Ljubljana, 14 November 2023 - Following the establishment of the UK Trade Council in October, the British-Slovenian Chamber of Commerce has taken a significant step forward in strengthening bilateral relations between the two countries by organising the inaugural meeting of the new Investors' Council. The meeting was attended by members of the Chamber, foreign investors and SPIRIT Slovenia Business Development Agency, all with the aim of promoting foreign direct investment (FDI) in Slovenia. The Council will serve to further attract FDI from the UK to Slovenia, share knowledge and best practice among UK investors, and identify and remove barriers to FDI growth.

"Today's inaugural meeting is an important step in strengthening cooperation with UK and other foreign investors, which will contribute not only to strengthening Slovenia's economic development, but also to creating new jobs and attracting the knowledge and innovative technologies that foreign investment has to offer," said Barbara Uranjek, CEO of the British-Slovenian Chamber of Commerce, at the start of the inaugural meeting.

Rok Capl, Acting Director of SPIRIT Slovenia, reflected on the existing constructive cooperation with the Chamber and the newly established Council, "For many years, SPIRIT Slovenia has been successfully cooperating with the British-Slovenian Chamber of Commerce in organising events, meetings and business delegations to strengthen the business ties between the two countries. One of the key tasks of our agency is to attract foreign investors to Slovenia, as they bring excellence, advanced technologies and a wealth of experience to our country and are therefore a vital and strategic part of the Slovenian business environment. We therefore welcome the Chamber's initiative to establish an Investors' Council and look forward to their constructive initiatives to improve Slovenia's business and investment environment to make it even more attractive to both domestic and foreign investors."

The insights of the UK investors gathered at this meeting will serve as a guide for further discussions within the Council and with Slovenian institutional stakeholders, including relevant ministries and the public agency SPIRIT Slovenia. By doing so, we aim to contribute to the further growth of FDI in Slovenia and to constructively address and remove identified barriers.

At the meeting, Bo Karlsson from Arriva was elected as the co-chairman of the Council, Denis Mancevič from NC3 d.o.o. was appointed as the Expert Facilitator, and Matija Urankar from Law Firm Senica & Partners was appointed as the Working Chairman.

Photos from the inagural meeting are available here.

List of Council members present:

1. Arriva
2. CMS Reich Rohrwig Heinz
3. Corwin Slovenija
4. GKN Driveline Slovenija
5. NC3 Global
6. Odvetniška družba Sibinčič Križanec Novak
7. Odvetniška pisarna Rojs, Peljhan, Prelesnik in partnerji
8. Odvetniška pisarna Senica & Partnerji
9. RRA Podravje – Maribor
10. Situla Business Center
11. Steklarna Rogaška
12. SUPEROS FUND MANAGEMENT