience of being a foreign manager in Slovenia? Were there significant cultural differences?

For the first few years I was in Slovenia I didn’t identify many cultural differences. Everything was so similar to Germany and so I was not focused on these issues. But in 2006 I was in China for one year and the differences were big. All of a sudden I started to understand why certain things in Slovenia happened in the way they did – it was down to cultural differences. That helped me a lot and when I came back to Slovenia I adjusted my thinking to be more sensitive to this and to be more careful.

Do foreign managers have a role to play in helping the Slovenian economy recover from the economic downturn?

Yes. It’s our task to help Slovenia come out of crisis. Foreign manages as well as local ones are taking proactive steps to bolster Slovenia’s economy.

Some businesses in Slovenia have been notoriously badly managed, with corruption scandals far from uncommon. Is there anything you can do as foreign managers to

change such bad practices?

From my point of view the Managers Association of Slovenia is the ideal organisation to make a difference in this sense. The Association has acted in this area in the past and continues to do so now.

What is happening at the moment should perhaps motivate us even more to help make changes. We 2011_M_Bank_SLOtimes_101x70mm_S_FINAL_TISK_popr.pdf can define values and be an example to look up to.

Complementary to e-bank

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3/16/11

3:25 PM

Bank in my pocket.

Simple Safe Mobile

April 2011

18 FOREIGN DIRECT INVESTMENT

Good practice example

Prudence is a Virtue Boxmark Leather, owned by Swiss company Unicut AG, has hit the headlines in recent months for all the right reasons. First off, the firm has taken over some of the production and employees from the bankrupt Prevent Global. In addition, this year it will benefit from extensive investment of around EUR 10m.

Photo: Mediaspeed

By Mateja Novak

Boxmark Leather provides car seat upholstery for luxury brands such as Ferrari and Bugatti

B

oxmark Leather currently employs 1,150 people but that number is set to grow.

Next year the company will open a new manufacturing and innovation centre on 20,000 square metres of land, creating jobs for another 50 people. The investment is worth nearly EUR 13m and is confirmation that the foreign-owned company has long-term plans in Slovenia. Its lasting commitment to the plant has been substantiated with last year’s commitment to investing an additional EUR 2.5m in the facility.

Back in the black

Boxmark Leather’s fortunes very much depend on market trends in the automotive industry since the factory in Kidričevo produces leather upholstery for car seats. Clients include Audi, Mercedes and Volkswagen, as well as luxury brands Ferrari, Lamborghini and Bugatti.

The company made a loss in 2008 due to a drop in orders, with revenues falling by more than EUR 45m to EUR 102.3m. However, it was back in the black in 2009 and is expected to end the 2010 financial year with a turnover of around EUR 110m. Marjan Trobiš, president of the board of Unicut and Boxmark’s chief executive, estimates that with an increased production in the two new facilities, the company’s profits will increase further.

Trobiš says the company currently has more orders than capacity, hence the interest in extra production capacities.

The Slovenia Times

“In 2009, despite recession, we have operated with a positive zero,” Trobiš says. “With the reorganisation of our business we did two steps at a time as the innovative centre will provide for a better balance in our financial system.”

Smart acquisition

The new facility is not the only smart move Boxmark has made in recent months. At the end of 2010, the company took over part of the production of bankrupt car-seat cover maker Prevent Global, having been the best of three bidders for the troubled company. The project of acquiring Prevent was valued at around EUR 12-15m but Boxmark could qualify for state subsidies as a result of the acquisition.

“We expect, above all, subsidies for the purchase of the company’s property”, says Trobiš. “These grants usually amount to 30 percent, and we hope that we will be able to acquire that.”

Early signs are promising. Darja Radić, the minister of the economy, has promised subsidies for jobs alongside co-financing the investment in Prevent. Trobiš is unsure whether the government is in a position to meet both promises but says he would be happy with either one of them.

Some criticisms

That is not to say he is completely uncritical of the government.

He feels its strategy to help the country out of the financial crisis has been somewhat lacking.

“I think we’ve recovered from the crisis by ourselves,” he says, “and the government has definitely done too little. We haven’t felt the government’s actions in our company.”

Trobiš also suggests the government should consider lowering taxes for the lower wage bracket: “This would allow 40 percent of the population to arrive at a 10 percent higher salary and would help overcome the crisis,” he argues.

Trobiš’ reflections are based on considerable experience of conducting business not just in Slovenia but also in Germany, Croatia

and Bosnia. And while he may not be completely happy with the government’s action, he does say that Slovenia is a good land in which to base a business.

“I can say that Slovenia does not have such a bad economic environment,” he says. “But the government needs to control costs better. If I managed certain costs at our company as the government manages its costs, Boxmark would not be able to go into big investments, such as the one in Prevent.”

“Otherwise, in terms of operating conditions, Slovenia is at the European level,” says Trobiš.

20 DIPLOMATIC SOCIETY

EMBASSY DIARIES US embassy

American Chamber of Commerce

Spanish embassy

A Romantic Concert

Open to Foreign Investment

New Cultural Webpage

British embassy

A Farewell Reception Lt Col Derek Gibson has left Slovenia after three and a half years as Great Britain’s Defence Attaché for Austria, Slovenia, Switzerland and Slovakia. British ambassador Andrew Page hosted a farewell reception at his residence which was attended by ambassadors, the Slovenian chief of defence, defence attachés, work contacts and civilian business contacts. The reception was followed by a formal handover of duties to Lt Col Ian Stafford at the Ministry of Defence.

US embassy

A Tasty Get-Together Ljubljana’s English-speaking Catholic community had a chance to enjoy culinary delicacies from around the world last month. US ambassador to Slovenia Joseph A. Mussomeli organised a get-together at which guests were treated to authentic sushi and numerous tasty dishes like Spanish tortillas, American cupcakes, Portuguese salada de polvo, French quiche, home-made cheese Fiore Sardo and Belgian chocolate mousse.

The Slovenia Times

Journalists and representatives of Slovenian cultural institutions were last month treated to Spanish delicacies such as paella, prosciutto and Rioja red wine during a get together at the Spanish embassy.

Ambassador Anunciada Fernández de Córdova organised the gathering to thank attendees for their collaboration with the embassy and to formally launch the embassy’s new website. The site, available in both Spanish and Slovene, presents information about current cultural activities, public tenders for various competitions and scholarships, education in Spain and many interesting links to Spanish cultural institutions.

US embassy

German embassy

Honouring the Soldier Skiers

Concert of Young Talents

A race is to be held on the slopes of Mount Mangart to honour soldiers from the Second World War, the US ambassador to Slovenia Joseph A. Mussomeli has announced.

The US 10th Mountain Division of solders were trained in the highest standards of mountain warfare and tasked with monitoring the area between Italy and Yugoslavia. Joseph A. Mussomeli officially announced the Mt. Mangart 10th Mountain Division Memorial Ski Race in Bovec last month. This year’s inaugural race will take place on 4 June and a team from the US Embassy will be competing.

After having played on some of the world’s most famous stages the Junge Deutsche Philharmonie, one of the most interesting and sought after ensembles in Germany, came to Ljubljana in March. The concert, organised by the German embassy, took place in the Museum of Contemporary History. Among the audience were representatives from the Slovenian government as well as representatives of German companies operating in Slovenia. During this year’s spring tour the young musicians have already been to Berlin, Hamburg, Cologne, Meran, and Bolzano amongst many other cities.

Irish embassy

Popular Event The Irish embassy has marked that nation’s holiday with a celebratory event at the Ljubljana residence of Ambassador Tom Brady. The St Patrick’s Day event on 17 March attracted around 200 guests from the worlds of diplomacy, business, culture, politics as well as many Irish people who currently live in Slovenia.

Photo: FOLK etc

The first in a series of cultural events at the US ambassador’s residence took place last month.

Legendary musician Zoran Predin played tender acoustic tunes to the assembled audience of business people, musicians, and cultural representatives. Ambassador Joseph A. Mussomeli hopes this and future planned events will help showcase the exceptional talents of Slovenia.

Slovenia is open to foreign investment but currently has no room to make its business environment more appealing to investors by cutting taxes, Finance Minister Franc Križanič told guests at last month’s American Chamber of Commerce breakfast event.

The Minister explained that the government’s current priority has to be to stabilise public finance. He also used his speech to give an overview of the ways in which the government is working to restart growth, and detailed measures being taken to fix the financial systems following the global credit crunch. Meanwhile, AmCham president Tomaž Lovše said he was disappointed with the volume of US investments in Slovenia, but expressed hope the situation would improve in the near future.

DIPLOMATIC SOCIETY 21 Japanese embassy

US embassy

Japanese Handicrafts at National Museum

Sweet Swing

Japanese ambassador Toshimitsu Ishigure has attended the opening of an exhibition of Japanese handicrafts at the National Museum. The display “Japanese Handicrafts – Modernity Born Out of Tradition” features handcrafted objects made of traditional materials with traditional techniques from all over Japan. The ambassador noted that hand-crafted wooden objects are something Slovenia and Japan have in common. In his opinion the exhibition is an opportunity for the deepening of understanding between the two countries. The show, mounted thanks to cooperation with between the Japanese Embassy and the Japan Foundation, will be open until 3 May.

The US embassy last month supported the five international swing festival SweetSwing 2011. The festival, held in Festivalna dvorana in Ljubljana, offered workshops with the world’s top dance instructors and spectacular parties with live music. The main event was Saturday’s gala party with live performances and dancing to the music of the Rhythm Junkies.

German Chamber of Commerce

A Business Workshop British Chamber of Commerce

Words of Wisdom

Those interested in doing business in Germany have benefitted from a one-day workshop organised by the German Chamber of Commerce. “How to enter the German market” saw the Chamber, together with its partners GTaI and JAPTI, present the benefits of doing business in the European powerhouse. Information was given about the support available and current opportunities as well as specific details of the legal framework, good practices of market penetration, and finding the right German business partners.

US embassy

US embassy

The 10th Cisco Expo

Recalling War Events in Dolenjska

The 10th Jubilee Cisco Expo conference has taken place in Portorož.

The event, which was opened by US ambassador Joseph A. Mussomeli, featured more than 40 presentations and lectures with information communication technology experts speaking on the newest global trends in the field. Mussomeli stressed Cisco’s long knowledge-exchanging tradition, arguing that this approach has had positive effects on the Slovenian economy and on bilateral relations between the two countries. This year, Cisco plans to establish three new academies in Slovenia.

The British Chamber of Commerce has organised a business lunch with Dr Andrej Vizjak, an internationally recognised consultant on strategic business management. Vizjak talked about the formula of success of different businesses. As examples, he highlighted the insurance company, Zavarovalnica, as a local specialist; Gorenje, the home appliance maker, as a regional hero; and Microsoft as an international winner, whose innovations have global profile, including the current cloud computing services. The meeting proved popular and was attended by representatives of both Slovenian companies and foreign companies in Slovenia including Andrej Mertelj, chief executive of DataLab, Biljana Weber, Managing Director of Microsoft Slovenia, and Marko Mlakar, chief executive of Adria Amrop.

The US ambassador Joseph A. Mussomeli has joined soldiers from the Colorado Army National Guard and the Slovene Armed Forces’ in a trip to the Dolenjska region.

The journey was to remember the Second World War and the Slovene Independence War. Around 30 representatives travelled around Dolenjska to meet the mayors and visit the wine producing areas and war memorials. The event was the last one before the deployment of the Slovene and American soldiers to Afghanistan.

April 2011

22 Innovation SPECIAL

Katabrank bikes

When Art Meets Innovation A sculptor, an art restorer, a radio presenter, an actor, a welder, an occasional musician. It is fair to say that Jaka Mihelič is a man of many talents.

Lately he has turned his attention to designing bikes. And while it may not be easy to sum up his profession it’s simple to sum up his long term ambition: to achieve worldwide sales for these two wheeled beauties.

By Simon Demšar

Starting slowly

He st a r ted t he Kat abra n k project eight years ago in his parents’ garage before moving to larger premises at Metelkova cultural centre. “I started slowly, first learning the ropes of welding and design and one thing led to another,” says the artist. Now he is a respected welder in the neighbourhood and most gates at Metelkova are his work.

As for the bicycles, Mi helič has received interest from a diverse range of businesses and peop l e . Fo u r t ricycles were commissioned

by Kino Dvor and Kino Šiška cinemas, and Azil and Krtina bookshops, for promotional purposes. They are special because they have two front wheels and one rear wheel, not the other way round, which was made for both artistic and practical reasons.

They incorporate a huge box at the front which can be used as an advertising board and as a cart.

“They are parked at the respective institutions and in warm weather they are reportedly ridden around Ljubljana,” says Mihelič. “At least I have been told so,” he continues. “I cannot see them because I spend all my time behind the closed door of my workshop.” It is difficult to tell whether he is joking or not.

Photo: Aljoša Rebolj

W

ith Katabrank bicycles it is difficult to draw a line between art, technology and innovation, although the idea behind the bikes is »Drive your sculpture«. Rather than a conventional work of art, Jaka Mihelič has created an object of more than just visual value. This is a sculpture that will take you places – literally.

Technically, the bikes are made of ordinary iron but they nevertheless incorporate some clever ideas, such as aluminium details, sevencentimetre tyres and 144 spokes, compared to 36 on a conventional mountain bike. Not surprisingly, they are tailor made and no two bikes are the same.

“They are made to the specifications of each user,” explains Mihelič. »These bikes are not made to be fast; instead they are intended for the enjoyment of their users.”

Inspiration from everywhere

His way of getting ideas is unique. “I can get an idea during a walk in the park, listening to music, watching a film... There is a Spiderman bike, for example, which I wanted to ride to the premiere of the Spiderman film, but it wasn’t finished in time,” explains Mihelič, who typically spends around 200 hours for a bike, from the concept to realisation. The Spiderman is the only privately owned bike so far.

He emphasises that the project is still ongoing. There are about 20 bikes, including the initial experiments, and only a few are ready to ride. When the fleet is complete they will be put on display.

Riding all over the world

Buying one will set you back between EUR 2,500 and 3,000.

And their market? “All over the world,” Mihelič says, but adds that with the absence of leisure cycling culture in Slovenia it is difficult to count on the domestic market. He reports that when he and his friends with their vintage bicycles come together for The Slovenia Times

one of their »Low and Slow« rides around Ljubljana in summer, they are looked upon with amusement.

“Once we took an eight-hour ride but covered only a dozen kilometres around Ljubljana,” says Mihelič.

Mihelič is not worried, however, about the market for his product reasoning that with billions of people in the world he is bound to find enough enthusiasts for these very special bikes. He says he has already received some positive response via his blog www.katabrank.blogspot.com.

“I don’t know when and where but with so many things called art nowadays I believe that a place for my bikes will be found, too.”

If anybody would like to participate in “Low and Slow” rides around Ljubljana, just type in Low’n’Slow Ljubljana in your Facebook browser to become a member of the group.

23

Photo: Revoz

AUTOMOTIVE SPECIAL

Stalled success?

In 2010, there was one Slovenian sector which notably bucked the economic downward trend: the automotive industry. Many of the 85-odd companies in the field posted near-record results – four even found themselves in Delo’s top twenty performing companies for the year. The success was built in large part on exports and, more specifically, on European schemes which offered financial incentives to those buying new cars. With those programmes now at an end, can the sector sustain its success?

By Claire Read

S

G Automotive is a company with big plans. Last year, the car electronics specialist secured EUR 42m in sales. This year, however, the goal is to go even higher. This Slovenske Konjicebased company is aiming to secure EUR 67m of sales in 2011 and,

says majority owner and director Robert Grah, “we don’t intend to stop there.” Talk is of expansion; of diversifying more and more into LED street lamps; of seeking out every available public tender for street lighting in Slovenia.

Grah’s confidence is character-

istic of the mood in much of the Slovenian automobile industry at present. Worldwide, this was an industry which was strongly challenged by the economic downturn. But it was a challenge that the Slovenian industry largely met.

Foreign friends

Some, like SG Automotive, survived by diversifying. Other firms, like headlight manufacturer Hella Saturnus, focused on keeping fixed costs low – an approach which worked; the company recorded a profit almost four times April 2011

24 AUTOMOTIVE SPECIAL “On average, Slovenia’s automotive companies invest five percent of their turnover in development and 12 percent in new technologies”

The Slovenia Times

higher than expected last year.

Above all, the industry was helped by its foreign focus. Responsible for 21 percent of the total goods exported by Slovenia, the automotive industry is one of the most export-orientated industries of the Slovenian economy. According to Sonja Primožič, spokesperson at the Institute of Macroeconomic Analyses and Development, this explains in large part the industry’s buoyancy during the economic downturn.

As consumers tightened their belts, many European nations introduced financial incentives to tempt owners of old cars to buy newer models. Not only did this stimulate the market, it also meant fewer environmentally harmful cars on the road – very much a win-win. According to Primožič, these so-called scrappage schemes

helped the Slovenian industry cope with the crisis.

“The recovery of the production of motor vehicles in 2009 and 2010 was due to the positive effect of such scrappage schemes in major European countries, most importantly Germany, France and Italy,” she explains. “These schemes stimulated purchases of smaller and environmentally friendly vehicles. They meant that production of motor vehicles exceeded pre-crisis 2008 levels in the second half of 2009, whereas other industries still lagged behind.”

Scrappage scrapped

But with the first quarter of the 2011 calendar year now history, so too are the scrappage schemes. In fact, most were history at the end of 2010 – only France kept its programme going into 2011 (it ended

on 31 March). Automotive companies may have big ambitions for 2011, but they will have to achieve them without the boon of government incentives to purchase new cars. Primožič expects this to have an impact.

“During the scrappage schemes, foreign demand was above average from many countries and so too were new passenger car registrations in these countries,” she says. “In our expectations, the year-on-year growth of motor vehicle production will now slow down as a result of weaker foreign demand.”

Going green

Maybe so, but the cars which the scrappage schemes favoured – environmentally friendly vehicles – are expected to continue to be a big area of growth for the automotive industry. And it’s an area in which Slovenian firms believe they can prosper, thanks to their commitment to research and development.

“On average, Slovenia’s automotive companies invest five percent of their turnover in development and 12 percent in new technologies,” explains Dušan Bušen, president of the Automotive Cluster of Slovenia. “That means we have been able to seize the opportunities offered by development trends in the automotive industry including hybridization and making vehicle technology electric so as to radically reduce the use of engines.”

To that end, eight companies have come together to form a consortium focused in large part on the development of hybrids and electric engines. Hidria, Cimos, Kolektor, Iskra Avtoelektrika, Iskra Mehanizmi, MLM, Polycom and TPV formed SiEVA (“Synergetic, environmentally friendly, safe car”) late last year. Car electronics manufacturer Iskra and Hidria have also signed an agreement with moped manufacturer Tomos to make Slovenia’s first electronic moped. And the Automotive Cluster of Slovenia has already presented a plan to produce electric cars in Slovenia.

All projects have been helped by government loans for long-term development projects in the automotive industry. In allocating the money, the government is favouring products and technologies that will reduce harmful carbon dioxide emissions and enable cost-effective energy use in vehicles.

The automotive industry may no longer have scrappage schemes from which to benefit. But, far from being concerned about stalling, companies in the sector are confidently driving forward.

AUTOMOTIVE SPECIAL 25

Luka Koper

Driving Force Port operator Luka Koper generated EUR 127.7m in operating revenues in 2010, up 10 percent on 2009. The increase was due in part to the optimisation of the company’s car terminal services: something which is due to continue this year.

T

he Port of Koper is home to one of the most modern and largest car terminals in Mediterranean. Imports originate mainly from Japan, South Korea and Turkey, while European production is exported through the port’s terminal. In addition to new and used passenger vehicles, the port can handle freight and other special vehicles at the terminal.

Making the most of opportunities

The port is taking advantage of the increasing number of Asian car makers which have opened production in Europe, with car terminal throughput up 21 percent to 378,318 vehicles in 2010.

And the twenty-five car manufacturers who elect to use the services of Port of Koper’s car terminal were last September joined by two more: the prestige German manufacturers Mercedes and BMW. The acquisition of two such eminent brands further confirms the company’s reputation as a reliable provider of quality services.

The reason for these promising developments, and the good overall results in 2010, lies in what happened a few years ago.

In 2007 and early 2008, before the economic crisis, the demand for cars was enormous and the manufacturers increased their production accordingly. However, with the onslaught of the economic crisis in the latter half of

2008, the boom in car sales came to an abrupt halt. Yet manufacturers failed to adjust their productions to the changed market situation and produced ever more cars. The cars were shipped out, but could not be accepted for sale by dealers. Consequently, shipments were stuck in distribution centres and completely flooded port parking lots. To stimulate sales, in 2009 state subsidies were

introduced while manufacturers kept production to a minimum.

As a result, the cars that were sold in 2009 were mainly from storage. By the end of the year stocks were reduced considerably which gave rise to renewed production in 2010.

Keeping an eye on the ball

The Port of Koper is now continuously working to maintain and improve its car cargo services.

“We offer quality service in car manipulation and storage,” says Gregor Belič, car terminal director. “This is a delicate cargo where the human factor plays a crucial role, as cars have to be taken from the ship to the storage facility, and the other way around. Driving through narrow warehouses and wagons demands considerable skill, which is why all our drivers are specially trained.”

Keen attention is also paid to other aspects of safety and security.

“All storage grounds are asphalted, fenced and illuminated and comprehensive CCTV provides for the highest level of security 24/7,” explains Belič. “The ter-

minal work is entirely based on a computerised barcode system and wireless data transfer. For storage we use a garage with 8,000 spaces and we can store up to 45,000 units at any one time.”

The Port’s efforts in this sector are reflected in its standing amongst its competitors. In 2008 the Port of Koper ranked 8th in European ports and second in the Mediterranean, just after Barcelona. Because of the crisis in Eastern Europe in 2009, the port ranked 17th among European ports and 5th in the Mediterranean. Data for 2010 is not yet available.

The port continues its work to optimise the car terminal. In early 2010 the company finished the construction of a garage and can now provide car storage safe from weather conditions. Also in 2010 the port acquired another mooring near the European Energy Terminal and hence increased its cargo transfer capacities.

In 2011 it plans to further improve the quality of cargo transfer services and optimisation of work processes. By focusing on car cargo services, the hope is that the Port’s success will accelerate further this year.

April 2011

26 AUTOMOTIVE SPECIAL

Car parts

Made in Slovenia Around Europe, there are many cars on the road which contain Slovenian components and know-how. For a small country, Slovenia has an impressive tradition in the automotive industry, and it’s a tradition the sector now wants to enhance and reinforce. But doing so will mean adapting to a rapidly changing market with continually evolving demands.

Photo: Revoz

By Miran Varga

G

enerally speaking, Slovenian producers of automotive components are valued by their customers. They usually excel with their knowl-

edge, technology and innovation.

The problem is that there aren’t quite as many customers as there could be, mainly because the automotive workforce here still costs

significantly more than in some Eastern and Southern countries.

Still these companies share a vision – in the near future they want to be among the leaders in the de-

Hella Saturnus Slovenija is a top developer and manufacturer of modern automotive lighting systems for original equipment in the automotive industry.

Hella Saturnus Slovenija d.o.o., Letališka c. 17, 1001 Ljubljana, Phone: +386 1 5203 333, Fax: +386 1 5203 401, info@saturnus.hella.com, www.hella-saturnus.si

The Slovenia Times

velopment of high-tech automotive components.

Ten years ago they joined together in the economic interest grouping the Automotive Cluster of Slovenia (ACS). The group currently includes 57 car parts manufacturers and six research organisations. By bringing the companies together, the goal was to strengthen the competitiveness and achieve better international visibility. Today, after a decade, it seems that the mission has been accomplished – Slovenian companies are now well positioned on the worldwide automotive components market.

To put it into figures: today Slovenian producers of car parts employ around 20,000 people and the sector managed to surpass three billion Euros’ worth of income in its best years. Together with Revoz from Novo Mesto, which is the only Slovenian car plant, these ACS companies create around a tenth of gross domestic product and account for roughly 21 percent of the total sales of goods. The production of automotive components is therefore a very important strategic sector of the country’s economy.

Adapting to changes

The global automotive market favours companies and suppliers that can adapt to change as quickly as possible. The current change to which it seems companies will need to adapt? The move towards electric vehicles. Slovenian components suppliers see this as big opportunity and want to strengthen their role in the coming years.

But this won’t be easy as such production requires big investments, something which many Slovenian companies cannot afford.

Electric is the way to go

Nonetheless, it is clear that some firms will be among the mov-

ers and shakers in electric cars.

Among those that particularly stand out in the field is Hidria which has undertaken the development of an engine cold start system which helps extend the range of vehicles with electric motors. It is a completely new innovation that is ready for installation in electric vehicles of future generations. Iskra Avtoelektrikais, meanwhile, is completing the development of high-voltage electrical systems to power electric and hybrid vehicles. Among these parts the most important is an electric motor with permanent magnets.

Other manufacturers are also aware of the impact innovations have on their business as they try to create added value. In TPV Novo Mesto, engineers have recently developed an innovative seat with a self-adaptive headrest; Unior develops and manufactures hardware and various forgings; while Cimos and LTH Ulitkitry are out to beat the competition in the field of castings of various components.

The future promises a bumpy ride

So while Slovenian companies are well represented in the global automotive industry, they face a number of important requirements and challenges in the fields of ecology, security and reliability. Slovenian suppliers want to be positioned as partners of the Western European car manufacturers and not as a price alternative to the Eastern European or Asian competition. But to be competitive and successful in this never ending race they will have to favour constant research and development. With the change electric vehicles brings to the table it will be a high stakes game as these suppliers simply cannot afford to miss a development directive.

Profil d.o.o.

Parmova 53, 1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia Phone: +386 01 280 54 00 Fax: +386 01 280 54 09 E-mail: profil@profil-group.com www.profil-group.com

By Zoran Lazukič, MSc, Profil d.o.o.

The best Salespeople Come from the Car Industry On the global scale, the automotive industry/sale is one of the most predominant in the world. Entire countries and nations form strong bonds with the brand name and identity of their cars. That cannot be said for any other industry.

The sale of vehicles can be followed not only via some of the most accurate, up-to-date and sophisticated statistics today, but also via some of the most readable tables and articles in newspapers. Operations are monitored in such detail that it is virtually possible for interested parties to know how many times a day salespeople in dealerships change their underwear.

Sometimes, it is hard to know who is more interested in sales figures – sales managers or news-thirsty readers and current or future new-car owners.

Imagine a buyer looking for a new car. In the medium range alone, the buyer is faced with offers of more than 20 models, each of them in over 15 possible colours, at least two types of engines with at least two different engine strengths and at least 10 different variations of additional equipment. Have you considered the total number of possible options? It is 12,000.

“Feel the difference,” says the tag line of one of the largest car manufacturers. Poor buyers, I say.

Now imagine what it is like to be a salesperson, whose goal is to convince you that this car is perfect for you and exactly what you need. If he/she is a real salesperson, you will exit the dealership wondering how, with everything that is on offer out there, you managed to find the one place that has the car you never even knew you needed. You will find that, thanks to the salesperson, you were finally able to decide on your favourite colour. Furthermore, despite having only cursory knowledge of aerodynamics, construction and navigation, the successfully completed test drive makes you wonder why in the world you were never discovered and invited to join one of the F1 bolide teams. Not to mention that even Wall Street would envy your financial abilities, since you are about to drive away in a brand new car after making only the smallest of payments at the time of purchase.

Well, that is the goal of any good salesperson. If you are looking for someone with those abilities to export ice to Iceland, sand to Libya or sell the devil to heaven – call us. We have just the right person for you!

Iskra Avtoelektrika

PROFIL is an independent human resources management consultancy, established as a limited company with private capital in 1989. It was the first consulting company in Slovenia and in SE Europe to provide executive search and selection services.

They operate in Slovenia, Croatia, Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH), Macedonia, Albania, Kosovo and Montenegro.

The logo says it all: Three smiling faces, representing happy Client, happy Appointee and happy Consultant.

April 2011

28 AUTOMOTIVE SPECIAL

Green industry

On your (Electric) Bike Late last year, Ljubljana gained an interesting addition to its range of retail outlets. Velo at BTC City is the capital’s first specialised store for electric bicycles, scooters and carts. Its aim is to move Slovenians away from petrol-powered travel and towards environmentally friendly, battery powered vehicles. It’s a goal shared by government.

By Claire Read

Predicted popularity growth

The store is a collaboration between bike and motorcycle dealer Velo and the ViaVerde Group, a company which focuses on small electric vehicles. Predictions for this year are conservative – the expectation is for sales of about 500 electric bikes – but ask about the future and there is massive optimism. Vito Komac of ViaVerde believes that in three years’ time sales could grow to 5,000 to 7,000 bikes a year.

“The closure of the downtown section of Ljubljana to heavy traf-

Photo: Pošta Slovenije

M

ost shop openings attract some kind of attention.

Typically the curious individuals are local residents, keen to see what this new outlet is selling and how it can fit into their daily lives. Few stores, however, have government representatives on hand when they first open their doors for business. As a rule of thumb, if a politician turns up to a shop opening the significance of the business extends far beyond being a convenient new place for residents to buy bread and milk.

So it proves with the new Velo store in Ljubljana. The shop, which opened last December in BTC City, is openly attempting to start a new trend in personal transportation. No four-by-four gas guzzling vehicles are available here.

Nor are bikes which rely on peddle power alone. Instead, the shop window is full of electric vehicles – from bikes to scooters to carts.

In 2009, Slovenia Post started testing electric cars and bikes for mail delivery which it found ideal for use in city centres.

fic will mean that e-bikes become a serious competitor to other means of transportation, especially because they only consume about 20 cents of energy per 100 kilometres,” he argues. “Most daily trips are about three to fifteen kilometres long, ideal for an e-bike, and riders will enjoy the speed and no-sweat cycling. They will be able to arrive fresh at work or other activities.”

Political backing

It is not only Komac and his colleagues who are hoping Slovenians will become converts to electric bikes. Politicians are also

heavily invested in encouraging people to swap petrol filled vehicles – with their noise, environmentally harmful emissions and typically large space requirements – for quiet, clean, compact electric transport. That explains the presence of representatives for the government and the City of Ljubljana at the December opening of the Velo store.

It also explains the legislative action being taken in the area of electric vehicles. On the same day that Velo opened, Jure Leban of the Office for Climate Change presented the government with proposals to establish subsidies for battery-powered vehicles. He also suggested abolishing building permits for small charging points. This is a key area for action if electric vehicles are to truly take off in Slovenia – while Ljubljana already has five charging points for electric vehicles, many more would obviously be needed were such vehicles owned more widely.

Business interested

Electric bikes are becoming rapidly popular The Slovenia Times

With the political winds strongly blowing in favour of batterypowered vehicles, it is unsurprising that ViaVerde and Velo aren’t

the only firms looking to capitalise on what looks like an expanding market. At the end of last year, moped maker Tomos; car electronics manufacturer Iskra Avtoelektrika; and international automotive and climate technologies firm Hidria signed an agreement to develop Slovenia’s first electric moped. The aim in the first two years is to produce 3,000 mopeds a year but the companies believe that, as Slovenians become aware of the benefits of battery-powered travel, production could soar to 10,000 a year.

Some have long since converted to the power of electricity. In 2009, Slovenia Post started testing electric cars and bikes for mail delivery. The firm found the vehicles ideal for use in city centres. As a result, businesses and residents in the heart of Ljubljana, Koper and Celje now receive their mail from postmen and women in electric vehicles – the firm has a fleet of three electric vans and 38 electric bikes.

Now politicians and electric car retailers are hoping that Slovenians won’t just follow their postman to ask about a parcel – they will follow him in using electric vehicles.

Safely with TPV Car Seat The core business of Novo mesto TPV d.d. is the development, production and marketing of car parts. The firm’s developmental and research projects create new synergies and connections with customers as well as with partner companies and other institutions in Slovenia and abroad. It says its know-how and innovative solutions are the added value that fosters competitive advantage and facilitates conditions for success.

Considerable interest

An innovative approach

TPV aims to become the leader in the field of development of headrest frames, different assemblies and mechanisms in car seats. To this end the company is running several related research-development and research-investment projects. Recently, the firm has patented a technical innovation, a car seat with automatically adjustable headrest position in terms of height that greatly improves safety for a driver. In February this year, the innovation was presented at Europe’s leading industry forum on transport seating, the 6th International Innovative Seating Conference in Frankfurt. The innovation has raised considerable interest and talks are underway with potential buyers.

To prevent head and neck injuries in car accidents that occur in crashes from behind and at low speed, it is essential that the headrest gives immediate and quality support to the head. For this reason car manufacturers and suppliers intensively develop various types of headrests.

Different advanced systems make sure that, in the event of a car crash, the headrest approaches the head, thus reducing the force of impact. The headrest only works efficiently if it is positioned at the correct level, in accordance with the physical proportions of the driver.

Unfortunately, drivers seldom know about this instruction or refuse to follow it.

Research has shown that in up to 85 percent of cases, when the drivers enter the car for the first time, the position of the headrest is set inappropriately, if at all.

Even the most advanced headrest cannot do its job of protecting the passenger if its height is adjusted incorrectly. This inspired TPV to develop a car seat with automatically adjustable headrest height position.

Vertical movement of the headrest is mechanically connected with horizontal movement of the seat. Through research, TPV has established a correlation between optimal headrest height position and optimal horizontal position of the seat. In the great majority of cases, drivers adjust the horizontal position of the seat when using a car for the first time and the firm has made good use of this fact in developing its product. When the driver adjusts the horizontal position of the seat, the headrest height position is adjusted simultaneously. TPV’s technical solution is also very attractive financially and thus suitable for installing in lower and middle class cars.

This significantly improves safety standards for the entire population of drivers.

Research has shown that in up to 85 percent of cases, when the drivers enter the car for the first time, the position of the headrest is set inappropriately, if at all. Even the most advanced headrest cannot do its job of protecting the passenger if its height is adjusted incorrectly. This inspired TPV to develop a car seat with automatically adjustable headrest height position.

TPV trženje in proizvodnja vozil d.d., Kandijska cesta 60, 8000 Novo mesto, Slovenija, T: +386 (0)7 391 81 60, F: +386 (0)7 391 82 11, tpv@tpv.si, www.tpv.si

30 AUTOMOTIVE SPECIAL

FDI

Driven by Foreign Investments Foreign investments, foreign customers, local benefits – Slovenia is making the most of its active automotive industry. While the sector grows further, new challenges arise but concern for the environment opens up new opportunities.

S

lovenia may have only one car manufacturer between its borders but if the parts made by the companies in the country’s automotive industry were put together you could assemble many more “made in Slovenia” automobiles. With 209 firms and almost 15,000 employees, the automotive industry in Slovenia is one of considerable size. Its impact on the country’s economy is significant: it contributes six percent of gross domestic product.

The success is in large part due to foreign direct investments.

The biggest investor comes from France. Revoz, fully owned by Renault, has grown to be Slovenia’s biggest factory and largest exporter. Currently the Renault Twingo, Clio and the Wind Coupe roadster roll out of the factory at a rate of around 900 cars per day.

Another big foreign direct investment success story is that of Hella Saturnus. The German car lights producer, which started in Slovenia as Saturnus, has grown enormously in recent years.

“I took over the company in January 2008 when we had 1,100 employees and today we have 1,900 employees,” managing director Christof Droste recalls. Even during the economic crisis the company kept growing and made good revenues.

High skills

Slovenia’s central position in Europe is one of the reasons forThe Slovenia Times

Photo: Revoz

By Mark Koghee

eign investors turn their focus here. The country’s EU membership makes doing business easier.

For Hella Saturnus it was the Slovenes themselves that made Slovenia an interesting location.

Droste sums up: “Good educated and experienced people, very ambitious and productive, a very established market with low fluctuation. Due to the long business experience with Western Europe you find very good foreign language and culture skills here.”

So far the automotive industry in Slovenia has maintained its strong position despite the economic crisis which hit the sector hard. Although statistics for 2010 aren’t yet available, initial figures at several companies show further growth, according to director of the Automotive Cluster of Slovenia (ACS) Dušan Bušen.

Droste also sees a bright future for the Slovenian automotive industry. “Because of the advantages of Slovenia, especially the high education, there is a good chance that in many fields the Slovenian car industry will become an innovative force in the South-East and Middle-East of Europe.”

Electricity is the future

One of the fields in which it will have to develop is the production of environmentally friendly vehicles. Concern for the environment

and high fuel prices have put the industry on the brink of a new era. Manufactures are switching to new techniques to reduce or eliminate carbon dioxide emissions. Hybrid engines, bio-fuel and electric cars are the future of the sector.

Slovenian producers are taking action. In July the ACS presented a plan to produce electric cars in the country. This intention is part of a bigger project for the future of the industry. In three to five years some EUR 300m will be invested to boost development and industrialisation.

Besides the production of electric cars, the project will focus on carbon dioxide reduction in conventional cars. Aleš Bratož, chairman of Revoz, has said that Slovenian companies are already contributing to an environmentally friendly Renault Clio. RenaultNissan is working with the German firm Daimler on a Twingo

Smart and electric versions of the car are expected in the coming years. Bratož expects the partnership with the Germans to bring more jobs.

The deal is another example of the importance of foreign cooperation in the Slovenian car industry. Indeed, the entire automotive industry in Slovenia is all about export. Almost ninety percent of what is made in the sector is going abroad. A fifth of all exported goods from the country can be attributed to the sector. Forty percent of the car parts manufactured here go to Germany where they end up in Audis, BMWs, Mercedes, Volkswagens and Fords. France, Italy, Austria, United Kingdom and the USA follow.

Slovenian leaders often talk of boosting exports and foreign direct investment. In the automobile industry, they have a sector which is leading the way.

AUTOMOTIVE SPECIAL 31

Interview: Albéric Chopelin, Peugeot Slovenija

Meeting Objectives A year and a half ago Albéric Chopelin came to Slovenia to head up Peugeot’s activities in the country. Having already achieved the ambitious goals he set out when he arrived, Chopelin is now setting off for new challenges in the Netherlands but is only too happy to reflect on his time in one of Europe’s few still-growing automotive markets.

What were your priorities when you took up the post of general manager for Peugeot in Slovenia?

When I came to this country, I spent time with the existing team to analyse all aspects of the environment, of our business, our relationship with the Peugeot Slovenija team and with the Peugeot network in Slovenia. In Slovenia, we don’t sell cars directly. Instead we are managing the network and then sending cars to the final customers. So this analysis was crucial to get us to the right priorities that should lead to success. The first finding was that the competition in Slovenia is very tough, all the brands are well represented.

We decided to set an objective: namely to become the number three in the Slovenian market by 2012, in an ethical, profitable and sustainable way.

How did you go about meeting that objective?

We defined the five pillars that would be crucial to our success in the future. The first one is human resources. If you want to make it in this market, you must have a top team.

The network has to be the second pillar of our performance – just to be sure that we have the

right dealer at the right place.

Training of the network is also a key component. I don’t mean only training on products, but I mean training of behaviour. In Slovenia, we have paid a great amount of attention to training dealers to handle any situation in a dealership, to be able to behave in the right way with clients.

Another important element is performance – a drive for results on all levels, especially at the team level. The next important element is image, and by that we mean far more than marketing alone. Last but not least comes after-sales.

Previously this had only been managed when we had time, but now it is one of our top priorities.

What is your experience of the Slovenian car market?

The automotive market here can be compared to most other European markets. But what is interesting in Slovenia is that the car market is still increasing; it is still on a positive trend. This is something that is nice to have and it is not the case in most countries.

What has been the response of the Slovenian market to Peugeot’s new model, the 508?

The reaction has been very good. The official launch here was

iOn, environmentally friendly electric car with zero emissions

on 3 March but we had some orders even before the launch.

What about the new electric car – iOn? Have there been any obstacles in placing this car on the Slovenian market?

Yes, there have been, but obstacles mean fun in our business.

When we got the first iOn car and we tested it, it was really something amazing for us, even if we are all experienced in dealing with cars. We wanted to emphasise the fact that this was the first electric car in Slovenia because it is something different. It’s about more than just selling lots of units; it’s about showing people that this is a big breakthrough, with a lot of things that need improving, but it is something really amazing. It’s even totally different from the hybrid car. It’s completely environmentally friendly with zero emissions.

How fast can it go and what features does it have?

Officially, it can go up to 130 kilometres per hour. The vehicle

also features everything else you can find in a normal car – air conditioning, electric windows, radio, airbags everywhere, and so on.

When you switch it on, you hear no sound, but the car is on. When you push the accelerator pedal, you again hear no sound, only the sound of the tyres on the road.

It’s extremely agile in the city and very powerful. When you go to dinner, you can arrange to have it plugged in. There is no sound pollution and even the gearbox is automatic.

Do you think Peugeot can continue to succeed in the Slovenian market?

At the end of 2009, we set the goal to become number three by 2012 and as of February 2011, the statistics show that we are already number three, so this goal has been achieved. Our challenge is to do this in a profitable and sustainable way. Two or three months is not enough, our job is to maintain this position in the long run.

April 2011

32 AUTOMOTIVE SPECIAL

Business cars in Slovenia

The President Sets the Example In days gone by, leaders of state were transported by horse drawn carriages. Today they rely on so-called professional or executive cars to get them from A to B; cars with brand names like Volvo, BMW and Audi.

The vehicles are picked only after thorough analysis – with the environment being one of the main issues considered.

Photo: BOBO

By Mark Koghee

Danilo Türk is driven in an Audi which is provided by the security and protection office

L

ast year there was hope that a deal between BMW a nd the Sloven ia n government would finally lead to a more environmental friendly vehicle fleet for the government.

But after questions were raised about the deal – which would have seen BMW provide energyefficient cars in exchange for the government placing solar panels on the roof of government buildings – it was back to the drawing board.

For now it’s Slovenia’s head of state, Danilo Türk, who sets the example. For his city tours the president is driven around in an environmental friendly Toyota Prius hybrid car which was bought last year. “In his way he supports ecologically friendly driving with reduced emissions,” says Jani Medvešek of the Office of the President.

Environ mental friendliness is an increasingly important requirement in a government vehiThe Slovenia Times

cle but it is far from the only one.

Naturally, security is also a key concern. So on other occasions Türk is driven in an Audi which is provided by the security and protection office. Security is also the main issue when it comes to cars for Prime Minister Borut Pahor. “The prime minister is transported in vehicles which assure the highest level of protection and convenience,’’ reports spokeswoman Spela Vovk.

Small but stable

The market for executive cars in Slovenia may be small but it is very stable. A-Cosmos, the Ljubljana-based BMW dealer licensed for diplomatic posts in Slovenia, sells between 15 and 25 BMWs to diplomats on a yearly basis. Not big numbers, perhaps, but this does represent a constant stream of sales of high class BMWs – sales which tend to happen regardless of the economic climate.

BMW is one of the most popular brands amongst foreign diplomats in Slovenia

According to Marjan Božič, special account manager at A-Cosmos, the diplomats go for the “normal options” for their cars, like features for flags. “We don’t sell any security cars in Slovenia because the situation in the country is safe,” he reports. “A few embassies do have security cars but they bring the vehicles themselves.’’

The embassies of the United States and Germany are said to possess such cars with armour protection.

BMW is a popular brand in the diplomatic world. But there’s one embassy in Slovenia that isn’t likely to become part of the ACosmos clientele: the French. Just as American car manufacturer Henry Ford once said customers could have a car in any colour as long as it’s black, the French embassy in Ljubljana can choose any car as long as it’s French. It’s one of the criteria the embassy has drawn up for purchasing cars.

But environmental concerns aren’t overlooked as a result according to Nada Gradišar of the French embassy: “When buying new cars, we look at the petrol consumption,” she reports.

While almost all VIPs transported in brand new to almost new carriages, finance minister Franc Križanič has to settle for a second hand Audi A6, spokeswoman Irena Ferkulj reports. “We got a used car from the ministry of Foreign Affairs.’’ But even here the car still does the job. The minister is driven from A to B, safely and on time.

www.peugeot.si

New Peugeot 508.

Quality time.

Mixed fuel consumption (l/100km): from 4.4 to 7.3. CO2 emissions (g/km): from 115 to 169.

Time is valuable so spend it with quality. Due to high technology, prestigious and dynamic appearance, interior comfort and unique driving experience, you as the owner of the new Peugeot 508 will be eager to sit behind the wheel of your new car.

Call 080 1 508 for a test drive of the new Peugeot 508.

PEUGEOT 508

34 AUTOMOTIVE SPECIAL

Favourite cars

A Nation of Car Lovers Cars have always been important to Slovenians. That hasn’t changed, even though the financial downturn has caused many to have to tighten their belts and look for second hand bargains.

By Jaka Terpinc

Slovenia’s best selling cars in February 2011 1. Renault Clio 2. Renault Megane 3. Volkswagen Polo 4. Volkswagen Golf 5. Hyundai I30 6. Opel Astra 7. Kia Ceed 8. Peugeot 207 Photo: Revoz

9. Opel Corsa 10. Skoda Octavia

Renault’s products are one of the most popular amongst Slovenians

There are obviously a few different kinds of car owners: those who buy a new car and stick with it as long as it works; those who buy a new car and in a few years replace it hoping their former vehicle will retain much of its original price; and those who come after those cars, considering used vehicles a better deal.

The best-selling brand in Slovenia is Renault – perhaps little surprise as the company has a massive Slovenian presence through its Revoz factory. The firm reports 2004 as its most successful year in terms of sales and 2009 as its worst. As for how those sales are completed? Seventy percent of sales are in direct payment, the rest are leased.

When it comes to A-Cosmos, a supplier of prestigious brands The Slovenia Times

On the second hand

Not all buyers head to a car showroom to find their new vehicle, however. The leading Slovenian web portal avto.net is a huge sales point with, at the moment, over 85,000 active listings for used cars. Half are listings from individual owners, the rest from authorised sellers offering

both new and used vehicles.

There is a huge variety on the site, from barely used models to old timers. The most populated price group is vehicles of around EUR 3,000. In terms of mileage, most fall in the category of between 150,000 and 200,000 kilometres on the clock.

It is tough to tell quite how many of the listed cars are real bargains and how many wind up being scrapped if not sold. Bojan Matko, project manager at avto. net, says that when it comes to pricing of second hand vehicles, German makes with diesel motors still hold as the most valuable items in this market. But on the other hand, there are so many of these cars are on offer that prices can be dragged down.

Newly registred cars by type

others (utility, sports, luxury) SUV mid 11,7% 4,3% upper-mid 6,6%

small, compact 36%

MPV small 13,8% lower-mid 27,6%

In the past years, the second hand trade has become much more internationalised. There are no concrete statistics yet available but it seems like the higher the standard in a certain country, the quicker cars lose value there. After joining the European Union, an array of opportunities came from traders who import used cars in Italy and Germany to sell them to Slovenian buyers. Needless to say, many used cars also roam from Slovenia further down south where some unattractive models still find a good use.

It is clear, then, that for individual buyers the Slovenian car market is still lively and active. As Matko puts it: “The desire to buy a car remains one of the top priorities for an average Slovenian family.”

Newly registred cars by manufacturer

others (Ford, Skoda, Chevrolet, Hyundai...)

21,8%

Renault 16,3%

Volkswagen 13,2%

Toyota 2,7% BMW 5,6%

Opel 7,5%

KIA 3,5% Skoda 4,8%

Hyundai 5,3% Ford 5,3%

Peugeot 6,8%

Citroen 7,1%

Feb 2011, source: Slovenian Chamber of Commerce

Sales

like BMW and Mazda, the mix is very different. Roughly 60 per cent of their wheels, regardless of model, are leased and one in three customers bring in their used cars to trade for a new one.

Similar rules apply at Porsche Slovenia, which also deals Audi and Volkswagen – around half of upmarket cars are leased, while the more affordable cars are mostly sold for cash.

Feb 2011, source: Slovenian Chamber of Commerce

T

here’s an old joke which says that an alien landing on earth would probably assume that cars are the most populous species on the planet.

In Slovenia at least this does not hold – one million personal automobiles can be found on the road meaning that people still outnumber cars by 35 percent. But it does mean there is about one car per 1.5 potential drivers. Include all the other registered vehicles – from motorbikes to trucks to tractors – and the ratio nearly approaches one-to-one. The ratio is not extreme, but good enough to be amongst Europe’s top half.

35

EDUCATION SPECIAL

Money with Qualifications The Slovenian government has long expressed a commitment to strengthening and developing higher education. Last month it put its money where its mouth is, adopting proposals which will gradually but significantly increase funding over the next ten years. But the increases are accompanied by an entirely new approach to allocating money – one which small, developing institutions fear will impact on them negatively.

By Claire Read

W

hen Slovenian leaders discuss developing the country, sooner or later talk turns to the subject of education. The country can only truly compete on the regional and world stage with a strong education sector, they say. Only by having universities with strong research and development programmes can the nation truly move forward, the argument goes. And they say the students of those universities must have the opportunity to study abroad, learning from the best institutions in other countries and bringing that knowledge back with them to their homeland. Last month, the government adopted two strategic resolutions which it says will help make those ambitions a reality.

Pho t

o: D r

e am

s t im

e

Mixed reaction

The national programme for the development of higher education and the research and innovation strategy each cover the period until 2020 and both contain a variety of ambitious targets. The plans also provide for funding increases – the budget for higher education will increase from 1.2 to two percent of gross domestic product and research and development funding from 0.9 to 1.2 percent.

One might have expected the budget increase to be welcomed by higher education institutions.

But some fear they could actu-

ally end up with less money in the coming decade. The reason?

Alongside the increased budget, the government has announced a new method for assigning the funds.

Traditionally, the funds received under the so-called basic pillar of funding could vary by up to 40 percent dependent on the number of students at an institution. The new proposals will

radically change that. The variable part of the pillar will be reduced to just three percent and will be based on an assessment of effectiveness and of domestic and international cooperation. A second stream of funding – the “development pillar” – will also be based on assessments, this time of the diversity of programmes, quality, international activity, and social weight. While all institutions are April 2011

36 EDUCATION SPECIAL guaranteed funding under the basic pillar, they will have to compete for money from the development pillar.

Forever young

EMUNI is a University and a network with 179 member institutions from 38 countries, sited in Slovenia. It was established in 2008 – the European Year of Intercultural Dialogue and Euro-Mediterranean Year of Dialogue Between Cultures.

EMUNI is a project of the Union for the Mediterranean.

The proposed changes have left newer universities seriously worried. Dragan Marušič, dean of the Koper Faculty of Mathematics, Natural Sciences and Information Technologies, believes the system will stop the development of new institutions and impact on the creation of new courses. His faculty is part of the University of Primorsko, Slovenia’s youngest university and the one which will receive the least government money under the proposed scheme – EUR 13.5 for 2011 in comparison to the EUR 56.4m which would go to the University of Maribor and the EUR 178.3m allocated to the University of Ljubljana.

Economist Rado Pezdir has also reacted with concern to these figures. He argues that the changes are a “classic example” of adapting the rules to suit the biggest player and believes they will “reward those who limit the number of students in the coming years and who abolish programmes.”

It’s a charge the government strongly rejects. Higher Education, Science and Technology Minister Gregor Golobič says the new system will actually make funding more predictable. He also argues that it will ensure that quality is prioritised over quantity.

Falling standards?

And with a recent report from the Organisation for Economic Cooperation expressing concerns

about whether Slovenia is getting value for money from its mandatory education system, this quality over quantity approach may yet spread to primary and secondary education as well. The OECD’s proposals to merge schools with low numbers of students and increase class sizes have been met with a distinctly lukewarm response from the government. But former education minister Milan Zver believes that the recommendations should be carefully considered. He points out that there have been worrying signs of deterioration in primary education in particular – most significantly, a serious decline in reading skills amongst Slovenian youth.

In one sense at least the government is working to increase class sizes. The state-funded Slovene Human Resources Development and Scholarship Fund has recently announced it will provide EUR 6.9m to cover secondary education expenses for adults aged between 25 and 64. It is interesting to note that those who apply for the funds will only have 90 percent of their expenses covered – a move a spokeswoman says is intended to ensure people take their studies seriously.

In some ways, this sums up the current approach to education in Slovenia. The government is playing the role of the tough teacher who is committed to improving your knowledge but also expects you to want to help yourself. And while that teacher may never be the most popular, he or she is often the most successful. The government is banking on the same principle applying to its proposals.

Sustainable Future

“

In the past few years social responsibility and sustainability topics are being highly covered internationally and also locally. Faculty of Economics has a great leverage in educating our students for being more responsible and sustainable.

Implementing sustainability concepts is positioned high on most managers’ agendas today but the main question is how to do it in a sound business perspective. Faculty of Economics University of Ljubljana realised there is a lack of knowledge in the region on practical insights into business implementation of sustainability.

Therefore we chose a highly practical approach, with many The Slovenia Times

best practices and real life cases.

We have managed to attract distinguished professors in this field from around the world. Recently we have finished the first out of six modules with Brazilian professor Renato Orsato from INSEAD Social Innovation center and were really satisfied with the feedback of our participants. Many new ideas and solution were created and most importantly we are building a network of companies dedicated to the subject, which can rely on each other and resolve doubts faster and more confidently.”

Andreja Cirman, Programme Director, Vice-dean at the Faculty of Economics in Ljubljana

EDUCATION SPECIAL 37

Joseph Mifsud, EMUNI

The Mediterranean’s Universal University On June 9 2008, a new university was inaugurated in Slovenia. The European-Mediterranean University (EMUNI) was and remains a unique institution – an international network of universities bringing together 142 members from 37 countries. One of the priority projects of the 43-country Union for the Mediterranean, EMUNI is a truly international higher education and research institution and is playing an important role in strengthening cooperation in the region which forms part of its name. According to the university’s president, Professor Joseph Mifsud, this is work which is more important now than ever.

What is the main focus of EMUNI’s activities?

EMUNI brings together top experts, top academics and top students from around Europe and the Mediterranean to concentrate on solutions and knowledge sharing. You might have people from Scandinavia and people from Syria, Morocco or Israel all working together on a specific problem, for example water shortages, or civil protection, or quality assurance.

Your projects deal with a variety of issues in the Euro-Mediterranean region. Countries across the Mediterranean region are currently going through unprecedented changes. How do you view the latest developments?

Having travelled widely in the region, and met the academic community, civil society and higher education specialists and authorities, I must say that much was expected in terms of the ‘boiling’ economies. In addition, there has been an unprecedented mismatch between skills and competencies and the employability factor of the ‘modern’ cohort of young graduates and emerging cultured middle class in many Mediterranean countries.

Europe, in my opinion, had decided not to rock the boat for too long, and compromised on many issues. It is time to develop real partnership. Getting people and civil society to work together is not only useful but also imperative to support human development and innovation. Transparency, good governance and freedom of expression must be the keys of future cooperation. I sincerely hope that EMUNI and other projects of this nature, like the United Nations Alliance of Civilisations can be shakers and movers in the realisation of a new euro-med society.

When Slovenia took the EU presidency at the beginning of

2008, the then Slovenian Prime Minister Janez Janša criticised the idea of establishing the Union for the Mediterranean. Yet EMUNI, one of the Union’s top priorities, now has headquarters in Portorož.

How did Slovenia come to be chosen as the location for EMUNI’s headquarters?

When people across the Mediterranean in large urban cities or in small towns ask me why EMUNI is in Slovenia, I always remember the images that Slovenia has on its flag: the Triglav Mountain range and the Adriatic Sea and its rivers. I think, after having got to know the country, that Slovenia represents the truly new Mediterranean culture. It is not set in one region but cuts across the region, it tries to enhance cooperation without imposing one particular brand of collaboration on it.

When EMUNI was set up, hopes were high and indeed so were expectations. All those who have worked for and with EMUNI

know the EMUNI spirit. It is a spirit which I believe derives inspiration from Slovenia and for Slovenia.

Most countries from the former Yugoslavia are members of the Union for the Mediterranean with the exception of Serbia, Macedonia and Kosovo. Do you think those countries should be included too?

Absolutely yes. The Western Balkans, in spirit, cuisine, and way of living are incessantly Mediterranean, they wish to be so in their dialogue, in the way they act, in their creativity. I feel that these nations and countries can indeed be a fulcrum of southsouth and east-south cooperation which is needed to give fresh air to the region. Small businesses dot the economic landscape, thirst of knowledge and training is clear for all, and with the opening up of these territories to the Mediterranean spirit, it would be the Euro-Med that benefits ultimately.

When people across the Mediterranean in large urban cities or in small towns ask me why EMUNI is in Slovenia, I always remember the images that Slovenia has on its flag: the Triglav Mountain range and the Adriatic Sea and its rivers. I think, after having got to know the country, that Slovenia represents the truly new Mediterranean culture.

April 2011

38 EDUCATION SPECIAL

Postgraduate education

A Thirst for Knowledge Slovenia’s love affair with higher education shows no signs of abating. Surveys and statistics consistently show a high number of young Slovenes deciding to pursue their studies at university level, and the popularity of master and doctoral programmes is on the increase as well. The challenge now? To get more Slovenian students travelling abroad for part of their studies.

By Polona Cimerman sation study programmes saw more men graduates, but since 2001 there have been more women than men finishing these programmes.

Social science and humanities still on top

University of Ljubljana, the biggest university in Slovenia

The Slovenia Times

Women take up the lead

Delve deeper into the statistics published by the Ministry of Higher Education and interesting demographic information about Slovenia’s postgraduate students is uncovered. It becomes clear that most such students are over 25 years of age. The majority of specialists, masters and doctors of science completing their studies are between 30 and 34 years old while the majority of level II Bologna graduates are over 40. It

is interesting that this was the age when men most frequently became doctors too, while women finished their PhDs at the beginning of their thirties.

In 2009/2010 more than 50 percent of students who enrolled in level II, III and MA study programmes were female. Even five years ago, Slovenia had one of the highest rates of women in tertiary education in the European Union and the numbers keep on growing.

Up until 2000, the MA and speciali-

Number of postgraduate sudents is still increasing

Source: University of Maribor

T

he figures tell the story. In June 2010 there were nearly 300 postgraduate study programmes available in Slovenian higher education institutions (both public and private). 15,900 students of six different types of postgraduate course were attending them, the majority of (88 percent) at the University of Ljubljana, the biggest university in Slovenia.

In some senses, then, the higher education section in Slovenia is well established. But in other senses it remains in transition.

The high number of course types reflects the changes in the system.

Back in 2005/2006, Bologna courses were introduced – so named because they are part of the Bologna Process; a scheme to make academic degree standards consistent throughout Europe. For now, these new courses continue to mix with the old ones but a changing of the guard has now comprehensively begun: since the 2009/2010 study year, new students have only been able to opt for courses which are part of the Bologna system.

3500 3000 2500 2000 1500 1000 500 0

2006/07

2007/08

2008/09

2009/10

2010/11

So what are all these students studying? In 2009, most were enrolled in level II MA programmes.

The most popular subjects were social sciences, business, administration and law, accounting for 76 percent of students.

Most doctoral Bologna students also chose such subjects but a significant minority – 16 percent – decided to devote their attention to natural sciences, mathematics and IT. Students of the uniform master education programme showed most interest in technical science, production technology and civil engineering. In comparison with the rest of the European Union, Slovenia had a larger proportion of graduates in services, agriculture, forestry, fishing and veterinary.

Not enough mobility

During their studies, Slovenian students are offered the chance to go on exchange programmes, most notably ERASMUS and CEEPUS. It seems, though, that few are taking these opportunities to study abroad – only one percent opted for the ERASMUS programme.

Many universities are making efforts to increase the number of students travelling abroad. Take the Faculty of Social Science.

Last year they sent abroad 23 postgraduate students and they plan to increase this number this year thanks to their contracts with over 70 institutions around the globe. The most popular destinations are Portugal, Belgium, Germany, Czech Republic and Italy.

Nonetheless, countries such as France, Spain and Germany send ten times as many of their students overseas. Slovenians are keen on education but it seems that for the moment at least they prefer their learning to take place in their home country.

EDUCATION SPECIAL 39

Interview: Marta Kos

Believing is Achieving Gustav Käser training company, established in 1963, was the first company in Europe to offer soft skills training for employees and managers alike. For the past eight years, Marta Kos has been an integral part of the company, training more than 3,000 people in a variety of business skills.

What made you decide to join Gustav Käser?

My husband is the reason I joined Gustav Käser. He was working for Microsoft, first as the director of Microsoft in Slovenia and then in Munich. After eight or nine years, he quit his job and he was thinking about retiring or doing something else. After three months in New Zealand and Australia by himself, he decided he wanted to do something he liked.

His thoughts turned to training and, specifically, to Gustav Käser – while at Microsoft Europe, he had attended a session run by the company and had been very impressed.

After discussions, the company agreed to offer him a franchise – for the first time in the history of Gustav Käser. At that time I was the vice president at the Chamber of Commerce in Slovenia but I wanted to see if I could also be successful in the business of training. The two of us started and it just kept expanding.

You’re now an advisor on public speaking and public relations?

Yes, but that’s not the core business. The core business is management – stress management, time management, managing oneself, managing co-workers, team development and so on – and leadership and sales training.

What does training entail?

Gustav

Käser

There are three core elements: technique, attitude and influence.

You can learn all the management and leadership skills in the world, but if your attitude isn’t the right one, then your influence isn’t necessarily positive.

Eighty per cent of the training is role play. When we discuss motivational speech, for instance, we assign roles and participants have to practice their speech with me. At the end, we discuss how it went. They receive feedback which is one of the most important parts of the training.

Can you explain how you work with your clients?

We don’t do typical seminars or lectures. To change behaviour, you need more than just a few hours or one day. So our training lasts five days or even more. There are actually some companies whose development I’ve been following for five or six years.

What is the most important message you pass on to your clients?

Ninety per cent of success is preparation. How do we feel when we are well prepared? Self-confident and positive. Preparation is a way of really influencing the feeling of self-confidence and motivation. We don’t have an influence on everything that happens in our lives, but we have an influence on how we react. This is what we train. If you don’t enjoy the train-

ing, the work you do, you will be in a worse position than someone who enjoys it. It’s also about seeing the value in yourself, being liked by the people who work for you. You need to have respect for yourself.

What types of training are most commonly requested by companies and individuals in Slovenia?

Usually in Slovenia we have problems with time management, stress management, how to delegate successfully, how to deal with situations when there’s a conflict.

We have also had to help managers on how to cope with situations such as how to fire people, how to demote people to positions with a lower salary and so on.

Are there particular challenges when working with managers?

The biggest challenge is to decide to come to the training in the first place, even for someone like the President of the Board or chief executive. In the group at training, everyone is on an equal level. Some are very unwilling to change, but when they see our methods they usually come around. When the managers accept our methods, the others follow and then it is usually a big success.

Do you find your job rewarding?

Yes. Dealing with people is great. People change once they see how it benefits them and we help them with this. People need to find reasons to enjoy their lives and their work. If you go into the cruel managerial world without enjoying yourself, you will spoil your and everyone else’s day.

April 2011

IEDC Campus

A Quarter of a Century of IEDC-Bled School of Management This year, a quarter of a century has passed since the establishment of the IEDC-Bled School of Management, the first management school in Central and Eastern Europe which was established in February 1986. In 25 years, the IEDC has become one of the most innovative business schools in Europe, attracting business people from all over the world.

IEDC-Bled School of Management is an international center of excellence, an important business meeting point and a creative environment where leaders and potential leaders come to learn and to reflect. Every year IEDC is visited by over three thousand participants, 70 per cent of which come from abroad, and collaborates with over 300 corporate partners from around the world. Since 1986, more than 53.000 participants from 70 countries have attended the IEDC’s educational programs and different forums for top executives. The School has become one of the leading innovators in business education.

Prof. Danica Purg, President of IEDC, has been named the 2010 Educator/Dean of the Year Award by the Academy of International Business (AIB) for her outstanding achievements in international business education. As the third European awarded she joins an elite list of deans from top international business schools around the world who have received the AIB Dean of the Year Award.

Danica Purg, IEDC President

IEDC has been named among 100 top business schools in the world concerning innovations, for demonstrating significant leadership in integrating social, environmental and ethical issues into its programs. IEDC is a home to a number of centres of excellence that foster innovation, reflection, creativity, and progress in the field of management, including the Coca-Cola Chair of Sustainable Development. It is the headquarters of international management development association CEEMAN, the European Leadership Centre (ELC), as well as of the national branch of the UN Global Compact.

Danica Purg with Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II on the occasion of conference “Sustainable Development for National Competitiveness” co-organized by the IEDC-Bled School of Management in 2008

I am honored and privileged for the ten years of successful cooperation with IEDC and henceforth I appreciate the contribution of the IEDC to the integration process of the Western Balkan countries. As a participant at various successful workshops and seminars in different places in the CEE Region, I know how important and useful is IEDC’s role in those countries and I admire the invaluable support and help provided by the IEDC. Besides the knowledge, experience, network and dedication, the IEDC poses a real and outstanding asset - its President Prof.

Danica Purg. She is an excellent and exceptional personality who founded and maintains this School. I admire her strength and stamina to build and develop IEDC. IEDC organizes valuable conferences, workshops, seminars and provide an excellent training, practical work, and distribution of new and innovative ideas. I’m grateful for such a close and friendly relationship with Danica and IEDC and I firmly hope to even strengthen it in the future.

Dr. István Szent-Iványi, Ambassador to Slovenia, Republic of Hungary

IEDC has been playing an important role in educating Henkel’s managers on the topics of Strategic Management, Marketing, Leadership and Customer Relationship Management. Besides excellent set of professors and a wonderful school premises in Bled, the IEDC offers great opportunity for networking and exchange for our managers coming from about 20 different countries in the CEE. Quite a number of Henkel CEE top managers are former graduates of the “IEDC Program” who confirm that IEDC has helped them to enlarge their managerial and leadership skills necessary for their current tasks. One of the distinctive features of IEDC which makes it different from many other similar institutions is high grade of flexibility and adaptability to the changing needs of the customers. On behalf of Henkel CEE I would like to congratulate the school and express our special gratitude to IEDC team who has been accompanying us on our journey of management education with all its professionalism and passion.

Mag. Lena Rumjanceva, HR Manager, Henkel Central Eastern Europe

IEDC-Bled School of Management enables to gain the knowledge from a variety of business fields which is crucial for the efficient management of organizations and operations. The knowledge I acquired at IEDC is truly valuable, also in the context of a big cooperation where I work. At the same time, I would like to point out at a creative environment that influences innovative thinking, and makes this school special compared to others.

The experience I gained and which was passed on to me with the help of international faculty is important in creating new career opportunities, evolving the full potential of personal development, and in developing a network of business contacts. Attending IEDC enhances the ability to overcome difficulties more quickly as well as to solve them in an independent way, while developing a diverse range of skills which are absolutely indispensable for modern managers and leaders. Furthermore, interactive lectures stimulating involvement during the program and respectable participants have additionally met my expectations, and I would definitely recommend IEDC as an institution to develop and broaden individual platform of knowledge and skills.

Sergey Yeskov (Presidents’ MBA 2007), President of the Board, Zagrebačka Pivovara d.d.

The School is designed as an Art Gallery: art as an inspiration for leaders and managers as well as learning gleaned from other professions are special features of the IEDC teaching approach

IEDC will be celebrating its anniversary throughout 2011, while the highlight of the jubilee year being a notable international conference »Change and Sustainable Innovation as Success Factors«, held on 14 October 2011 at Brdo pri Kranju; it will bring together around 500 respected guests from around the world, who will be accompanied by topmost lecturers, among them Manfred Kets de Vries, Ichak Adizes, Jean-Pierre Lehmann, Hermann Simon etc.

42 EDUCATION SPECIAL

Research and development

Great Minds Create Great Solutions Do Slovenian faculties provide all the necessary tools for students to conduct research and to present their findings to the world? It’s always been a matter of concern in higher education in this country. Take a look at some of the academic work being done, however, and it quickly becomes clear that Slovenia is home to talented students whose research has the potential to change the way people live and work.

By Miran Varga seriously damaged the country’s power plants, the worries of the survivors multiplied – with fears of radioactivity accompanied by concerns about a programme of rolling blackouts.

Sadly, the world’s attention periodically turns to nations affected by disasters. Some, such as the September 11 attacks in New York or the 7 July terrorist bombings in London, are caused by man.

Others, like recent events in Japan and New Zealand, are caused by the force of nature. One factor that tends to unite all such dreadful events, however, is a short or longer term power blackout.

Photo: Dreamstime

Powerful questions

Students at Slovenian universities are conducting reasearch, such as addressing power outages, which will have impact beyond Slovenian borders

L

ast month the world’s attention turned east as a devastating earthquake and tsunami hit Japan. When it became clear that the disaster had The Slovenia Times

Eva Zupančič, a researcher and PhD student at the Faculty of Computer and Information Science in Ljubljana, is devoting her academic attention to addressing such power outages.

The SEMPOCproject, co-created

by Zupančič, deals with power failures and aim to find ways in which to manage them.

The question at the heart of the research is a simple one: what happens when a large scale power cut occurs and how we should prepare? Answering it is far less simple for it involves finding answers to a large number of other questions: among them, tricky posers such as how power plants, clients, government and citizens perceive a crisis; whether plants have enough personnel and spare parts to fix any damage; how long emergency supplies can last; how supply should be prioritised (hospitals and airports before financial services?); and how long it would take before the adverse effects of a power cut become apparent.

To find the answers, the SEMPOC researchers are building a holistic simulation model which simulates the long-term life cycle of a power cut crisis, including technical, economic, political and social aspects.

Such a model would be a valuable tool to identify and analyse the current vulnerabilities in power production and distribution network. Based on simulations, those in charge will be able to create policies which prevent or at least mitigate the effects of future power cuts.

Cutting edge cutting

Zupančič is far from the only academic conducting research which is likely to have an impact far beyond the boundaries of Slovenia. Over at the Faculty of Mechanical Engineering in Ljubljana, Dr Franci Pušavec and Dr Janez Kopač have developed a system of cryogenic machining which should halve the cost of turning and milling metal parts.

Currently, producing such parts involves using oil emulsions for cooling and lubrication. These oils not only represent a financial burden for the industry but they are environmentally harmful.

The challenge was clearly to produce a cutting technology which did not use oil. And that is just what Pušavec and Kopač have done. SusCryMac (Sustainable Cryogenic Machining System), which was designed in association with private company IstrabenzPlini, uses liquid nitrogen rather than oil emulsions. This offers up to 50 percent better lubrication and cooling effects and zero harm to the environment. Productivity, meanwhile, is increased by up to 100 percent.

The two academics are confident that their innovation will change the way that metal parts are turned and milled. They already have a working prototype; the system has been patented; and they are optimistic that it will achieve larger industry adoption in the coming years.

If it does, perhaps at last the debate over whether Slovenia is home to world class research will be put to rest.

Experience

Salia Talaso Centre

Car market in Slovenia

What Matters?

JB Restaurant

Dine with Style

experience

44

Salia Talaso Centre

Your Body is a Temple!

For Maja Dragović and Maja Kaplan, it was an escape Thelma and Louise style – the “only” difference being that they were not going to end their lives in glory but rather pamper themselves to death.

Our boss was away – far away! – the office was half empty and the sun was shining so brightly outside that we saw no point in hanging around at work for long.

As a good employee is a happy employee,

Fango mud

The Slovenia Times

we decided to do our boss a favour and go for some serious pampering. It was bound to leave us energised, content and ready for the many challenges our jobs present us with on a daily basis. So on a glorious

Tuesday afternoon my graphic designer namesake and I left the delights of our working environment to explore the more tranquil delights that Strunjan has to offer.

We were off to a spa at the seaside, hidden away within one of Slovenia’s nature parks. When we arrived we were immediately greeted by the glorious smell of the Mediterranean, an aroma that always has me at hello. The scent of lavender, pine trees, and sea is all it takes to lull me into relaxation. Mix that with the beautiful smells of the aroma oils at Salia Talaso spa centre and you have a truly captivating, serene atmosphere.

45

Salt pan massage

Serenity itself

We were met by Žaklin, who is serenity itself. As well as managing the centre, she also happily works as a beautician in the spa. A girl who knows a lot about beauty products is always someone I can immediately relate to and so tend to immediately like, and Žaklin fits the bill. While I was waiting for my facial and massage, she took me to the back room to let me smell some of their products. Žaklin excitedly opened one after another endless jars of different scents as if it was her first time.

Name a girl that wouldn’t enjoy this kind of treat!

She also showed us around the spa and shared one bit of information that I am sure all you girls out there will appreciate: one of the personal trainers at the spa is none other than the current Mr Koper!

Just so you know, his name is Vedran.

If this news has suddenly tempted you to sign up for a serious workout at Salia Talaso, bear in mind Maja and I are already ahead of you in the queue.

Local products

It is not merely the model-like personal trainers which make the spa unique. Also notable is the centre’s commitment to using natural products which come from the local surroundings and which are typical for the Mediterranean region – lavender, sea salt and sea mud to mention just a few. And the Mediterranean is all you will see even once you’re inside the spa, thanks to warm lilac and lavender coloured walls and surroundings.

The spa also offers its own unique massage with sea salt, Salt pan massage.

Maja opted for this treatment and loved it. Basically, small linen pouches are filled with sea salt crystals and the ethereal oils of Mediterranean plants such as basilica, rosemary, lavender, pine and juniper. The pouches are dipped into olive oil so that they can easily slide up and down your back. After hearing Maja’s experience of this treatment, I have decided that this is something I have to try on my next visit.

A summer holiday feeling

On this occasion, though, I opted for a combination of facial and back massage that uses shea butter – I simply loved the smell and I cherished the thought that the aroma would linger in my nose and my mind for the rest of the day. My masseuse

Saltern woman 1x manual facial massage with a mask 1x Salt pan massage (60 min.)

1x Niagara – Seawater massage in a tub with 320 nozzles The price of the programme without accommodation (1 day): 99,00 EUR

Seawater adventure 1x Mediterranean rejuvenating – body peeling with massage (60 min.)

1x Fango mud whole body wrap 1x partly manual body massage (30 min.)

1x visit to sauna world (3 hours) 1x Thalasso pedicure The price of the programme without accommodation (2 days): 157,00 EUR

who’s been in the business for 20 years had great hands which treated every single knot in my back. But it was my neck that really relaxed while her hands worked their magic, gently tossing my head from one side to the other.

What I also liked – and call me cheesy if you must – was that the speakers in the room were playing eighties and nineties love songs, rather than the chill out sounds that are usually associated with massage parlours. The reason I liked this was because, somehow, it completed my feeling of being on a summer holiday just over an hour after leaving the office.

So much on offer

The facial itself focused on getting some moisture back into my overly dry skin so grease was essential. All I will say is that I went to a charity concert that same evening and a few people told me my face was glowing – thank you Salia Talaso!

Of course, Maja and I tried out just a fraction of the treatments that are on offer at this idyllic place. You can pick from different fragrances, products, treatments, massages, pool, beach, sauna, gym, detox. On top of that there are a variety of different packages on offer – some last a weekend, some an afternoon; some are intended for girly weekends with friends; others for a specific season. All are available at very reasonable prices, meaning that this is one of those escape destinations that you really can’t miss out on.

As I sit and write this piece in the office, I look outside at another glorious day, and wonder if Maja and I shouldn’t repeat this very special escape...

Talaso Strunjan Strunjan 148, 6323 Strunjan T: +386 (0)5 676 44 72 salia@terme-krka.si www.terme-krka.si

April 2011

46

Slovenians as car buyers

Photo: Mediaspeed

Car, God, Country Slovenians are less concerned by the brand of a car then they are by its look and quality. Tradition in manufacturing nonetheless puts French and German brands on the top – both in sales of new models and second hand vehicles.

By Jaka Terpinc Slovenes drive good cars. Better than our average income would suggest – meaning that we are ready to sacrifice other standards of living in order to drive a nice car. Is it for the extension of our ego or a result of our underdeveloped public transport network? Psychosocial speculation can be endless, but one thing is for sure: we want our automobiles to look and feel good. Polishing a car on a Sunday afternoon and showing it off to the neighbours is a matter of folklore, particularly in the countryside. And a scratch on the car’s body often hurts more one on the owner’s. In that sense at least Slovenia is more German than Mediterranean.

Paris – Berlin – Rome – Tokyo

Renault remains the most popular brand: almost every fifth car you encounter on Slovenian roads is from the French manufacturer. The closely trailing number two brand is Volkswagen. Our trust in this The Slovenia Times

German manufacturer is traditional and goes all the way back to the Beetle. Additionally we got particularly familiar with VW while Golfs were one of Yugoslavia’s domestic models, produced in Sarajevo’s TAS factory. With parts and servicing knowledge readily available, VW made a logical choice for decades.

Decades of industrial cooperation with European makers has probably influenced our perception of car brands. Besides Renault, Citröen and Volkswagen, the Italian firm Fiat also heavily influenced the expansion of personal vehicles in the previous century. This was not least since Serbian Zastava (the manufacturer of the famous Yugo) signed an agreement with Fiat as early as 1975 and based their production on Fiat’s designs and technology.

While the only non-European in Slovenia’s top ten list of car brands is Hyundai, Japanese and Korean makes totally dominate positions 11-20. The highest ranking genuine American brand is Chevrolet in 22nd place.

But what we admire is apparently not what we own. The national “Slovenian Car of the Year” campaign – a joint project of many media outlets – shows that our ideal car is German, most likely a Volkswagen, which has bagged six out of seventeen annual titles.

Renault has secured just two, as

many as Mazda, the only non-European among the winners and only 17th in terms of sales.

Love never dies

Some retain complete faithfulness to a particular car brand. Nearly every make has its own club or associa-

Yugo cup: A special category in rally

tion, but the most numerous and persistent ones are those rooted in legendary car models: Beetle for WV, Renault for its R4. However the biggest and most notorious fan club is dedicated to the series of Citröen’s legendary models: CV2 nicknamed Spaček (Freak), Dyane, Ami and “the Frog” GS. The club holds ten meetings in Slovenia every year, while their members regularly attend international events. Between them, these enthusiasts take care of some 200 vintage Citröen models.

“Owners usually tend to make them look as authentic as possible, but at the same time work on a particular detail that makes their car special,” says Franci Hlebec, president of Citröen club Slovenia. Asked to explain why Citröen owners in particular are so faithful, he replies that on one hand it is due to the spirit of the brand – the parallels that are drawn from the legendary models to the modern ones – while on the other it is a unique driving experience. “Once you experience hydraulic carriage, you want to keep to it,” he argues.

Citröen forever! CV2 exhibited at a gathering of Citrën Club Slovenia.

Slovenian “Car of the Year” – media audience vote

Number of registered cars in Slovenia 1 Renault

207478

2 Volkswagen

143700

1993: BMW 3 Coupé

3 Opel

86945

1994: Mercedes-Benz Razred C

4 Citroen

69938

1995: Renault Laguna

5 Peugeot

63770

1996: Volkswagen Polo

6 Fiat

60183

1997: Renault Mégane

7 Ford

54908

1998: Audi A6

8 Audi

37622

1999: Volkswagen Golf

9 Hyundai

36297

2000: Ford Focus

10 Škoda

33436

2001: Fiat Punto

11 Seat

29212

2002: Peugeot 307

12 BMW

27752

2003: Mazda6

13 Toyota

27072

2004: Mazda3

14 Kia

20276

2005: Volkswagen Golf

15 Honda

16579

2006: Volkswagen Passat

16 Nissan

15878

2007: Opel Corsa

17 Mazda

15653

2008: Audi A4/A5

18 Daewoo

14953

2009: Volkswagen Golf

19 Suzuki

13381

2010: Volkswagen Polo

20 Mercedes Benz 12868

Column: Tomaž Porekar

Photo: Uroš Modic

47

Discounts Before Quality On first impression, one could be mistaken for thinking that the Slovenian attitude to car brands is no different to that found in the rest of the world. First impressions, however, can be mistaken. Our attitude is, for example, the total opposite of how English people are connected to their cars. True automotive fans are rare in this nation. We pay more attention to the look of a vehicle than we do to the technical aspects; we are not overly interested in the expert knowledge that has gone into creating the vehicle.

Sales statistics show that we don’t tend to be loyal to particular automotive brands. Instead we have a tendency to follow fashions and, above all, to consider how much a vehicle is going to set us back. The decisive moment for most Slovenes tends to be when we spy a »best buy« or »incredible opportunity« – those instances when we know we are buying a car for less than it is worth.

Even the most prominent Slovenes don’t ask themselves whether such a discount is actually possible; whether it’s likely there is a catch. That means that car buyers in Slovenia tend to be easier to short change than those in some other countries.

All that said, there are some who have sworn an oath to a particular brand and who are willing to pay a little extra for that brand.

Volkswagen buyers are a good example. »Golf is the law« isn’t just a catchphrase, but often serves as a fundamental motive for purchase.

Similar rules apply when it comes to Renault: a domestic brand which people can buy safe in the knowledge that they will easily find someone to provide spare parts or make repairs.

When it comes to quality, we are also driven by stereotypes or – to put it more bluntly – prejudices. German manufacturing is related to superior quality. Czech cars care made »the Czech way«, meaning clumsily. One reader of Avto Magazin seriously wondered if a car of German brand manufactured in Hungary would be of lower quality than the same car manufactured in Germany. Listen to debates or surf web forums and you will be exposed to an amazing array of theories that people have come up with. Until you are exposed to such theories it can be tough to appreciate quite how many prejudices there are about certain makes and models.

Of course the success of a brand is closely tied to the reputation it has with buyers. Those selling cars in Slovenia used to pay a great deal of attention to this, securing sales by emphasising the good reputation of a certain brand. That happens less and less these days because they focus on promoting the discount rather than the vehicle. The car and its characteristics come a distant second.

Tomaž Porekar is a doyen of Slovenian automotive journalism, currently editor with Avto Magazin (Car Magazine) and – among others - member of European Car of the Year jury.

April 2011

48

Dine

wit h St yle JB Restaurant Miklosiceva 17, 1000 Ljubljana Tel: 01 433 13 58, 430 70 restavracija.jb@siol.net www.jb-slo.com

JB Restaurant

Open Mon-Sun, 11am – 11pm Sat, 5pm – 11pm Food type Slovenian fusion Price range 4-course menu from EUR 38,50 Reservations highly recommended Tasting menu: Pork Carpaccio with fresh mushrooms with pumpkin seed oil, young carrots and red onions Scampi with kadaif and mango cream Filet of venison with a tarragon pie Chocolate-orange cake

It’s a Family Affair Culinary expert Jade Van Baaren takes a peek into the secrets of Bratovž family, the owners of Ljubljana’s famous JB restaurant – the only Slovenian entry in the S. Pellegrino top 100 restaurants list.

JB Restaurant, one of Slovenia’s best loved eateries, is the creation of an impressive husband and wife team. To dine at Ema and Janez Bratovž’s establishment is to play your part in an ongoing celebration of seasonal delights and regional treasures.

In the smart, art filled dining room you can either stop in to sample some great local wines paired with a two course lunch menu or settle in for a long night of excellent food and wine.

Special mix

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The tasting menu I was lucky enough to sample was a culinary tour of the JB experience. There is a definite French influence in terms of keeping things delicate and flavours pure, but Janez pairs this with locally sourced ingredients and his love for Slovenian food. What you are left with is Janez’s interpretation of contemporary Slovenian fusion.

As I was sitting at JB, chatting with Janez’s daughter Nina about her father’s experience and influences, I was presented with my first dish. Pork Carpaccio accompanied by fresh mushrooms and finished with pumpkin seed oil, young carrots and red onions was a great way to kick off my meal. With its delicate and clean flavour, and strong essence of pumpkin oil finish, it is a great example of a modern Slovenian dish.

Scrumptious scampi

As Nina was telling me about the complexity of the cooking process for this dish I was presented with my next treat: a triumph of scampi served on almond purée and shallots confit. This dish was melt-in-the mouth delicious. The scampi were plump and sweet, the almond purée aromatic, and the shallot confit was exactly what the dish needed to cut through the buttery flavours and add just the right amount of tartness.

I was then presented with a tender filet of venison with a tarragon pie. The pie was light and airy with the lovely bold flavour of fresh tarragon. It was a match made in heaven.

I finished my meal with a chocolateorange cake. The cake was beautifully presented and had just the right ratio of orange to chocolate. The tasting menu is perfectly pitched to leave you feeling mellow, spoilt, and mysteriously, not too full.

I loved it all!

Inspired by ingredients

To say that the menu at JB is simply seasonal would be an understatement.

Chef Bratovž is inspired by ingredients.

They are at the heart of his cooking and he spends much time sourcing the finest. There is a good chance that he has seen something that has just come in the market that day and it will be on your plate in some artistic flare of gastronomic delight that evening.

His talent has not gone unnoticed by the rest of the world. JB Restaurant has been named one of the world’s 100 best restaurants on the prestigious S.Pellegrino list. This is not only a great honor for Janez and his family but also a great triumph for Slovenia, placing it on

Top choice

Castle Otočec Restaurant

Grajska cesta 2, Otočec Tel: + 386 (0)7 384 89 00 booking.otocec@terme-krka.si www.terme-krka.si www.castle-otocec.com Open: Every day until midnight

In Issue 129

Barka Restaurant - St.Bernardin - Portorož Obala 2, Portorož Tel: +386 (0)5 695 30 08 restavracija.barka@h-bernardin.si www.h-bernardin.si Restaurant with selected fish dishes Open: 11am – 11pm

In Issue 130

Vila Prešeren

Veslaška promenada 14, Bled Tel: +386 (0)4 575 25 10 vilapreseren@sportinaresorts.si Open: 11am – 11pm In Issue 131

Pule Estate

Drečji vrh 16, Trebelno Tel: +386 (0)7 34 99 700, (0)51 373 662 marketing@pule.si, www.pule.si Open: Wed-Sat: 12am-10pm, Sun: 11am-8pm; Pule Estate is also available for rental Traditional Slovene cuisine with other culinary delights

In Issue 132

Cafe Central

Grand Hotel Portorož ***** Obala 33, Portorož Tel: +386 (0) 5 692 1050 info@lifeclass.net, www.lifeclass.net Open: Every day, 8am – 9pm In Issue 133

the map of culinary destinations. I doubt Janez would have achieved such success without the help of his family. His son helps him in the kitchen and his wife and daughter run the restaurant. The fact is

that one great chef alone is not enough to run a restaurant. It takes a whole team.

Janez seems to have found the team to help him make JB the best restaurant in Slovenia.

Promenada Gourmet Restaurant Cesta svobode 15, Bled Tel: +386 (0)4 579 18 39 restavracija.promenada@hotelibled.com www.sava-hotels-resorts.com Open: Tuesday to Sunday: 12pm–10pm In Issue 133

Bled Castle Restaurant Grajska cesta 6, 4260 Bled Tel: +386 (0)4 579 44 24 restaurant@vgs-bled.si www.hotelastoria-bled.com/castle restaurant Open: Every day, 10am –10pm In Issue 136/137

City Restaurant - BTC CITY Ljubljana Poslovna stolpnica, 13th floor, Šmartinska 140, Ljubljana Tel: +386 (0)1 585 19 97 www.btc-city.com Restaurant open: Mon-Fri, 11am – 4pm Bar open: Mon-Fri, 7.30am – 6pm

In Issue 138 JB logo 4/15/08 4:32 PM Page 1 C

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JB Restaurant

Miklošičeva 17, Ljubljana Tel: +386 (0)1 430 70 70 restavracija.jb@siol.net, www.jb-slo.com Open: Mon-Sun, 11am – 11pm Sat, 5pm – 11pm In Issue 139

The Beginning of Burger King’s Rule in Slovenia

The new United Colors of Benetton megastore

Software

From the end of March, Ljubljana is home to the largest Benetton store in this part of Europe. The doors to seductive new collections and much more were opened in the most important European shopping centre BTC City by one of the founders of the firm Luciano Benetton himself and the mayor of Ljubljana.

The new prestigious megastore stretches over 1200 m2 in two floors and offers Benetton fashion trends for adults and children along with Sisley collections, promoting a new lifestyle. A special furniture concept was designed for each collection to distinguish between the brands and also a stylish glass facade was set up to ensure a lot of light to contribute to a pleasant shopping experience.

XLAB to aid Japan

The Slovenian high-tech company XLAB in cooperation with its local business partners in Japan enabled all Japanese firms and citizens to use their teleworking programme solutions free of charge for at least two months.

Due to the nuclear power plant situation which can threaten people’s health more and more Japanese companies, also Sony and Fuji Film, appeal to their employees to stay at home and keep out from potential radiation.

The software enables people to work, hold internet meetings and have conversations from home. People can thus keep in contact with their business partners and also relatives and friends which is of extreme importance on such occasions.

The Slovenia Times

A Class Act

Gastronomy

In the beginning of March Slovenia as a brand new destination was put on Burger King’s world map and thus joined the 76 countries and territories around the globe where the firm is present. The Sportina Group, which is also active in trade, tourism and catering sectors, brought Burger King’s world famous flame grilled beef burgers to the Citypark shopping centre in Ljubljana and thus created 25 jobs. Burger King guests in Slovenia are going to enjoy the brand’s complete food menu, including its flagship product which has become a legend through its 50 years of existence - the Whopper sandwich. All products are going to be served with Burger King’s hallmark “have it your way” promise, allowing guests to customize their meals according to their taste and nutritional needs which is a unique concept in the quick service restaurant business. The company was founded in 1954 and is the second largest fast food hamburger chain in the world. Its system operates on more than 12,200 locations serving over 11 million guests daily. The Sportina Group has a strong development focus so additional restaurants are expected to open in Slovenia throughout this year and beyond.

JB is a restaurant famous for its innovation – not only with food, but also when it comes to learning and socializing. A series of cooking lessons in a foreign language (German, English or Slovene for foreigners) is designed to practice languages in a particular social environment while learning the secrets of cuisine. The initial course in English featured a four-course menu for the participants to cook – and eat – along with an appropriate selection of wines. TThe menu: tuna fish with mango and avocado salad, shrimp with almond sauce and radicchio, sea bass in salt with layered potatoes and clam sauce, plus chocolate mousse for dessert.

Going Green

Energy

Fashion

news

Fast food

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In accordance with its sustainable development plan, BTC opened one of the largest solar power plants in Slovenia as part of its 57th birthday celebrations. The power plant is located on two BTC Logistics centre walls next to Letališka cesta in Ljubljana and has the capacity of producing one million kWh of electricity yearly. It is going to spare the environment of 700 tons of CO2 and other harmful substances a year which goes along the key aims of the firm. In May they are going to open another solar plant on their Chrystal palace.

51 Education

Column: Andja Maric

Meeting the World

This July, the Faculty of Economics is again organising Ljubljana Summer School, a three-week intensive programme in English. It is a combination of learning, travelling and meeting new friends. During their stay, students of the school attend courses at the Slovenian leading institution in business and economics awarded with Equis and AACSB accreditation, interact with managers during company visits, discover natural beauties of Slovenia through organised trips, familiarize themselves with local culture and people and socialise with students and professors from around the world. Students are also encouraged to learn Slovenian and besides that a Chinese language course is organised too. Each year, around four hundred students from more than 35 countries attend the school. The deadline for applications is 9th April.

Wine

Food glorious food Silver for Vhardonnay Bagueri 2008

Chardonnay from Goriška Brda wine cellar was awarded with a medal for the eleventh time on the respectable Chardonnay du Monde competition in France where the international expert jury graded 914 samples from 38 countries. The wine cellar got a silver medal also last year for its Chardonnay Bagueri from 2007 vintage. The wines from the Bagueri line are rich and ripe with a nice note of oak casks maturation which directly point to their Brda origin. This year’s silver medallist is a top wine of a pleasant and exceptionally rich taste, while the smell reminds us of citruses, ripe peaches, melon, butter, vanilla, hazelnuts and bread crust. It is suitable for enjoyment over exquisite food in good company.

I closed my laptop and went outside seeking inspiration. I wanted to turn my mood around by finding things that I like. Sure, it was cold, cloudy and really dark for 11am in the morning but, just as every Saturday, the centre of town was busy with people shopping for lunch. As I passed the groceries market, the colourful vegetables and the smell of fresh fruit and flowers immediately lifted my mood.

I soon took a seat in Maximal Cafe, tempted inside by its amazing pastries and good coffee. Wait, now that I think about it, almost every bar in Ljubljana has great coffee, and homemade pastry is easy to find! Do I take good food in Ljubljana for granted? Yes I do.

Too often I forget that it is a privilege.

Think about it: here in Slovenia you can buy amazing fresh organic produce in every village you pass through. Even if you live in the city, good food is in abundance. What about those cute little milk stations everywhere? Last winter some friends who live in the Philippines visited me and couldn’t believe the wondrous food on offer. When my strong masculine friend, a tanker captain, saw the veggies, the homemade apple nectar and the milk machine, his eyes got teary and he told me he was deeply moved. He said this is why I miss Europe... and Slovenia sure is one of its jewels.

After cherry pie and coffee at Maximal, I wandered back out on to the street. Time to buy goodies from my favourite market vendors: vegetables from Kmetija Dovč who grows all his own produce; gorgeous cheese from Kmetija Pustotnik, whose cheese factory and farm I’ve visited many times when driving my son to his grandmother in Indrija; and fresh meat from Jasna Begić, whose top class produce arrives fresh every Thursday and has normally disappeared by Saturday.

Feeling like I had just completed a successful treasure hunt, I headed home – just as the sun was making an appearance. Yup, good food and sunshine: more than enough to make me fall back in love with this place.

52

The Capital

Flower Power

A brief visitor to Ljubljana may direct their attention merely to the major sights in its very core. However, Slovenia’s capital has much more to offer to those who are willing to have a peep a bit beyond the old part of the city. Among such “hidden” gems are the University botanical gardens which boast a long tradition and a recently opened tropical glasshouse.

By Polona Cimerman diversity of Slovenia which may be of special value and interest to its foreign visitors.”

Ljubljana’s botanical gardens are the oldest cultural, scientific and educational institution with continuous operation in Slovenia and last year they celebrated their 200th anniversary.

They were established in the time of Ilyrian Provinces and gradually expanded from the initial 3300 m2 to today’s 2 hectares of land. Since 1991 the gardens enjoy the protection as a monument of landscape gardening and in 2008 they were bestowed the status of a monument of state-level significance. They are part of the University of Ljubljana and a unit of the Biology department of Biotechnical faculty, occupying three locations. The main one as LJ- KARTICA - 113x155 mm 6/24/10 15:12 Page 1 is next to Ižanska ulica while their two glasshouses can be found in

Ljubljana tourist card

Photo: J. Bavcon

Tropical fever

Tivoli and the biological centre of the Biotechnical faculty.

The gardens are members of the world botanical gardens organisation BGCI. Moreover, they are “one of the 187 selected historically important botanical gardens in the world,” says their director Jože Bavcon. They are thus listed in the extensive and practical guide to the world’s foremost botanic gardens Botanic Gardens: A Living History.

They collaborate with more than 300 gardens and exchange seeds with gardens all over the world.

Species galore

• free admission to the main sights • free public transport, boat ride, funicular, tourist train • other attractive free services 24 hours: € 23.00 • 48 hours: € 30.00 • 72 hours: € 35.00 Sales outlets: • Tourist Information Centres and major hotels

The Slovenia Times

www.visitljubljana.si

They are home to more than 4,500 species, subspecies and forms. More than one third of these are native while others come from other all continents. In the gardens, they explore the Slovenian endemic species and even cultivate many of the species which have already become extinct.

Besides that, they also take care of planting the plants in their natural environment if the need for that occurs.

“Slovenia has an extreme variety of plant species. There are 3,500 different growing here which is up to three times more than in most European countries which are mostly much bigger than Slovenia. This is due to the great diversity of landscape and climate,” explains Bavcon who adds: “With its endemic collection, the garden is also representing the

The botanic garden comprises of seven thematic units, including arboretum, ecological groups with mostly marsh and aquatic plans, ecogeographic groups with plants from the mountains and karst and, from last December also a new tropical glasshouse. It was a project with which they marked the end of the second centenary celebrations.

The glasshouse was an eagerly expected object which importantly enriched the offer and activities of the Gardens since tropical species cannot be freely cultivated in our climate. “The botany students now have a chance to study the plans from all over the world. They are also interesting for other visitors to broaden their horizons and experience these plants in person,” says Bavcon.

There are over 200 different tropical species in the glasshouse, planted in groups according to the continent they are coming from. Visitors can see cycads, mandevillas, coffee trees, banana plants, clove trees and many more. At the moment, strelitzias are blossoming. All the plants are still rather small since they have been planted just recently and they need some time to grow.

The glasshouse consists of the main hall with the plants, a gallery and a reception room which can also be a place for exhibitions. Its capacity of nearly five thousand m3, the plant area spreads out on 533 m2.

The gallery is 30 metres long and the maximum height is 12 metres.

Bavcon says the interest in the glasshouse is great – 200 people may come in four hours.

“Botanical gardens are important in many ways and also as tourist attractions. For tourists they have the same status as the museums and galleries,” asserts Bavcon. And since the gardens show a different face every season, they are well-worth the visit more than once in order to discover their richness to the fullest.

CULTURE 53

Ethno-musicology

The Sounds of Prehistory Music is sometimes referred to as a universal language which “makes time and geographical borders disappear” as a musician Ljuben Dimkaroski would say. In May two unique concerts are going to be held where two completely different cultures, the Slovenian and the Chinese, are going to meet and express themselves through music played on ancient instruments, including the oldest instrument in the world the Divje Babe flute mastered by Dimkaroski.

By Polona Cimerman

T

he idea for this one-ofa-kind event came from the Confucius Institute in Ljubljana which is part of the Faculty of economics and it is going to mark its first anniversary of existence along with the 12th anniversary of the signing of the diplomatic agreement between Slovenia and China. “The Institute aims to bring Chinese culture closer to Slovenians. We wanted to organise something truly unique to connect the two countries,” explains the president of the board at the Institute Dušan Mramor.

And the two concerts, one held in Maribor and the other one in Ljubljana, are surely going to be remarkable events since the two performing musicians are going to play on ancient instruments and thus offer entirely new sounds to the ears, reviving the music of the very distant past. The science that takes special interest in the sounds of the past is called

archaeomusicology or musical archaeology. “It is part of the ethnomusicology and a blend of various approaches,” says an expert on the subject professor Svanibor Pettan. He has studied the 60,000 years old Divje Babe flute for years, putting his efforts to prove it is the oldest instrument in the world made by the Neanderthal since the archaeological artefact has been subject to discussions whether it was just a cave bear’s femur randomly pierced by an animal or really something more.

“I’ve presented the arguments at the world symposium of archaeomusicologists in China last year with the multi-talented artist Dimkaroski who has explored the find since 2009 with greatest passion,” Pettan adds.

Distant yet similar

Through his devoted study Dimkaroski discovered a special technique of blowing the flute

and can now play entire melodies on it. In his opinion the event means recognition of the fact that the find really is an instrument: “It is a great honour for me to be the Divje Babe flautist. The flute for which I coined the name Tidldibab allows me full musical expression.” He demonstrated the playing on it on the previously mentioned symposium where also Liu Zhengguo, a Chinese musician and university professor, was present. He wanted to try play the flute and with his knowledge of ancient playing techniques he instantly succeeded.

Zhengguo is a virtuoso on guyue, the Chinese ancient wind instrument made of crane bones and for Dimkaroski he was an obvious choice for joining him on the stage.

The flute he plays and is also going to present in Slovenia is 9,000 years old and he is amazed by the fact that “the ancient bone flutes from two extremely distant countries sound so similar.” Its seven tones enable him to play a perfect melody and in it is one of the most precious archaeolomusical finds in the world. Besides guyue, he is going to play on reed pipe welyue and the cylindrical flute chuilü too. “It is amazing that the Slov-

enian flute requite the same technique of playing as guyue. This must have a deeper meaning,” points out Zhengguo who is coming to Slovenia for the first time and is very excited about it.

An exceptional event

The event is also politically significant and, according to Mramor “is very important for closer economic and broader social links between the two countries.” But in the first place the concert is going to be a distinctive opportunity for Slovenians to learn about the Chinese cultural achievements and its instruments where the past and the present are going to merge.

Pettan believes “it is going to be a musical treat where two exceptional instrumentalists from different cultural backgrounds are going to communicate through music” while Zhengguo hopes it is going to deepen the bilateral understanding and friendship.

Bearing in mind the promise of the two musicians to play some Slovenian and Chinese national tunes on their instruments, it is by no means difficult to believe that a truly spectacular event well worth attending is about to happen.

April 2011

Photography

Fit for the Skin of the Earth Tue 1 Mar – Fri 29 Apr, The Tivoli Park, Ljubljana, no admission The current exhibition of work by the Ljubljana-based photographer Marko Modic is an artistic way of drawing attention to the significance of preserving agricultural land for local food production in the era of globalization. It brings together 120 large-format photographs. In a local environment, agricultural land offers people not only food production opportunities and a wealth of natural resources, but also a whole range of immaterial goods, such as a good quality of life and opportunities for recreation, rest or merely aesthetic pleasure. At the same time it represents an object that people most frequently identify with.

Electronic

The Hacker Fri 1 Apr, 11pm, K4, Ljubljana, EUR 9–11 The Hacker is one of the few DJs who have transcended their genre.

He is able to hypnotise you and take you on a magical journey into the world of electronic music. It seems as if he is reprogramming reality. Also performing on the night will be Selecto, a new young hope. Masters of groove, Lukasov and F Sonik, will make sure there is a positive vibe in the air. But beware – their synergy can be very addictive.

Rock

Manu Chao La Ventura Sat 2 Apr, 8pm, Tivoli sports hall, Ljubljana, EUR 25 The cult French singer of Spanish origin Manu Chao will perform with his new band La Ventura, which presents his musical expression in its purest form and is well known for its energetic concerts. Manu 100 began his musical career as Chao a member of the folk-punk band 95 Mano Negra. Being not only a 75

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music star, but also an activist, a globetrotter, a critic of globalism, and a voice for the marginalized and the oppressed, he keeps away from the mainstream music industry, ever faithful to his convictions.

Classical

The Slovenian Philharmonic Orchestra Sat 2 Apr, 7.30pm, Union Hall, Maribor, EUR 20 This performance of The Slovenian Philharmonic Orchestra will include the conductor Matthias Pintscher and soloist Orion Weiss on the piano. The programme will also include a piece by the conductor, namely his composition Toward Osiris, together with Alexander Scriabin’s Piano Concerto and Ludwig van Beethoven’s Symphony No. 3 in E flat major, Op. 55, “Eroica”.

Literature

Fabula 2011 Mon 4 Apr – Sat 22 Apr, various venues, Ljubljana The Fabula 11 festival will mark Ljubljana’s designation as World Book Capital with a number of premier literary events. It will be the last in the year-long series of events under the umbrella of the Ljubljana - World Book Capital project. This year’s edition of the festival, dedicated to Islam in modern times, will feature a number of world renowned writers, including César Aira, Niccole Ammaniti, Per Olov Enquist, Christoph Ransmayr, Drago Jančar and Margriet de Moor. Visitors to the festival will have an opportunity to enter the featured authors’ worlds through their performances, films based on their works, and the sounds, images and fairy tales of their home countries.

Jazz

Rundek Cargo Trio Exclusive Tue 5 Apr, 9pm, Kino Šiška, Ljubljana, EUR 18–20 Darko Rundek is one of the most popular musicians from the former republic of Yugoslavia. After moving to France, he recorded two albums with the band Rundek Cargo Orkestar. After the tours to support the albums, he decided to

EVENTS 55

Slovenia Times Recommends fulfil his lifelong dream to form a trio. The first album by the Rundek Cargo trio, “Blue Airplane”, was released in 2010. The music is very open and leaves a lot of room for improvisation, an opportunity the musicians take great advantage of and deliver the goods night after night.

Classical

Quartetto di Cremona Wed 6 Apr, 7.30pm, Cankarjev dom, Ljubljana, EUR 10–20 Starting at the Stauffer Academy of Salvatore Accardo in Cremona and continuing at the Scuola di Musica di Fiesole, the Quartetto di Cremona was formed in 2000. The group perfected its skills under the tutelage of Piero Farulli and Hatto Beyerle. Its rapid rise to becoming a mature quartet has inspired its members to dedicate themselves solely to the art of quartet playing.

The quartet’s participation in prestigious international competitions in Cremona, Florence and Melbourne has met with universal acclaim, leading to performances in all major concert halls worldwide. The Quartet’s repertoire ranges from early Haydn quartets to contemporary music, particularly highlighting Italian music.

Experimental

Mombu Thu 7 Apr, 9pm, Menza pri koritu, Ljubljana

We already had the chance to see Zu in action, now saxophone player Luca T. Mai of Zu has decided to pay us another visit. He and drummer Antonio Zitarelli of Neo present their latest project, entitled Mombu. The duo has managed to create a completely unique sound, which combines African rhythms with jazz, hard core and metal.

They will be presenting their new album, out in March.

Fire of Anatolia (Troy) After witnessing Riverdance and Lord of the Dance, Ljubljana will be able to enjoy another dance spectacle.

The Fire of Anatolia or Anadolu Ateşi is a Turkish dance group consisting of 120 dancers, several choreographers and other technical staff. The group has performed in more than 60 countries from the USA to China and Japan, in front of an audience of approximately 10 million people altogether. Fire of Anatolia holds two Guinness records, one for fastest dance performance with 241 steps per minute and another for largest audience, 400 000 people in Eregli, in the Black Sea Region of Turkey. The head of the group is Mustafa Erdogan.

A synthesis of hundreds of folk dances and music from different regions, Fire of Anatolia is a unique project whose source is Anatolia’s ancient mythological and cultural history. Produced by Mustafa Erdogan, the group hopes to introduce the world to the fire that arises from the ancient Anatolian mosaic of love, cultural history and peace.

Fire of Anatolia, which is regarded as one of the world’s best dance groups, thanks to countless international tours, has taken great steps in realizing this goal.

The productions staged by the famous Turkish dance troupe Fire of Anatolia mainly focus on mythological

and historical themes. The troupe is famous for combining a variety of different dance styles and traditions.

Dramatizing the story about the ancient Troy as told

by Homer in his epics The Iliad and The Odyssey, the dance spectacle Troy is performed by over 50 dancers. It features lavish costumes and a stunning set design. Belly dancers and a Trojan Horse measuring eight metres in height add lustre to the show.

Thu 14 Apr, 8pm, Stožice Sports Park Arena, Ljubljana, EUR 40–69

Jazz

Vinko Globokar Thu 7 Apr, 8pm, Kino Šiška, Ljubljana, EUR 10 Vinko Globokar spent his youth playing in the Big Band and regularly wrote arrangements.

He has always been known for thinking outside the box and coming up with unconventional material. This time he will present his latest project, “PRE - and POSTMODERN by the smoke of a Havana cigar”, comprised of new compositions, improvisations, some familiar works and a collection of monologues by actor Boris Ostan. Amazing percussionist and composer Jean-Pierre Drouet will also be a guest. He and Vinko Globokar formed the improvisational ensemble New Phonic Art together and Drouet also collaborated on all his compositions with percussion.

Post rock

God is an Astronaut Fri 8 Apr, 9pm, Kino Šiška, Ljubljana, EUR 12–18 If you’ve not had enough of post rock, you have another chance to April 2011

56 EVENTS revel in all its glory. This time we will be in for another treat with Irish post rock extravaganza God is an Astronaut. Their dreamy textures and ambient vocals have brought them a great deal of attention from worldwide audiences and they are now rightly considered one of the finest post rock bands around.

The line-up: Torsten Kinsella on guitar, Neils Kinsella on bass, Lloyd Hanney on drums and Jamie Dean on piano and keyboards. The supporting act will be Coma Stereo, a Slovenian post rock band from Maribor.

skills. The line-up: Marco Cappelli on acoustic guitar, Ken Filiano on double bass and Satoshi Takeishi on percussion.

World music

Sat 9 Apr, 5pm, Cankarjev dom, Ljubljana, no admission

Fri 8 Apr, 8.15pm, Cankarjev dom, Ljubljana, EUR 15–45

Marco Cappelli Acoustic Trio After completing many years of demanding music studies (first at Conservatorio di S. Cecilia in Rome and then in the Konzert-Klasse at the Musik Akademie in Basel with Oscar Ghiglia), Marco Cappelli has lead an extraordinary artistic path, becoming familiar both with rigorous written music as well with free improvisation languages. This time he will show us his acoustic

Finkielkraut, Žižek: On Democracy

Gilberto Gil

Jazz

Fri 8 Apr, 8.30pm, Narodni dom, Maribor EUR 7

Debate

To perform a more acoustic version of The String Concert, Gilberto Gil invited his son Bem Gil (guitars) and the super talented cellist and conductor Jaques Morelenbaum, a renowned arranger and producer to play with him. This power trio sees Gilberto Gil play guitar and tackle the vocal duties, Jaques Morelenbaum plays the cello and Bem Gil plays the guitar and handles the percussion.

The debates on democracy usually start with expressions of enthusiasm over the Greeks, cloud over with a meditation on Tocqueville, and end on the horizon with Churchill’s sullen statement (“Democracy is the worst form of government, except of all the others that have been tried from time to time.”). Why democracy? Simply because when contemplating the stock-taking of the 20th century, its dictatorships and totalitarian regimes, we tend to forget that the life of a 21st century European is the life of a democratic citizen holding democratic values and adhering to democratic principles.

The festival will include approximately 40 first-rate mountain and adventure films, lectures by foremost mountain climbers, promotions of new books on mountaineering and an exhibition of mountain climbing literature and photography. Besides the main award, bestowed by the city of Domžale, the Festival also features best film award, best mountain culture film award, best environmental and mountain sports film award as well as an audience award.

Jazz

Classical

Bonobo Live

La Sylphide

Sun 10 Apr, 9pm, Kino Šiška, Ljubljana, EUR 16–25

Tue 12 Apr, 7.30pm, Cankarjev dom, Ljubljana, EUR 14–28

Bonobo (his real name is Simon Green) is a musician, producer and DJ who has been entertaining us with music that ranges from psychedelic jazz to hip hop, as he himself describes it. His beginnings take us to Brighton in England, where he became acquainted with soul, funk, jazz and hip hop at the tender age of eighteen. In his career he has tried his hand in the combinations of all these genres and has explored the space between them. His first album came out in 2000 and he has been going from strength to strength ever since, increasing his audience and his artistic credibility.

Film

5th International Festival of Mountain Film The Slovenia Times

Sun 10 Apr – Thu 14 Apr, Cankarjev dom, Ljubljana

Bournonville was originally inspired to create La Sylphide by Filippo Taglioni’s eponymous ballet, which in 1832 marked the upsurge of Romanticism in European ballet.

The work is the epitome of the Romantic oscillation between this world and the alluring, though dangerous other world. Whereas the French version disappeared from the stage after several decades, The Royal Danish Ballet has never ceased presenting Bournonville’s choreography. One of the most salient features of La Sylphide is the fact that although it is a work typical for the Romantic period, owing to the still weighty theme of impossibility of selection in life, it also has a timeless attraction.

Jazz

Tirtha Tue 12 Apr, 8.30pm, Cankarjev dom, Ljubljana, EUR 11–14 Vijay Iyer, one of today’s most acclaimed and respected young American jazz artists, who received the 2010 Musician of the Year award granted by the Jazz Journalists Association, held

EVENTS 57 a highly successful concert at the 51st Ljubljana Jazz Festival.

This time he is returning with his new (Indian) project Tirtha and an eponymous album (a shallow place in a river that can be easily crossed over. Within a spiritual context, tirtha denotes a holy place near a body of water). The line-up: Vijay Iyer – piano; Prasanna – guitar; Nitin Mitta – tabla.

Avant-garde

East Rodeo Wed 13 Apr, 10pm, Menza pri koritu, Ljubljana East Rodeo is an avant-garde rock quartet with musicians from Pula, Ferrara and Rome. The reason for this tour is the recently released album Morning Cluster, which was released this January and involved contributions by some eminent guest musicians: New York guitarist Marc Ribot, acoustic bass player Greg Cohen, alternative rock violinist Warren Ellis and Croatian dramatist Ivana Sajko. The line-up for the concert will presumably be Nenad Sinkauz on guitar and vocals, Alen Sinkauz on bass and vocals, Alfonso Santimone on keyboards and electronics and Federico Scettri on drums.

Drawing/music

Drawn Concert Wed 13 Apr, 9pm, Kino Šiška, Ljubljana, EUR 12–15 This will be a concert with singer Rodolph Burger and comic book artists Philippe Dupuy and Charles Berberian. The drawing duo will draw the concert of Rudolph Burger live and simultaneously. The equipment will enable the fusion of their graphical experiments into one painting. The projections will portray the paintings which will constantly exist in dialogue with Rudolph Burger’s music.

Drawing

The Tears of Ezekiel Thu 14 Apr, 7pm, Kino Šiška, Ljubljana, no admission Matthias Lehmann has published stories, paintings and illustrations in several anthologies since 1994.

He has created a few comic books, which appeared in France and Portugal. He is part of “The Lost Comics Tribe”, a group exhibition with artists Marcel Ruijters, Mike Diana, Jakob Klemencic and Chris Crielaard, in the Bonnefanten Museum in Maastricht, The

Netherlands, at the end of 2002.

In Ljubljana, Matthias Lehmann will be presenting his album The Tears of Ezekiel. There will also be a discussion with the author, led by Bojan Albahari.

Experimental

Marc Ribot Thu 14 Apr, 9pm, Menza pri koritu, Ljubljana, EUR 15–20

Folk rock

Aritmija Thu 14 Apr, 10pm, Gromka, Ljubljana, EUR 4 Aritmija is a new instrumental ensemble from Slovenia, which includes two members from progressive rock band Moonlight Sky. Their music is very intricate and full of subtleties and musical twists. They put their great musical knowledge to good use by creating an intriguing mixture of Balkan rhythms, jazz, folk and rock. Although a young band, they already boast some original material, which will surely be on display at this show.

After the release of last year’s solo effort Silent Movies, which was considered one of the best albums of last year, Marc Ribot will once again return to Slovenia to show us his guitar skills. Marc Ribot, much like John Zorn, is a person who cannot remain in only one musical genre. He is constantly looking for new ways to reinvent music and make it more appealing and exciting. This unpredictability in studio and live makes him such an amazing musician.

Dub

Brother Culture Thu 14 Apr, 11pm, K4, Ljubljana, EUR 5–7

Impressive merge of two cultures presented by the oldest instrument in the world Concert by

Chinese flute virtuoso

Liu Zhenggom with special guest Ljuben Dimkaroski

from Slovenia playing on the Divje Babe flute

11 May 2011 14 May 2011 -

Slovene National Theatre Maribor Slovenian Philharmonic Ljubljana

Organizers

The Confucius Institute at University of Ljubljana, Faculty of Economics

Honorary Partner Embassy of the People’s Republic of China

More information Darja Saksida Bogataj, darja.saksida.bogataj@ef.uni-lj.si, T: +386 (0)1 589 26 83 Irena Kržan, irena.krzan@sloveniatimes.com, T: +386 (0)59 045 003

Partners Academy of Music, University of Ljubljana Faculty of Arts, University of Ljubljana Slovenian Chamber of CommerceApril 2011

58 EVENTS

The Slovenia Times Recommends

Katalena – Halloween Witness one of the most unique Slovenian bands at work – Katalena presents traditional Slovenian music in sometimes totally untraditional, yet original and appealing ways.

In the chapter of the contemporary Slovenian popular music, Katalena needs to be addressed as no more and no less than a phenomenon. Katalena is the most inspirational voice of the 21st century Slovenian folk music soundtrack. Combining the best of Slovenian traditional music, carefully selected from the archives, songbooks and old vinyl records with solid rock rhythms, funky groove and enviable arranging skills, it creates a unique post-folk rock style that presents the music legacy of Slovenia’s regions in an utterly new light. Fused with dynamic and invigorating electrical instruments, which caress the enchanting singing, it is transformed on the stage into a dance and sound performance that mesmerises even the most musically pampered ears.

The story of this urban band begins in an idyllic village in the Southeast of Slovenia, where, in the summer of 2001, a group of six enthusiasts unearthed archival folklore material and rejuvenated its rustic image in line with their art rock, funk, jazz and blues pedigree and with their own integral youthful vision that was as much philosophical as it was musical.

The feedback from those privileged enough to encounter the music in its prime soon outgrew the original idea of a one-off experiment and in the months and years to follow, sons and daughters of Thu 14 Apr, 9pm, Kino Šiška, Ljubljana, EUR 16–19 After a three year absence, Brother Culture, the reggae/dancehall mc out of London’s Brixton, returns to K4. In the meanwhile, he has released a new album called “Isis”. He is otherwise best known for his work with Mungo`s Hi-Fi, Adrian Sherwood and Prodigy.

He will be supported by Croatian Balkan`s Hi-Fi (Balkanfarraj) and the Dubsystem sound tandem of Puppa Robbie and DJ Chai.

Performance

Santasangre: Seigradi Sat 16 Apr, 8pm, Kino Šiška, Ljubljana, EUR 10–15 A group of artists called Santasangre presents the history of the journeys of water, personal thoughts on the unusual beauty and power of this element. This will be presented in the form of music, images, voices and the body. This project was founded in Rome in 2001 by Diana Arbib, Luca Brinch, Maria Carmela Milan and Pasquale Tricoci. Three years later, they were joined by Dario Salvagnini and Roberta Zanardo and the journey began. Their unique The Slovenia Times

tremendously popular for their uniquely shaped and brightly coloured flowers. The show will display, among other things, a large number of plants donated

by Ocean Orchids, a Slovenian company based in the village of Dobrovnik in the Pomurje region of Slovenia which, along with the Slovenian Orchid Society, organizes the show. It will be accompanied by a programme of lectures and workshops.

Classical

Silky Thu 21 Apr, 7.30pm, Cankarjev dom, Ljubljana, EUR 10–30 Katalena took the stages of the most prominent festivals, concert halls and clubs home and abroad by storm.

In this time, the band has given birth to four brainchildren – (Z)godbe/Stories (2002), Babje leto/ Indian summer (2004), Kmečka ohcet/Country wedding (2006) and Cvik cvak! (2008). The albums received great attention among music writers who are up to this day still unable to categorize them, turned the existing folkloristic theories upside down and converted a great number of doubting Thomases into folk music fans.

Now they give us their fifth album, called Noč čarovnic/Halloween (2011) and they will present it in another legendary Slovenian institution, just like Katalena has become – Kino Šiška. It might not be Halloween, but get ready for some monster playing!

performance includes body art, video, installations and mechanic sounds.

Punk

NoMeansNo

Rock

Thu 21 Apr, 9pm, Cvetličarna, Ljubljana, EUR 15–18

The Bohemians Sat 16 Apr, 9pm, Cvetličarna, Ljubljana, EUR 19–22 Queen is one of the most renowned rock bands in the history of music and they have a huge following all over the world. It comes as no surprise that there should be a number of tribute bands performing their material, especially now that Freddie Mercury is no longer among us.

The Bohemians are considered one of the best Queen tribute fans.

So if you are a fan of Queen, there is really no excuse not to see this concert and experience Queen like they once were.

Ethno

Uršula Ramoveš Tue 19 Apr, 8.30pm, Cankarjev dom, Ljubljana, EUR 11–14 Singer Uršula Ramoveš from Poljanska dolina and her band will

On Holy Thursday we will listen to a new work by the increasingly well-known Slovenian composer Damjan Močnik, whose choir compositions are sung by choirs around the world. His composition, Christus Est Natus, has also been sung by the World Youth Choir.

Močnik is a music teacher and choir conductor at the Diocesan Classical Gymnasium in Ljubljana, and on top of all this, he also composes a lot. Performing his new composition as soloists, will be Močnik’s sister, Marta, and our well-known baritone, Marko Fink; along with the Diocesan Classical Gymnasium Choir which is usually conducted be Močnik.

play new songs from the treasury of remarkable poetry by Janez Ramoveš, also adding some wellknown compositions adapted for the performance style of Poljanska dolina. The evening will feature the talents of Uršula Ramoveš on vocals, Joži Šalej on vocals, accordion and piano, Metod Banko on vocals, Robert Jukič on bass, Marjan Stanič on drums, while Janez Ramoveš will contribute the poetry.

NoMeansNo is one of the biggest names to ever walk the punk rock stages. The band was formed in the late 1970s by brothers John (drums) and Rob Wright (vocals, bass). They recorded their first record on their own and dedicated it to their mother. They were later joined by guitarist Andy Kerr, with whom they recorded the album Sex Mad in 1986, which is still considered one of their most important achievements. If you want to experience one of the originators of the punk movement, just say yes to NoMeansNo.

Flowers

International Orchid Show Wed 20 Apr – Mon 25 Apr, The Tivoli park’s glasshouse, Ljubljana, no admission The International Orchid Show will feature a variety of different orchid species and varieties, which are

Theatre

Enrique Diaz, Cristina Moura Thu 21 Apr, 8pm, Cankarjev dom, Ljubljana, EUR 13–24 The Coletivo Improviso group comprises artists pursuing

EVENTS 59 various artistic fields (theatre, dance, performance events, music, and film), united in the aspiration towards asserting a new perspective on urban living.

The company’s performance of otro (The Other) finds inspiration in a series of travels following the footsteps of anonymous denizens of Rio de Janeiro, offering an insight into the unknown world of the Brazilian capital. Thus, an alternative cartography has been created, outlining the show of “the other” on the performers’ own bodies in their own city.

supported by French band I am a Curse, hailing from Le Mans.

Electronic

Hip hop

Tue Apr 26, 11pm, InBox, Ljubljana, EUR 16

Jazzy Jeff Tue 26 Apr, 10pm, Štuk, Maribor, EUR 13–17

Rock

My Polaris Artillery Sun 24 Apr, 8pm, Menza pri koritu, Ljubljana

My Polaris Artillery is one of the best things to come from the distant country of Denmark. They mix their derivations of math rock together with hard core screaming. They will be joined by the instrumental band Governor of Alaska, where they combine Cuban rhythms with heavy guitar riffs and samples. They will also be

DJ Jazzy Jeff is perhaps best known for his cameo appearances on the situational comedy The Fresh Prince of Bel Air, where he portrayed the friend of Will Smith, who was also his musical colleague. Jazzy Jeff was most frequently seen being kicked out of the house by the father of the family. The duo of Jazzy Jeff and Will Smith actually received the first Grammy for rap music in 1989. Will Smith has focused on his acting career, while Jazzy Jeff has remained in music.

Gareth Emery Gareth Emery is a trance-genre producer and DJ. In 2010 he was voted the #7 DJ in the world by the famous, DJ Mag Poll. Emery first came to the attention of the electronic music community early in 2002 when his debut vinyl release, a white label remix of The Shrink’s classic ‘Nervous Breakdown’, was broadcast live on BBC Radio 1 from the Mardi Gras festival on Judge Jules’ show.

Some of his most famous hits include ‘Sanctuary’, ‘Metropolis’ and ‘Exposure’. This is the tour to promote his album Northern Lights.

Classical

The Konzerthausorchester Berlin

the following pieces: Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s Overture to the opera The Magic Flute, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s Violin Concerto No. 3 in G major, KV 216 and Ludwig van Beethoven’s Symphony No. 6 in F major, Op. 68.

World music

Adriana Calcanhotto Tue 3 May, 8.30pm, Cankarjev dom, Ljubljana, EUR 15–18 Adriana Calcanhotto is a Brazilian singer/composer. Her melancholic songs are most often categorized as belonging to the Música Popular Brasileira genre. She started her professional career in 1984, released her first studio album in 1990 and is deservedly considered one of the finest musicians in her country. The line-up for the concert: Adriana Calcanhotto – voice, acoustic guitar; Alberto Continentino – acoustic bass; Domenico Lancellotti – percussion.

Tue 3 May, 7.30pm, Union Hall, Maribor, EUR 20 Listeners of quality classical music are in for a real treat with a visit from The Konzerthausorchester from Berlin, conducted by Lothar Zagrosek. The soloist for the evening will be Mirijam Contzen on violin. The programme will include

Ski & Golf Challenge The second original snow golf and golf tournament Mt. Kanin & Bovec 15–17 April 2011

Where in the world can you choose between skiing and playing golf on several feet of snow, on an altitude of 2,000 meters? Or skip to lower grounds for a round of golf on a grass surface next to an emerald river? And all in the same day.

There’s only one answer: Bovec

Ski & Golf Challenge program 15–17 April 2011 Registration of participants Press conference Official practice on Mt. Kanin Welcome reception & start ballot Ski & Golf tournament Price giving & dinner Closing Ski & Golf Party

www.golfbovec.si

Exclusive: Ski & Golf Challenge for The Slovenia Times readers!

First two registered readers will receive a special gift - Ski & Golf Challenge Packet.

Don’t hesitate! Send your participation on marketing@sloveniatimes.com!

Packet includes (2 nights in a hotel with food included, snow golf tournament, skiing at Kanin, entertainment and a lot of small surprises throughout the day)

Media partner

April 2011

60 SPORTS

Ski Season Review

Business as Usual With the exception of Tina Maze and occasionally Andrej Šporn, Slovenian Alpine skiing has provided fans with little joy in recent years. It is difficult to predict what lies ahead.

By Simon Demšar

J

udging by media reports, there has been a great amount effort invested into the revival of both Slovene Alpine and Nordic skiing but with little effect. With her private team, Tina Maze can hardly be put in the same league, although her wins, medals and third place in the overall standings count towards the national team.

Downhill stars Andrej Šporn and Andrej Jerman are also of a special breed, working under the auspices of Austrian coach Burkhard Schaffer. Andrej Šporn was the most successful individual, finishing 38th in the overall standings and 13th in downhill.

His best result was a 4th place in downhill. Having finished 22nd in the slalom standings and with the season’s best at 6th place in front of the home crown in Kranjska Gora, Mitja Valenčič was the best of the so-called technical team. I In giant slalom, referred to as the basis of Alpine skiing, Slovenia is nowhere...

The newly elected president of the Slovene Ski Association, Tomaž Lovše, and Alpine skiing director Jure Košir, have promised further support to Maze, but what is really worrying is the lack of a broad base of young guns, waiting in the wings and ready to step in.

Even former world junior champions, Ilka Štuhec (missed most of the season due to an injury), Matic Skube (made it into top 30 a few times) and Rok Perko (season’s best: 19th at the world championships) seem to have lost ground.

This year, they have been joined

by Boštjan Kline, 20, who became world junior champion in super G and downhill.

The times when “everybody was skiing” and most expenses were covered by clubs are long gone. To become a reasonably successful skier now takes a lot of (mostly financial) effort on the parents’ part, which is something that only the most enthusiastic are willing to do.

Slovenia used to be also a pool of top coaches, sought after by top national teams, such as Norway and Canada, even Austria. Commentators believe that an inappropriate professional approach, from the junior categories upwards, has had a major effect on the downward trend. Thing have gone even that far that some observers are indicating that Slovenian skiing has got it wrong in the very fundamentals of skiing technique.

Mixed feelings for the Nordic team

The Nordic team had another turbulent season. Petra Majdič hung up her skis after another excellent season (but probably only “just good” by her own standards). She won the sprint standings but fell short of the overall crystal globe, which had been her motivation to carry on after last year’s Olympic bronze medal. All her wins and trophies aside, her

greatest legacy is probably the strong team she has left behind, now led by Katja Višnar.

Biathletes are usually not so much in the spotlight, which is why their achievements often pass by almost unnoticed. They had a reasonable season, with Teja Gregorin finishing the overall world cup standings in 8th place. However, she often admits that the icing on the cake (podium finishes and wins) is still missing.

Things have always been the most dramatic in the ski jumping division, and this year was no different. Observers and the coaching team still cannot agree on whether the season was a success or not.

The media believe that a lucky third place at the world championships, repeated at the season’s finale in Planica, and Robert Kranjec’s second place in ski flying are not enough. There were no top 10 finishes in the world cup and Kranjec was the highest ranking individual in the overall standings (18th). The coaching team, led by

Interview: Eddie Edwards

Anything but an Ordinary Eagle Short, stocky, with huge glasses. It is highly unlikely that those would be keywords describing a ski jumping legend.

However, back in the 1980s they described Eddie Edwards. Not only was he the best ski jumper in the UK but also he was the first competitor ever to represent his country at the Olympics.

By Polona Cimerman

I

t was in Calgary in 1988 where he also set a British record of 73.5 metres. Sarcastically nicknamed “Eagle” due to his anything but great jumping achievements, he took the last place at the Olympic Games, yet still he became world-famous. His humour, enthusiasm and seemingly fearless jumping style won him affection of the spectators all around the globe. After the Games the Committee instituted what became known as the “Eddie the Eagle Rule” which set much harsher conditions for qualification. Edwards never qualified again, but has remained a legend. In March he visited the Ski Flying World Championship in Planica – this The Slovenia Times

time as a spectator, even though jumping fever still occasionally grabs him.

Looking back at your career as a ski jumper, what memories do you hold of it?

I have always been an adrenalin junkie so that is one of the reasons I started jumping. I was always laughing and joking in the competition; this was my way of promoting this sport and I hold many very fond memories of those times.

How are things different now comparing it to the situation in your time?

Today ski jumping is a completely different sport. Everybody jumps

COLUMN

Slovenian Dominance in NLB League

By Aleš Smerdel, the Institute for promotion of Sports

Petra Majdič - the honourable end of a brilliant sports career.

Matjaž Zupan and Franci Petek, resigned, blaming the opposition in the Ski Association’s circles for destructive criticism. Last but not least, Primož Peterka, twotime overall world cup winner in the late 1990s called it a day after many years’ struggle to make a comeback.

All in all, Slovenia firmly remains part of the show with three major world cup events in Kranjska Gora, Maribor and Planica.

People still follow skiing on TV, talk about it in pubs and, most popularly, comment on it on web forums.

in V-style, jumpers are very close to the hill, the bindings are different and everything is much safer. After the Committee introduced that rule they excluded sportsmen like me from taking part in the Games and with ever higher professional standards the sport is in danger of becoming boring and repetitive. I think it’s entertaining to have different jumpers since they add a bit of colour to the sport. At the moment, the USA, Canada and China are trying to qualify but perhaps they will not succeed. In my opinion, sports should be accessible to the world.

was still amazing and I enjoyed myself very much. One can see the spectators love long jumps. I was invited to go to the top of the hill and at that moment I felt like jumping again.

You visited Planica after more than 20 years. Has anything changed?

I remember that for me it was very difficult to jump there, but also that the crowd was always very happy and showed great support for ski jumpers. Perhaps I expected the ski jump was going to be more modern. Also I noticed there were not so many people there, however the atmosphere

Do you still jump?

No, my last jump ever was seven years ago to celebrate the opening of a ski jumping centre in Oberstdorf. But I still very much like to ski.

Did you see any of Slovenia?

This was my first visit after the country’s independence and I must say everything is very modern. I went to Bled, Kranjska Gora, Ljubljana, the Postojna cave and Lipica. I loved it!

What do you do now?

I commentate on games, do commercial PR and also construct houses when I have time. One of my projects is also a film about my story which is slowly progressing but I believe it’s going to be finished around the London Olympics next year.

The 10th regular season of the NLB regional basketball league has come to an end. Even though Partizan from Belgrade finished at first spot on the league table, teams from Slovenia were the best positive surprise of the season. Union Olimpija finished the regular season in second with one win less than Partizan, while Krka was third with the same number of triumphs as Olimpija. Fourth placed was Budučnost from Montenegro. All four teams qualified for the Final 4 tournament, which will be played in Ljubljana between 19th and 21st April.

This was the first season that Slovenia had only two teams in the league. The results in recent years were below expectations and the national coefficient (the average number of wins per team from one country) leaded to a situation in which Slovenia finished among Croatia, Serbia and Bosnia. This year the situation was opposite, with Slovenian teams, Krka in particular, surpassing expectations.

Slovenia finished at the top of the national table with a coefficient of 17, Serbia with 13 and Croatia and Bosnia finishing far behind at 11.5.

As a result, next year Slovenia will once again have four contenders in the strong regional league. Over the previous 10 years, the league’s reputation has grown; it is now ranked as one of the best leagues in Europe. With three Euroleague teams (Union Olimpija, Partizan Belgrade and Cibona Zagreb) the league is officially ranked as the 3rd strongest league of Europe, right behind the Spanish and Italian leagues.

The quality of the NLB is improving; one of the positive side effects is that more and more young players have the chance to play on both teams. This season, Krka’s coach, Đikić gave a lot of playing minutes to young Slovenian players Zoran Dragić, Edo Murič and Matej Rojc. Meanwhile, Union Olimpija’s Jure Zdovc was able to count on Dino Murić, Jan Špan, Sasu Salin and David Bertans.

It will be interesting to see both teams meet once again in the semi-final of the Final 4 tournament. This season all three previous clashes finished with narrow and lucky triumphs by Union Olimpija. The first match in Ljubljana was won by a point in last second, the match in Novo Mesto finished with a five-point difference, and the clash in quarter final of Slovenian Cup finished after the 3rd extra time. Krka had less than eight minutes to the end of regular time advantage of 20 points. This time Olimpija will be the favourite once again, especially because of the fans who will fill the new Stožice Arena.

No matter the final outcome, Slovenia will have a representative in the big final, something that has not happened since the premiere season of the NLB League 10 years ago. At that time, teams from Serbia were not yet included in the league. At the first Final 4 tournament in 2001/2, which was hosted by Ljubljana, Krka and Union Olimpija played in the big final. That year, the team from Ljubljana won their only NLB League title. This year, the champion could once again be a Slovenian team – that would be the perfect ending of this year’s tournament for Slovenian basketball.

April 2011

61

Illustrator Lila Prap at the premiere of theatrical adaptation of her international bestseller Dinosaurs. (MS) Red Arrows pilot Graenme Bagnall “Baggers” and UK Embassy military attache Derek Gibson with the hosts of June’s Aviofun 2011 airshow in Maribor.

Former track-and-field athlete and a healthy life promoter Brigita Bukovec supervising a Mc Donald’s employee at the promotion of their new McWrap sandwich.

EVERY PICTURE TELLS A STORY

Actor Janez Hočevar receiving a life-time achievement award at the Viktors (Slovenian media awards) event.

St Patrick’s Day reception at the residence of Irish ambassador to Slovenia (Photo: Tamara Bizjak) Employers of the year according to Dnevnik’s campaign Zlata nit (Golden thread): Dejan Turk of Simobil, Gregor Pipan of Xlab d.o.o. and Sonja Šinigoj of SOAP d.o.o.

Perpetuum Jazzile performing at the Koraki za Korakce charity event.

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Looking for 2010 the most popular foreigners in Slovenia Business | Diplomacy | Sports | Culture A campaign for building a multi-cultural and cohesive society, for establishing further successful international relations and open-minded cooperation between people of different cultural backgrounds.

For the seventh year in a row, Guest Star campaign continues to hold its meetings and continues to draw attention to the people who are making a positive contribution to Slovenia and its society.

Guest Star awards ceremony: 8 th April at 7pm at Ljubljana castle

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